View Full Version : 2011 Police Cars
Kentucky Cop
03-12-10, 13:09
I just saw the new Ford TAURUS police car. Yes, I said Taurus. I am a little disappointed with Ford. It appears that they will be offering two engines which consist of V6's. When the Taurus is all decked out with the police equipment, it looks dead on the new Chevy Caprice......except, the Caprice comes with the 6.0 V8. I really don't know what to think. I feel kind of let down. I hope my agency which is completely a Interceptor department switch's over to the Caprice or Charger with the V8's. And yes, there is talk of a SHO model with twin turbos. I really don't see our fleet services working on turbos and I am sure the price is scary compared to the CVPI. A front wheel drive car will be a huge change for the cops when driving them hard thru corners. I might be a little hard on them right now because I was so excited to see the new cruiser offering and then this.
Front wheel drive........really? Come on Ford, you probably just lost most of the State Police's loyalty for a highway cruiser.
Thoughts anyone,...
http://www.cheersandgears.com/topic/55099-ford-to-reveal-new-taurus-police-interceptor-on-friday/page__pid__583654__st__0&#entry583654
Ky Cop
Nathan_Bell
03-12-10, 13:39
Curious as to why the attachment to the RWD cars among LEO.
Report I read said that at least one version of the Taurus police car will actually put out more power than the GM V8. This is an ongoing trend in the performance market btw. My 2004 Audi S4 features a V8 that gives me something in the low teens for mpg. The 2010 S4 features slightly less hp but a little more torque from a supercharged V6 that actually results in slightly better performance, and a better mpg return. I believe BMW is moving to a twin turbo or some other forced induction V8 on the new M5, instead of the current V10 used in that vehicle. Going with the V6 gives Ford a presumably lighter car and better mpg, which in this day and age is a concern for any law enforcement agency operating on a budget. As for FWD vs RWD, I would argue that when you look at the police population on a whole, FWD probably wins out in terms of getting more interior room in the car. Of course there is no debate that a rwd vehicle will out-handle a similarly spec'd fwd, but again, budgetary constraints result in a more comprehensive thought process when creating a fleet of vehicles for cash strapped law enforcement agencies. And frankly, I'm not so sure a rwd trumps a fwd drive for police use on a highway. I'd be more concerned if I were looking for a vehicle that could accelerate hard and handle well within the confines of a city. On the highway, torque steer and handling wouldn't seem to me to be that big of a concern, considering you're typically looking at straight line acceleration and moderate twisties.
Nathan_Bell
03-12-10, 14:46
Predictability at the limit.
Gotcha, they are planning for the 0.1% happenings.
Nathan_Bell
03-12-10, 15:00
Not sure what you are saying exactly. I'm at the limit, against my will, nearly every night I work.
Most police I have dealings with do not. They might do it once a year or so, but some have never had their lights on in pursuit for more than 5 minutes, you will hear the same story about chasing someone in a car for years at a time.
Different parts of the country, didn't think about zapping through some tight streets etc.
Realibility. FWD on uneven or gravel pot hole filled roads sucks. The vehicle driveline is not as durable as a RWD.
Kentucky Cop
03-12-10, 15:47
I may be wrong but I think the police Taurus comes with torque steer which helps you fighting the wheel under acceleration and potholes etc. Talked to one of the mechanics here at the agency and he overheard the head wrench turners talking about this subject. It all comes down to which one is going to warranty their product the longest 30k, 60k miles and pricing.
As far as the V6 issue, he says that from the numbers he is guessing it will run like a raped ape and the turbo isn't out of the question...........if the price is right. (imagine that). He claims that they are going to Michigan in september to watch all the cars go round and round and chat with the reps from each. So to summarize, nobody will know a thing till pricing, and warranties are in stone from each manufacture. :confused:
Ky Cop
Go CATs! "we love our COUSINS in Kentucky"!
Alpha Sierra
03-12-10, 16:34
Predictability at the limit.
That is a function of suspension tuning more than which set of tires are applying power.
I have tons of experience driving FWD cars at the limit in SCCA autocross and never found unpredictable behavior.
Hell, RWD cars are notorious for unexpected oversteer once you cross the line.
rickrock305
03-12-10, 19:25
That is a function of suspension tuning more than which set of tires are applying power.
I have tons of experience driving FWD cars at the limit in SCCA autocross and never found unpredictable behavior.
Hell, RWD cars are notorious for unexpected oversteer once you cross the line.
IMO a rear wheel drive car is easier to handle under aggressive driving conditions. i'd rather deal with oversteer than the understeer you get from FWD
Alpha Sierra
03-12-10, 20:26
Hardly a fair comparison between fleet vehicles and purpose built SCCA autcross race cars.
I can hardly call an E Stock VW Golf GTi a purpose built car.
Nathan_Bell
03-12-10, 20:41
Must be nice.
Appalachia does have its charms. :eek:
I believe BMW is moving to a twin turbo or some other forced induction V8 on the new M5, instead of the current V10 used in that vehicle.
You are correct.
All guys are born thinking they can naturally shoot, drive, fight and... you get the idea (Grant told me that one I think).
As an LEO, I'd rather have Front or All-wheel drive for overall safer driving. By this I mean inclement weather and less than ideal road/track conditions being taken into consideration. Sure rear-wheel drive is vaunted for best performance on a race track considering weight transfer and vehicle dynamics, but most LEOs simply do not have the driving skills they think they do (probably parallels the average LEO's shooting ability in some ways unfortunately) and far from the skills to be able to fully leverage the "advantage" of rear-wheel drive in hard driving.
I'd rather have the car predictably understeer under hard cornering (front-wheel drive) than oversteer because I think it is generally safer for most drivers and others on the road. Crown Vics can have the rear break away and get squirrely fairly easily with slick pavement because of rain, leaves, ice or snow and that's not from running as hard as a pursuit.
If your a Bob Bondurant driving school graduate or were born with the natural ability to drive like a demon and do it as safely as possible, bless your heart. Most LEOs I am aware of have little exposure to and training with that level of performance. Factor in the adrenalin and road conditions and that tips the scale for me to front-wheel drive.
I work with other LEOs who disagree, but that is my $.02.
El Vaquero
03-12-10, 21:33
Curious as to why the attachment to the RWD cars among LEO.
Personally for me, RWD (or AWD) is a must for any high horsepower vehicle. AWD is nice but very expensive. I have driven Crown Vics, Impalas, and Chargers. High horsepower in FWD can lead to unpredictably in the way of torque steer and understeer (Acura and Audi might be considered exceptions but are again, expensive). Traffic cops and troopers that work the highway need horsepower, hence RWD. For the regular beat cop V6's are the way to go because in general; they are less expensive to buy and get better gas mileage than V8's. I did not much like the Impalas (FWD) handling wise, but as a skilled driver like myself :D, I was able to run circles around Crown Vics at the track. Prior to LE I used to road race a RWD vehicle.
Having said all that. The V6 Chargers (while looking very cool) are complete dogs and are terrible to drive. The Charger was made to have the Hemi in it.
If Ford presents a cheap package in FWD many agencies will probably go after it.
We had the Ford Taurus Police package cars in the 90s. Hard to keep them out of the shop. Too cramped with console, gear and MDCs. They were very quick up to 80mph (we had Caprice Classic PD cars and Crown Vix too) but slow to get to top end after that. Big complaints were we could not keep them out of the shop. Front wheel drive stinks for police cars. Going over curbs etc....blows out the U joints on the the drive axles and we destroyed the steering units regularly. Power steering systems may have changed over the years but even the toughest complained of dealing with the excessive torque steer giving them sore/fatigued arms after 10 hours. We have never gone back to front wheel drive anything. Prior to two years i would tell you the best police car I ever drove was a 87 Caprice till I got the 08 Police Tahoe.
FWD cop cars are big down here. Orange County SO runs Impalas and that's a fairly large agency.
We had the Ford Taurus Police package cars in the 90s. Hard to keep them out of the shop. Too cramped with console, gear and MDCs. They were very quick up to 80mph (we had Caprice Classic PD cars and Crown Vix too) but slow to get to top end after that. Big complaints were we could not keep them out of the shop. Front wheel drive stinks for police cars. Going over curbs etc....blows out the U joints on the the drive axles and we destroyed the steering units regularly. Power steering systems may have changed over the years but even the toughest complained of dealing with the excessive torque steer giving them sore/fatigued arms after 10 hours. We have never gone back to front wheel drive anything. Prior to two years i would tell you the best police car I ever drove was a 87 Caprice till I got the 08 Police Tahoe.
No comparison between a 2008+ and a pre-08 Taurus. Only thing the same is the name.
Cascades236
03-13-10, 02:45
Sure the current cvpi oversteers but it is ridiculously predictable and damn controllable.
Those of you that are talking about awd..have you driven a high power awd car such as an sti or evolution? Understeer city even with all the fancy differentials...now imagine a fat pig Taurus.
Truth is I don't need something blazingly fast. Ill take good ergonomics over speed.
NinjaMedic
03-13-10, 06:51
Not sure what you are saying exactly. I'm at the limit, against my will, nearly every night I work.
I think you are full of shit, anyone who is at the limit nearly every shift does so typically by choice . . .
ThirdWatcher
03-13-10, 07:00
Sure the current cvpi oversteers but it is ridiculously predictable and damn controllable... Truth is I don't need something blazingly fast. Ill take good ergonomics over speed.
Absolutely right. ;)
I guess unfortunately, the days of the big, American, rwd cars are coming to an end. What else are L.E Depts supposed to use? Suburbans maybe? I'll tell you guys what, I saw a Ford SHO yesterday and it was actually a nice looking car. I think anyone who drives one will be a happy camper. Dont get me wrong, its no mustang pursuit cars of the early 90's but it looks like it could handle daily chores.
Kentucky Cop
03-13-10, 16:09
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/27/automobiles/27ulrich-best.html?_r=2&pagewanted=2&sq=Ford%20Taurus%20disappointing&st=cse&scp=1
Scroll down just a bit and you will have you answer. Ford Taurus taking the number one spot of the biggest POS. Now, lets give it to some cops and let them hammer on it all day and night and see where it is after 30K miles. Again, give me the RWD Charger or Caprice. Thats what I am use too, along with 700 of my other co-workers. :confused:
Ky Cop
Alpha Sierra
03-13-10, 16:41
I guess unfortunately, the days of the big, American, rwd cars are coming to an end. What else are L.E Depts supposed to use?
Look to Europe. They do have cops and car chases there too.
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