Ford engineers tuned the all-new Police Interceptor sedan and utility vehicle models to save fuel even when they are standing still, with no sacrifice to pursuit performance. Working with Ford’s Police Advisory Board, which consists of law enforcement professionals from the United States and Canada who contributed to the development of these vehicles on attributes such as safety, performance, durability, driver comfort and functionality, the new Police Interceptor vehicles are purpose-built to meet the requirements of this demanding industry.  The City of Chicago has already ordered 500 of the the new police interceptors from Ford.

 With experts predicting fuel prices are headed for record highs this year, the fuel efficiency of the new Ford Police Interceptors has the potential to help America’s cash-strapped cities reduce their fuel bills.The city and highway fuel economy ratings for the new Police Interceptors have increased by an impressive 25 percent over the retired Crown Victoria. But many law enforcement vehicles spend the majority of their lives idling, and that is where the new models can provide even more fuel savings. 

 “Our latest fuel-efficient V6 engines deliver on our promise for increased performance and improved economy, while providing government agencies with a money-saving solution,” said The base 3.5-liter V6 in the Police Interceptor sedan delivers 288 horsepower and EPA-certified fuel economy of 18 mpg city, 26 mpg highway. Compared to the Crown Victoria – America’s top-selling law enforcement vehicle for the past 15 years – the Police Interceptor sedan offers an improvement of 4 mpg city and 5 mpg highway, and 38 more horsepower“Our extensive experience with the Crown Victoria and feedback from our Police Advisory Board helped us develop the next-generation Police Interceptor to be a no-compromise vehicle that can easily be outfitted to meet the needs of individual agencies,” said Lisa Teed, Ford marketing manager for Police Interceptor.

All three Police Interceptor engines feature double overhead cams, four valves per cylinder and Ti-VCT, or twin independent variable camshaft timing, plus several other high-tech features that improve fuel economy at idle and at speed without sacrificing the performance that is required by law enforcement.

An example of how Ford engineers improved the fuel economy of both Police Interceptor models, beyond the powertrain changes, is outfitting the vehicles with EPAS, or electric power-assisted steering. The old-style hydraulic power steering system found on competitive police vehicles, such as the Chevrolet Caprice PPV and Dodge Charger, forces the engine to work harder – and waste fuel – at idle because the pump runs whenever the engine does.

 When a Ford Police Interceptor is idling, no energy is consumed by the steering system until an officer turns the steering wheel. Other fuel improvements come from optimizing the energy consumed by the air conditioning compressor and alternator. By Joseph Szczesny