Ford Introduces New Taurus-Based Police Interceptor

The Police Interceptor may be one of the single best known vehicles on the road. Sure, exotics turn heads, and heavy duty trucks are impossible to ignore, but there are few vehicles on the road today command the respect of Ford’s police package-equipped Crown Victoria.

But, for all its ability to slow traffic, the Police Interceptor is possibly the most archaic car produced today. Rooted on a platform born in the seventies, its V8 is downright anaemic and it’s only slightly more agile than a locomotive. In short, while it may have been competitive decades ago, it’s time for the Crown Victoria to take its police pension package and ride off into the sunset. Of course, the only problem with that is that Ford isn’t about to give up the hundreds of thousands of dollars the police market represents.

So, they’ve given us this: the 2011 Police Interceptor. Although inheriting the old Crown Vic’s name, the new model shares absolutely nothing with the outgoing cop car; trading the Crown Vic’s full-frame chassis for the new Taurus’ unibody. Under the hood, lesser models of Police Interceptor will boast the naturally aspirated 3.5 litre V6 paired with a front-wheel drive layout while officers requiring slightly brawnier steeds will enjoy the new 3.5 litre, twin-turbocharged EcoBoost engine and all-wheel drive.