WHY POLICE DEPARTMENTS ARE SCRAPPING CROWN VICTORIAS

By Miriam Raftery

June 8, 2017 (El Cajon) – For two decades, the Crown Victoria police intercept model was the iconic car used by law police departments across the nation.  So, when a reader of ours, Christina Carson, asked why El Cajon Police officer are now driving predominantly sport utility vehicles (SUVs) instead of Crown Victoria sedans, and what the differences are in gas costs, we reached out to the El Cajon Police Department to find out.

Rob Ranswelier, administrative Lieutenant, responded, “Ford stopped making that car in 2011, mainly because of the very poor gas mileage.  They introduced two new vehicles to replace it, the PPV1 (Taurus sedan) and the PPV2 (Explorer SUV).  Both vehicles were designed and introduced with much more efficient V-6 engines and they get almost identical fuel economy.”

El Cajon’s Police Department initially bought five Chevrolet sedans after Ford stopped offering the “Crown Vic,” as the older vehicles were nick-named. But he says, “They proved to be too small and not capable of carrying the equipment needed.  When Ford began production on the PPV2 (Explorer), we determined that it met all of the needs of the department and decided to focus on that vehicle as our primary patrol vehicle.  This is the reason ECPD and the majority of Law Enforcement went to the Ford Explorers.”

You’ll continue seeing older model Crown Vic sedans in police fleets and California Highway Patrol’s fleet for a while longer, until they are phased out completely due to age. So don’t be surprised if the next time you see flashing red lights in your rear-view mirror, it’s an Explorer SUV pulling you over.

Asked how the officers like the Ford SUVs compared to the classic Crown Victoria, Ransweiler offers a positive assessment.  “The new Explorers are nice.  The officers do not have to crouch down as much to get in and out which is easier on the knees and backs with all of that gear. “

He recalls, “The Crown Vic, while I spent the majority of my patrol days in it,” but he concludes, “It was played out.  The modern tech in the Explorer is much better suited toward today’s technology based policing. “