New CHP interceptor Ford SUV

[cpzilliacus]

KNX Radio: CHP Unveils New Police Interceptor Pursuit Vehicle

The California Highway Patrol has become the first law enforcement agency in the state to use the new faster, smarter and more fuel efficient Police Interceptor sports utility pursuit vehicle.

Made by the Ford Motor Company, the SUV is loosely based on the Ford Explorer, but with a few extra high-tech add-ons.

[agentsteel53]

dang, and here I thought as a species we were moving away from SUVs.

[briantroutman]

Police officers will claim that there are certain "heavy duty" characteristics that they simply can't do without–including qualities that make a vehicle worthy to use as a battering ram or barricade. These are the reasons many police departments are still using rear wheel drive body-on-frame Crown Vics that are technologically stuck in the '70s.

I suppose this is kind of like abusive spending in the military– no, I'm not an expert in their field and don't know what they really need vs. what they say they need, but I suspect that there is some waste and protecting of people's taxpayer-funded empires going on.

For vehicles that spend most of their life idling by the side of the road, following speeders, or carrying a single officer about his (her) rounds, I don't see why police departments aren't using either stripped out cheap hybrids or other smaller and more fuel-efficient vehicles.

[agentsteel53]

indeed.  typical European police vehicle:

[SP Cook]

Glad that California has solved all of its serious crime problems, and can now devote its resources to stomping out these dangerous people.  It is certainly important that the cops spend double or triple to have luxury SUVs, so they can out run 98% of other cars, rather than just 95%.

Your tax dollars at waste.

[FightingIrish]

Glad that California has solved all of its serious crime problems, and can now devote its resources to stomping out these dangerous people.  It is certainly important that the cops spend double or triple to have luxury SUVs, so they can out run 98% of other cars, rather than just 95%.

Your tax dollars at waste.

Pretty much any police department has SUVs on their fleet, and have for a long time. Typically either Chevy Tahoes or Ford Explorers. I've also seen a few minivans in use. None of them are what I'd call 'luxurious', though they are built to be very durable.

I'm sure there are a lot of law enforcement entities that are sad to see the venerable Crown Vic go away after being neglected by Ford for so long. Sure, it's pretty ancient, but it's a body-on-frame RWD that is very useful in certain situations. Repairs and maintenance costs are also lower. That's why only a relative few switched to Impalas in the past few years.

I do see more and more Dodge Chargers on the fleets. My local police department has been restocking with the new Ford Taurus. Nice looking ride, so long as it's not in your rearview mirror.

[cpzilliacus]

Glad that California has solved all of its serious crime problems, and can now devote its resources to stomping out these dangerous people.  It is certainly important that the cops spend double or triple to have luxury SUVs, so they can out run 98% of other cars, rather than just 95%.

According to the report from KNX, these vehicles have six cylinder engines, not  V-8 power used in all Crown Vics.

And I am not sure that a Ford Explorer is a luxury SUV either.

Your tax dollars at waste.

What would you have them drive? 

Over the summer, I have seen state troopers in New York State driving Chevy Tahoes and Suburbans, just yesterday I saw a Virginia trooper in a Tahoe (though the VSP also has plenty of Crown Vics and Chevy Impalas), Maryland troopers still have a lot of Crown Vics, but are phasing-in Ford Taurus and Holden (badged as Chevy) Caprice PPVs, in addition to Ford and Chevy SUVs.  In New Hampshire, the troopers I saw were in Crown Vics and Dodge Chargers; and in Connecticut every  trooper car I saw was an unmarked Crown Vic.

[agentsteel53]

What would you have them drive? 

Crown Vics.

[briantroutman]

What would you have them drive?

Speaking in terms of the Ford universe, some kind of Transit Connect-type vehicle based on old Focus mechanicals that Ford could crank out in the tens of thousands for under $20K apiece. Something that wouldn't be too cramped for the officers' day-in-day-out beat and capable enough to carry arrestees or gear when needed but still be compact and fuel efficient.

Seriously, the Explorer is the type of crossover vehicle where true utility has been sacrificed to appease suburbanites who think that a minivan would cramp their style. Is this what our cash-strapped state should be buying at nearly $30K each? The Transit Connect sells to people with catering businesses and delivery services, people to whom everyday utility and bottom-line cost are paramount.

[Brandon]

What would you have them drive? 

Dodge Chargers.  Yes, I am a bit Mopar-biased.  They need to get up to speed quickly, make quick turns, and be able to carry a "customer" in the back.  SUVs are for flipping.

[Scott5114]

The McClain County (OK) Sheriff's department has a few pickup trucks in their fleet. Try figuring out a use case for those...

[SP Cook]

What would you have them drive? 

Glad you asked.

First, I would have the take the very next exit. 

Then, I would have them RIP the radar gun out of the vehicle, permanently disable it, and throw it in the trash.

Then, I would have the deal with rape, murder, drug dealing, B&E, robbery, criminal immigration, fraud, theft, and other S E R I O U S crime, at place where such crimes are committed (hint: not on the interstate). 

And people would drive, safe and fast, self-regulating on the interstates, at an appropriate speed.

Problem solved.

As to a car.   Since we are on Ford, a Focus seems fine.  A good pair of Thom McCanns is better.

[Duke87]

There are circumstances where having a vehicle which rides high off the ground is beneficial. Cops may at times need to venture somewhere where a road is poorly improved (dirt tracks) or poorly maintained (snowstorm, plow hasn't come by). In these cases an SUV is good to have.

New York (State) is investing in a bunch of new police SUVs for another reason: being higher off the ground gives the cop a clearer perspective of other drivers' laps and thus makes it easier to see if someone is texting while driving.

[on_wisconsin]

The UW-Madison Police Dept. has been using the new(ish) Ford Explorer for over a year now. Also, the City of Madison Police Department has been using them for about the same time but only in there unmarked vehicle fleet. Long story short if you see a black newer Ford Explorer pull up behind you in Madison, slow down.

[formulanone]

What would you have them drive? 

MI

Crown Vics.

Smart cars, honestly...those blistering 0-60 times which mimic continental drift make it fair.

Crown Vic is out of production.

Plenty of police SUVs out there in the South, and likely any other place where there's rough terrain.

[cpzilliacus]

KNX Radio: CHP SUV Collides With Porsche In Studio City

[Stephane Dumas]

indeed.  typical European police vehicle:

Also, I spotted these ones here and there. Toyota Corollas used as police car in Israel, Singapore and Armenia
http://longsphotogallery.blogspot.ca/2011/01/toyota-corolla-altis-police-car.html
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Toyota_Corolla_in_police_service

Australia currently use Holdens and Aussie Ford Falcon, but the Aussie Falcon is near the end of the road and will have the same fate as the Crown Victoria.
http://www.carsguide.com.au/news-and-reviews/car-news/ford_falcon_gt_police_car
http://www.autoblog.com/2012/11/25/ford-falcon-gt-becomes-australias-most-power-police-car-ever/

[mc78andrew]

Glad that California has solved all of its serious crime problems, and can now devote its resources to stomping out these dangerous people.  It is certainly important that the cops spend double or triple to have luxury SUVs, so they can out run 98% of other cars, rather than just 95%.

Your tax dollars at waste.

Come on.  You guys aren't totally broke yet.  The bond market will still lend you money so you might as well try and keep your manhood with the explorer.  How are people supposed to respect a cop driving a RAV4?

I was next to a tarus police interceptor at the car wash today.  The guy was in a full suit and badge on bis belt.  Doubt he needed an interceptor vehicle, but I really don't know sh$t about what most cops do.

Why don't the really rich towns get x5m's or cayenne turbos?  It would be tough to outrun those bad boys and they corner a hell of a lot better than an explorer or tahoe.

[cpzilliacus]

What would you have them drive? 

Glad you asked.

First, I would have the take the very next exit. 

Then, I would have them RIP the radar gun out of the vehicle, permanently disable it, and throw it in the trash.

Then, I would have the deal with rape, murder, drug dealing, B&E, robbery, criminal immigration, fraud, theft, and other S E R I O U S crime, at place where such crimes are committed (hint: not on the interstate). 

And people would drive, safe and fast, self-regulating on the interstates, at an appropriate speed.

Problem solved.

As to a car.   Since we are on Ford, a Focus seems fine.  A good pair of Thom McCanns is better.

I am not a police officer.  Never have been and never will be.  But consider this - a lot of crime (including serious crime) is detected and suspects arrested as a result of traffic law enforcement.

Two examples:

(1) The late Timothy McVeigh was arrested for driving a vehicle with  expired registration plates on I-35 after the Oklahoma City bombing.

(2) In Virginia, violators of the HOV requirements have often ended up under arrest for other things as a result of being stopped for not having two or three persons in the car (it's a cheap ticket in Virginia, especially the first time around).  But for many years up to the early 1990's, the District of Columbia had its prison complex in Lorton, Virginia, right next to I-95 (and the I-95 HOV lanes).  Over and over again, the Virginia State Police arrested people (including D.C. corrections officers) going to the prisons with various forms of illegal drugs destined for sale in those prisons.  All because people insisted on violating the posted HOV rules.

[SP Cook]

I am not a police officer.  Never have been and never will be.  But consider this - a lot of crime (including serious crime) is detected and suspects arrested as a result of traffic law enforcement.

And.  Substitute "traffic law enforcement" with "randomly breaking into people's homes and searching them with no probable cause" or "having the NSA read their private mail" or "rounding up the usual suspects and torturing them until they confess" and your argument is just as pointless.    The only point you seem to make is that those who are committing the 0.0000001% of serious crime that is committed on expressways should be careful to follow the traffic laws.

Every second spent enforcing traffic is a second not spent looking for, say, Ariel Castro's victims. 

[Alps]

I am not a police officer.  Never have been and never will be.  But consider this - a lot of crime (including serious crime) is detected and suspects arrested as a result of traffic law enforcement.

And.  Substitute "traffic law enforcement" with "randomly breaking into people's homes and searching them with no probable cause" or "having the NSA read their private mail" or "rounding up the usual suspects and torturing them until they confess" and your argument is just as pointless.    The only point you seem to make is that those who are committing the 0.0000001% of serious crime that is committed on expressways should be careful to follow the traffic laws.

Every second spent enforcing traffic is a second not spent looking for, say, Ariel Castro's victims. 

Look, you're not from around here, but very often, someone driving with expired tags, broken taillights, etc. is a criminal. The second most-likely diagnosis is a teenager, but I have seen so many shady characters in broken-down cars, and they end up in the news all the time. I have no problem whatsoever with enforcing those laws. Keep your car legal to operate on the road. I also have no problem with speed enforcement, despite not being someone who necessarily follows speed laws. If it's a law, it's enforceable. That said, it's unwise to waste time pulling people over who are traveling with the flow of traffic. Pull over people who are driving actually unsafely and endangering others. Don't abandon policing the roads and leave it as a free for all.

[mc78andrew]

What would you have them drive? 

Glad you asked.

First, I would have the take the very next exit. 

Then, I would have them RIP the radar gun out of the vehicle, permanently disable it, and throw it in the trash.

Then, I would have the deal with rape, murder, drug dealing, B&E, robbery, criminal immigration, fraud, theft, and other S E R I O U S crime, at place where such crimes are committed (hint: not on the interstate). 

And people would drive, safe and fast, self-regulating on the interstates, at an appropriate speed.

Problem solved.

As to a car.   Since we are on Ford, a Focus seems fine.  A good pair of Thom McCanns is better.

I am not a police officer.  Never have been and never will be.  But consider this - a lot of crime (including serious crime) is detected and suspects arrested as a result of traffic law enforcement.

Two examples:

(1) The late Timothy McVeigh was arrested for driving a vehicle with  expired registration plates on I-35 after the Oklahoma City bombing.

(2) In Virginia, violators of the HOV requirements have often ended up under arrest for other things as a result of being stopped for not having two or three persons in the car (it's a cheap ticket in Virginia, especially the first time around).  But for many years up to the early 1990's, the District of Columbia had its prison complex in Lorton, Virginia, right next to I-95 (and the I-95 HOV lanes).  Over and over again, the Virginia State Police arrested people (including D.C. corrections officers) going to the prisons with various forms of illegal drugs destined for sale in those prisons.  All because people insisted on violating the posted HOV rules.

MD state police pulled over one of the 9-11 hijackers only a few days before the attack.  Too bad they let him go.

[bugo]

The McClain County (OK) Sheriff's department has a few pickup trucks in their fleet. Try figuring out a use case for those...

So does Wagoner County.  I've talked to several Wagoner County deputies and they told me the top speed of their trucks (Ford) is 96 MPH.  That's a good cruising speed for me.

[bugo]

What would you have them drive? 

Then, I would have the deal with rape, murder, drug dealing, B&E, robbery, criminal immigration, fraud, theft, and other S E R I O U S crime, at place where such crimes are committed (hint: not on the interstate). 

Are you seriously comparing selling weed to rape and murder?

I do agree with you on speeding, however. 

[bugo]

I am not a police officer.  Never have been and never will be.  But consider this - a lot of crime (including serious crime) is detected and suspects arrested as a result of traffic law enforcement.

And.  Substitute "traffic law enforcement" with "randomly breaking into people's homes and searching them with no probable cause" or "having the NSA read their private mail" or "rounding up the usual suspects and torturing them until they confess" and your argument is just as pointless.    The only point you seem to make is that those who are committing the 0.0000001% of serious crime that is committed on expressways should be careful to follow the traffic laws.

Yet you believe drugs should be illegal.  Freedom for me, fuck you to you.