Ford previews new Police Interceptor

Love it!!!!

Well, Ford didn't do too well with the old Crown Vic - known as a cop killer. Why should we think they've done any better with this model considering they built F150's with leaky front windows that allowed water to infiltrate and fry the electronics? And they didn't even bother to tell the consumer so they could fix the window and prevent thousands of dollars of repairs.

And don't forget another old firebrand - the Pinto. Ford stalled on that one as well.

As a retired police officer, I'm glad I don't have to risk my life driving one of these new cars - A basic Taurus dressed up. And remember, Ford isn't selling the Taurus anymore. Just using an old line with makeup to sell as a new vehicle.

Now that there is other manufacturers coming out with police cars, ford is threatened. Looks like they used Acura design cues.

Personally I don't think police would really like a FWD car. Ford worked with police officers with the interior, but did they ask about drive train etc. Police cars should be RWD, or AWD. Since they work all year round in snow etc. You'd think they'd have an AWD version at least.

Should be interesting to see these cars on the road. Finally getting rid of the crown vics.

Looking foreward to seeing the real deal up close and personal, as long as I don't end up being the guy in the back seat... though I am going to miss the old Classic Look of the RCMP Squad Cars.

This junk will likely be responsible for the death of more Police officers than the criminals. Front drives have torque steer, not nice when you have to apply power on uncertian road surfaces.

it looks nice & fast. i just hope it is.

I love it as well. It is more Ford top quality .I suppose that LN would rather see the Dodge police cruisers being used, even though their front suspension and steering wear out in about half the miles than that of the ford. that is why our town is sticking with FORD.Also , why would you compare a police cruiser with a Pinto or an F150

The only problem I see with this car is that its FWD. That is why in Ontario it is law that Police cars are RWD only . Reason SAFETY. To explain when you have FWD the back has no traction and is always trying to pass the front end. If your an "aggressive driver you will note your rear tires show wear on the outside edges then they tell you its out of align $$$ except its side scuffin. however if it wet on a turn curve you better have the lowest speed for the turn because if not and you lift off the gas the back end will pass the front with end with a roll in the ditch. You don't know what happened and the cops charge you with careless.In order to have TRACTION you need FRICTION the front end uses the weight (always heavier on the front end hence more friction) by the continuous scuffing when keeping it straightcorrecting or turning. The rear in the FWD cars is only a folower and has no traction except side scuffing with only 40% of the weight which becomes less under braking. Rwd cars in the rear get friction hence traction by side scuffing plus it is constantly accelerating and braking by the engine. Easy to recover in a skid. Watch Nascar all the Taureses and Impalas they're a fraud they are all RWD. Why, safety. This baby will never fly. I personally think the cops should go back to cars and have paddy wagons for transporting prisoners. The car I'm looking forward to is a clone of the Pontiac G8 which was made in Australia. This is a super fast roomy rear wheel drive v6. I think GM will intro it as a Lumina to be made in NA. Buy those with paddy wagons. Cheap way to go.RWD is cheaper to maintain. FWD are cop killers and family killers.Why as a vp from GM told me ( This is back in 1986) buick century cost 9000 to build if in rear then it would cost 10500. The big bonus is RWD cars have in the first 4 years aftermarket part of about 1500 but FWD they get in parts about 4500. Think about it that not even considering the labor. Goldmine. Now to fix this unsafe FWD cars they said lets have AWD . Another 4000 to the price plus all those repairs. Money talks so GM Ford lets not look at Toyota for sins you have your own.

How does front wheel drive perform when doing a PIT maneuver?

FWD when doing a PIT is ok but FWD steering has a larger steering radius. Also these FWD cars after doing a pi since they dont have a frame such a the Crown will result in twisted bodies as well as the repairs to your front will be vey heavy. They are designed to fold absorb impact. lol.

Way to go ford sharp impressive looking vehicle. Sounds like someone living in the past talking about vehicles from 35 years i.e. the pinto. Every manufacturer has had there fair shair of not so great vehicle. Gm to many to list. The crown vic could not have been that bad when you watch the news from all around north america. Any state any province all you see is the crown vic.

Further to previous posts
Cars with a full frame when in an accident can be easily fixed, put on a new fender straighten frame if in a severe accident , unibodies just fold up. How many of you have had an accident and figured a few days in the bodyshop and its fixed only to find out the insurance company scrapped it. Then gives you wholesale money and you have to put down a budle to make up the difference for a replacement. Cops will find this out.
As far as front ends wearing out on FWD yes this is part of the 4000 in parts.The front end has the severe extra stress of acceleration/ deceleration.
One more thing regarding traction. My son just asked "well how come I see Ford escorts etc. on road courses their back ends don't fly around" Answer Since they don't have the acceleration deceleration of RWD friction they make their own friction. The driver has the emergency hand brake lever in one hand and applies the brake lightly through the turn and deceleration.

i retired last year after thirty years of policing,in ns,i personaly think ford is making a big mistake to go to a front wheeh drive with out a full frame,i am glad that i will not have to drive a tarus,i have 4 cr vic ex
police cars of my own,love them.ken

My point on the old Crown Vic and the Pinto was that Ford refuses to acknowledge killer cars until it is too late for many. The Crown Vic was notorious as a cop killer and Ford refused to acknowledge same. It comes down to they can make a nice looking car but if there are problems, they will refuse to discuss it. I drove the old Plymouths, both in patrol and chase mode. The Fords we had were pigs to drive. They've now gone to a cramped light model with no frame which won't handle the punishment of jumping curves and the front wheel drive will be destroyed by rough terrain, curbs,etc. Police cars don't drive on tracks all day nor in normal situations. I have to back Rod and Mike on this one.The only reason the Crown Vic was seen all the time as it was the only large scale cheap model still being sold. I live in a Ford town but since they don't back their product, I'll buy elsewhere.

Re Mikes Comments -
You must not have driven a front wheel drive car in some time. By far the majority of vehicles on the road now are FWD & contrary to your opinion that they are hard to handle & tend to oversteer, roll over & have torque steer I suggest you take a few out for a test drive you will be surprised at the changes. Yes you may have to change your driving style compared to a rear wheel drive but as far as traction, efficiency, fuel economy & handling for most purposes the new models will fit the required tasks admirably & will be a better vehicle in the snow. As high speed chases are now avoided as much as possible for everyones safety if you are ending up in a ditch, rolled over on your roof then ther is a need to take some advanced driving classes & not be driving at high speed in any vehicle with it is front, rear or all wheel drive.

the best part oif the crown vic is the 4.6, super reliable but under powered. more powerful version will be nice. the caprice/impala version was a tank, and the LT1 had good power. just bad optispark setup.
superchargers/turbos are not going to be popular with the severe duty that the cop cars need/are used to.
they need full frame (would actually benefit from a thicker than production) reliable AND powerful motor (gm is producing a better all around motor with the LS series), REAR WHEEL DRIVE cause torque steer sucks, drive axles and wheel bearings get chewed up with high torque cornering, and high speed driving/cornering is more predictable and stable with rwd.

manual trannies have always been more reliable and durable (especially with heat) but they are more involved so you are stuck with auto, so a 6 speed is better than nothing.

dodge is good but reliability is falling short, ford has its own problems (and is about to have more...)
now is the time for GM to step up to the plate with a poice only platform or one geared towards fleet duties that they can convert TO public use not the other way around. it is expensive but will pay off more in the long run than they have ever had before. police, cabs, security, ad them all up and you will be shocked.

but......we are not 'the big three' and we are not the fleet buyers so we have no say in how it is done, but being a part time speeder and full time driver it is nice to know that they will probably be on the hook and in the shop more often than they are in speed traps and behind me.

Further to above comments.
1. My son just asked well how come you see FWD cars on TV and they don't spin around ? Well the answer is that they race with one hand on the emergency brake lever and slowing down and thru the turns the brake is applied to increase friction therefor traction. Some even have their front brakes reduced in braking ability or have the rear increased to provide the same effect. This is not Mom wants to do when driving.
2. Pit damage- The above pic with the cow catcher on th front looks strong but they connect it to the #' x 3' frame that the engine tranny and full suspension is bolted to. That frame is bolted by 4 to 6 bolts to the sheet metal body.Strong eh!
3. Another FWD concer. Have you ever noticed that when it rains there is so much water on the road ,even whe its stopped how long it stay water logged? Well with FWD drive in winter or icey roads when the wheel spins the front end goes to the right banging your front wheel into the curb. Ouch, tire, CV's ,suspension, alignment. In RWD the rear of the car goes right but its asy to control and you have steering control. Anyway so what they did was to get all the new paving done without the crown in the road which is there to drain moisture to get rid of hydroplaning.

My posts have nothing to do with Ford because I think they're a good car My concern is with reliability, low cost maintenance, fast and super handling safe car for the Policemen that risk their lives in order to assist the public.. What I want to see Ford do Is put a light weight Stainless Steel full length tube frame, rear wheel drive in that vehicle up top.

Response to Glen A. comments. I understand where your coming from which I read to be a civilian doing the normal things drive to work grocery store etc which if you you maintain the speed limit drive in a non aggressive manner you will probably not be in danger. However my comments are towards the above car that like the Chevy Impala FWD that they tried to sell to the cops it is not suitable and downright dangerous. That's why thee OPP cancelled 275 left on their order.Cops need a proper vehicle configured to their needs.Safely. This is a family car with lights and a paint job.
It reminds me of the Hummer, can't do the job and therefore dangerous. I've worked on cars for 30 years and worked in engineering automotive to nuclear environment. My older son is a Master Mechanic for a German automaker. Yes I have driven many FWD cars and AWD the money is a turn off, the maintenance is a turn off and I hate driving anything that is unsafe especially if the design was born in the name of greed.

Excellent comments, people. I only have one thing to add. Since Ford is shutting its St. Thomas plant and thereby putting Ontarians out of work when the Crown Vic is discontinued, it would be nice if all Canadian police forces switched over to the made-in-Brampton Dodge Charger (which, by all reports, is a better cop car than the Crown Vic anyway) and gave this turkey the cold shoulder.

Boy you can sure tell a severely uneducated bunch of posters. Some of the comments here make no sense whatsoever. Learn to spell & read your post before you submit it. FWD is here to stay & in my opinion handle equally or better than RWD, especially in the ice & snow climates. Newsflash, a vehicle that collapses in a collision absorbs the impact & usually the driver is unhurt. You are seeing less & less full frame vehicles being produced, unless its a truck. If you are properly trained in whatever vehicle, FWD or RWD, they will perform for whatever is asked of them. Welcome to the future. Better fuel economy anyone?