Saying Goodbye to an Old Friend
Wednesday, June 12, 2013 @ 2:17 PM
PG RCMP Sergeant Al Steinhauser adds his signature to those written in the underside of the trunk lid on one of the last Crown Vics – photo 250 News
Prince George, B.C. – It marks the end of an era. Two of the last four new Ford Crown Victoria Interceptor police cars in Canada have just joined the fleet of the Prince George RCMP.
The “Crown Vic” has been the vehicle of choice for most law enforcement agencies in North America for the past 15 years. The V8, rear wheel drive vehicle has the engine power needed when needed, while the styling made it easier to avoid spin outs and enabled the car to withstand the punishment of driving over curbs or other obstacles.
Ford has stopped making the Crown Vic and the new vehicle for Police forces will be a version of the Ford Taurus. ( at right, one of the last two Crown Vics )
The new Taurus Interceptor will be an all wheel drive vehicle, which will require some tweaking and adjustments of driving skills for some officers. All wheel drive is expected to be a plus for winter driving conditions. The Taurus Interceptor will have a V6, 3.5 litre engine that will produce 280hp.
The first Taurus Interceptor for Prince George is expected to arrive in August.
As for the final two Crown Vics, they have been autographed by those members of the P.G. detachment who wanted leave their mark on the vehicle that has made a mark in their police work. Signatures have been added to the inside trunk .
It is expected that, barring any collision that would cause the last two Crown Vics to be written off, the final two will be with the P.G. detachment for about two years.
Comments
too many interceptors around here for my liking – lol
End of an era all the police departments in North America that used the Crown Vic’s were made here in Canada ford made the desicion 2 yrs ago to shut down the factory In Ontario all police vehicles now made by ford will be split between Canada and US factories
Now we must learn to recognize the Ford Taurus Interceptor trade mark looks…..but never forget the Crown Vic. ;)
Yup replace a policing staple with an unstable, under powered, unibody piece of garbage. It won’t be long before this decision will be revisited by many police agencies across Canada and the US. Maybe the contract will be given to another vendor, Ford’s day in the sun is starting to set. Only time will tell.
I recollect RoboCop driving a Taurus.
Al, you forgot to draw the Timmy’s flag LOL
Where do I buy one?
Just want the motor and transmission.
“Yup replace a policing staple with an unstable, under powered, unibody piece of garbage”
I’d be willing to bet that the new platform will outperform the Crown Vic in virtually every category, except maybe how quickly the fuel tank runs empty!
3.5l producing 280 hp? Obviously not the new Ecoboost 3.5L producing 365 hp. I wonder why they didn’t put that engine in there?
Should of went with a Chevy! Anyone would do!
Loki, were you planning to rebuild that engine and transmission? Cause with the amount of drivers (some experienced, some inexperienced) these cars have had, I would think they’d be trashed. Don’t know if the city sends them to the auction on Cowart or not.
Yeah, I’d like to see them switch back to Chev too.
“Obviously not the new Ecoboost 3.5L producing 365 hp. I wonder why they didn’t put that engine in there?”
I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps they didn’t want to blow the tire budget, LOL.
Taurus–? My Taurus was a GAS PIG! Good luck with that.
Guess mayor and council did not have a say otherwise we might be looking at a fleet of Nissan Leafs.
“My Taurus was a gas pig….” I bet that wouldn’t bother you if you had someone else’s open credit card.
wow do you some of you sound like my granmpa… “unibody garbage” – bahahaha. The 70’s called, they want thier car back…
The RCMP get there cars under purchase direction from Ottawa. The city has nothing to do with it any way shape or form. A board assesses the vehicle requirements and then post the requirements to the manufacturers. The manufacturers tender bids to the board for consideration. The board decides what vendor gets the contract. When the vehicles retire they are auctioned off from Queen’s Assets in Vancouver, the vehicles are collected and auctioned off throughout the province.
The Crown Vic’s the RCMP are using are actually not the off the lot Crown Victoria’s John Q public can purchase, they are Ford SVO modified special use (SVO stands for Special Vehicle Operations, a division of Ford which modifies vehicles for Police, Fire, Ambulance and Rescue operations) The old guys will remember the RCMP Mustangs of the 80’s all of which were SVO five speed standard transmission highway interceptors.
Unibody construction is fine in day to day use however the twisting and flexing and additional equipment load will be an issue when it comes to durability under police operations. Highway interceptors cross uneven meridians and curbs and in Prince George the typical well maintained roadways (sarcasm implied). Having a frame makes the difference in the life span of the vehicle, if you own a well used pickup truck you would understand this.
We will just have to see what they come up with next. I think Chey or Chrysler will be in the running next.
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