It used to be that every full-line American automaker offered a version of its mainstream full-size sedan to make it appropriate for police duty. By the time 1996 rolled around, the Chevrolet Caprice, which was the last would-be competitor to the standard-setting Ford Crown Victoria, was discontinued, leaving the lucrative police market to the Blue Oval Boys.
The automotive industry took notice, and plans began in corporate board rooms to remedy that situation, and even a few new entrants – most notably Carbon Motors – sprung up with promising designs that eschewed the mainstream production-based sedan design.
In 2005, Dodge rolled out a factory police package for its full-size Charger sedan, and for the first time in a decade the Crown Victoria faced some stiff V8-powered, rear-wheel-drive competition. Then in 2009, Chevrolet announced that its new Zeta platform Caprice would be returning for the 2011 model year packing a strong 6.0-liter V8 of its own.
How would Ford answer this newly mounted competition? Would the aging Panther-based Crown Vic finally get an update? Nope. Instead, Ford just recently announced that it would soon offer a highly ruggedized version of its most recent Taurus sedan, optionally equipped with the stout 3.5-liter turbocharged V6 engine powering all four wheels as seen in the revived Taurus SHO.
We decided to see for ourselves how the three new competitors stacked up against the old guard Crown Vic on paper, and as you can see, there’s little to separate each offering on the spec sheets. It should prove interesting to see how police agencies react to these choices, especially since reliability and durability will be mostly unknown factors for the first time in ages. See for yourself.
| Ford Crown Vic | Ford Taurus | Dodge Charger | Chevrolet Caprice |
Availability | Forever | Late 2011 | 2005 – Present | 2011 |
Type | Four-door, body on frame | Four-door, enhanced unibody | Four-door, unibody | Four-door, unibody |
Engine | 4.6L V8 | 3.5L V6 | 5.7L Hemi V8 | 6.0L V8 |
Power | 250 horsepower | 263 horsepower | 368 horsepower | 355 horsepower |
Torque | 297 lb-ft | 249 lb-ft | 395 lb-ft | 385 lb-ft |
Fuel Economy | 14 City / 21 Highway | 18 City / 28 Highway (2010 Ford Taurus FWD) | 16 City / 25 Highway | 15 City / 24 Highway (2009 Pontiac G8 GT) |
Driveline | Rear-Wheel | Front or All-Wheel | Rear-Wheel | Rear-Wheel |
Shifter | Column | Column | Column | Console |
Wheels | 17-inch steel | 18-inch steel | 18-inch steel | 18-inch steel |
Brakes | Four-Wheel Discs | Four-Wheel Discs | Four-Wheel Discs | Four-Wheel Discs |
Cop Brakes | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Cop Suspension | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Cop Cooling | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Seats | Front – Cloth | Front – Cloth | Front – Cloth | Front – Cloth |
Interior Volume | 106.4 Cubic Feet | 102.3 Cubic Feet | 104 Cubic Feet | 112 Cubic Feet |
Trunk Space | 20.6 Cubic Feet | 20.1 Cubic Feet | 16.2 Cubic Feet | 18 Cubic Feet |
Special Features | Overwhelming Ubiquity Tough as nails Capable of withstanding 75-mph rear impact | Seats with downsized lateral bosters, cut-outs for utility belts Ford SYNC Safety Canopy® side-curtain air bag Rollover protection system Customizable steering-wheel switches Rear doors swing 71-degrees Capable of withstanding 75-mph rear impact BLIS® (Blind Spot Information System) Cross Traffic Alert Rear View Camera System Reverse Sensing System | 160-mph (certified) calibrated speedometer AM/FM radio with CD player, changer controls, four speakers and clock with auxiliary audio input jack Load-leveling, height-control shock absorbers Independently switched red/white LED dome lamp | Seats with downsized lateral boosters, cutouts for utility belts In-dash touch-screen computer technology Driver information center in the instrument cluster with selectable speed tracking feature |