Ford Police Interceptors win acceleration war against Dodge, Chevy

Thu, 17 Oct 2013

Just last month, Ford announced its first-ever non-pursuit-rated version of the Police Interceptor sedan for agencies looking to maximize fuel economy, but that doesn't mean that Ford is giving up on chasing down the bad guys. While the Dodge Charger can lay claim to the fastest lap time at the Grattan Raceway test facility held by the Michigan State Police, the results are now in for the Police Vehicle Evaluation acceleration tests. And Ford's Police Interceptor duo (sedan and utility) came out on top.

In the acceleration tests, Ford says that the Taurus-based PI Sedan with the newly available 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 was the quickest among prospective police cars in both 0-60 and 0-100 mile per hour times. The sedan posted a 0-60 time of 5.66 seconds with all-wheel drive and 5.71 seconds with front-wheel drive, besting V8-powered competitors like the Chevy Caprice and Dodge Charger by more than 0.3 seconds. These rivals close the gap on the AWD sedan in the 0-100 test with the Ford taking 13.5 seconds compared to the Chevy's time of 14.35 and the Dodge's time of 14.7.

As for utility vehicles, the Explorer-based PI Utility, which accounts for 60 percent of Ford's police vehicle sales, essentially went head-to-head with the V8-powered Chevy Tahoe with similar results. Equipped with the new EcoBoost engine option, this big SUV hit 60 mph in just 6.28 seconds and 100 mph in 15.51 seconds compared to times of 8.22 seconds and 21.95 seconds, respectively, for the Tahoe. Other important tests in the PVE include braking and top speed, but while no automakers have stepped up to boast about their numbers in either of these categories, Ford's images show that the V8 Caprice had the highest top speed of the cars at 155 mph while the Tahoe's 139-mph speed made it the fastest utility vehicle.

Ford EcoBoost Police Interceptors Outrun Chevrolet Caprice V8, Hemi Dodge Charger in Michigan State Police Testing

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DEARBORN, Mich., Oct. 17, 2013 – Ford, manufacturer of the best-selling police vehicles since 1996, trumped Chevrolet and Dodge in recent instrumented acceleration testing by the Michigan State Police. The new Ford EcoBoost®-powered Police Interceptor sedan bested both the Chevrolet Caprice V8 and Hemi Dodge Charger, while Ford Police Interceptor utility with EcoBoost took down the V8-equipped Chevrolet Tahoe.

"These tests conducted by the Michigan State Police are an important validation of best-in-class performance in outright acceleration – the most critical measure of police pursuit vehicles," said Bill Gubing, Ford chief engineer. "Agencies tell us if the bad guys see the police vehicle quickly close in pursuit, they're less likely to try to run. If this can help reduce the number of high-speed chases, then we could improve public safety on our nation's roads."

Preliminary results of Michigan State Police testing show the fastest of the fast – the 2014 Ford Police Interceptor sedan with standard all-wheel drive – posted a 0-60 mph time of 5.66 seconds, compared to 6.04 seconds for the 5.7-liter Hemi-equipped Dodge Charger with optional all-wheel drive.

The Ford EcoBoost-powered sedan also topped the 6.0-liter V8-equipped Chevrolet Caprice, which clocked a 6.01-second 0-60 mph time.

The gap in acceleration only grows in Michigan State Police 0-100 mph testing: Ford Police Interceptor turned a 13.5-second 0-100 mph time, while Dodge Charger posted 14.70 seconds and Chevrolet Caprice took 14.35 seconds.

The new Ford Police Interceptor 3.5-liter EcoBoost-powered utility vehicle made its debut in Michigan State Police testing, and while competition was close among sedans, the Ford utility left its rivals in the dust. Compared to the 5.3-liter V8-powered Chevrolet Tahoe, which posted a 0-60 mph time of 8.22 seconds and a 0-100 mph time of 21.95 seconds, the Ford Police Interceptor utility vehicle with standard all-wheel drive hit 60 mph in 6.28 seconds and 100 mph in 15.51 seconds.

Ford's Police Interceptor utility vehicle is proving particularly attractive to agencies that could use the added space and versatility it provides. Gubing pointed out these tests demonstrate police agencies don't have to sacrifice performance for the additional space and functionality Police Interceptor utility delivers. Approximately 60 percent of Ford Police Interceptor sales are the utility vehicle, with 40 percent for the sedan.

Even without EcoBoost, the base 3.7-liter V6 Ford Police Interceptor utility with all-wheel drive is faster than Chevrolet Tahoe V8. Police Interceptor clocked an 8.02-second 0-60 mph time, with Tahoe lagging behind at 8.22 seconds. Police Interceptor led Tahoe in the 0-100 mph test too – 21.0 seconds to 21.95 seconds.

Ford Police Interceptors are gaining attention with agencies nationwide as a means of balancing law enforcement's need for speed in pursuit-rated vehicles with the need to save money. Switching from traditional V8-equipped police vehicles to powerful but more efficient Ford EcoBoost V6 vehicles achieves that.

With Ford's announcement in September of a new non-pursuit-rated, fuel-efficient 2.0-liter EcoBoost-equipped Special Service Police sedan, the company now offers law enforcement agencies the power of choice when they want to maximize efficiency and power.

For more information on Ford Police Interceptor, visit www.FordPoliceInterceptor.com.

By Jeffrey N. Ross