Ford Motor Co. confirmed Friday that it is developing a new police interceptor to replace the venerable Ford Crown Victoria when production of that model ends in 2011.
As The Detroit News first reported in August, the new vehicle -- dubbed the Ford Police Interceptor -- will be based on the new 2010 Taurus platform, according to people familiar with the situation. However, it will be significantly reworked to meet the unique needs of law enforcement, Ford said.
"We have heard the repeated requests from the law enforcement community to continue uninterrupted support of the law enforcement community," said Ford Americas President Mark Fields. "Ford is answering the call with the new Police Interceptor -- engineered and built in America."
Ford said the new vehicle will offer greater durability, better safety, stronger performance and greater fuel-efficiency than the Crown Vic, which is the leader in the law enforcement segment, accounting for 75 percent of the police pursuit business in the United States today.
It is being developed with input from Ford's Police Advisory Board, which includes representatives from major police departments around the country.
"Ford's commitment to the law enforcement community produced the Crown Victoria, the benchmark police vehicle," said Lt. Brian Moran, fleet manager for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and a member of the advisory board. "This commitment has continued, and Ford has been working closely with the Police Advisory Board on developing the new Police Interceptor. I am confident that the next-generation Ford police vehicle will meet the future needs of the law enforcement community and will set the new standard."
Ford said it will unveil the new model in the first quarter of 2010 to give law enforcement agencies time to develop transition plans and outfitters time to develop aftermarket equipment for the vehicle.
"Ford long has supported our public servants with vehicles that work as hard as they do," said Ken Czubay, head of marketing, sales and service in the United States.
