Crown Victoria

[Cantaloupe]

Ewanph said:

I put a 2011 P7B Police Interceptor. One of the last batch made and shipped it over from the US myself. I absolutely love it and turns way more heads than any supercar at car shows!
It’s so much fun to drive that I actually bought a second one which I will be looking to sell in the not too distant future.

More fun than a lovely late model Grand Marquis ?

Why do UK importers go for the Interceptors rather than the civvy Vic or Marquis, ?

The cop version is the banjo playing, 6 fingered cousin of the Panther family, unrefined, basic and utilitarian,
invariably high mileage with shabby, spartan interiors with big f*** off holes
in the dash and headliners where equipment was removed.

[alabbasi]

Cantaloupe said:

Why do UK importers go for the Interceptors rather than the civvy Vic or Marquis?

Because they can be bought at police auctions for under $1000 and they were made for several years after the production ended for the Lincoln Town Car / Grand Marquis which shared the same platform.

Squad car interceptors would have lead a hard life.

[Cantaloupe]

alabbasi said:

Because they can be bought at police auctions for under $1000 and they were made for several years after the production ended for the Lincoln Town Car / Grand Marquis which shared the same platform.

The last Grand Marquis was assembled in Jan. 2011, the last Interceptor was assembled in Sept. 2011.
The Canadian factory closed soon after.

The PIs still on police duty today are 2011 and older models, which shows their rugged dependability.

[alabbasi]

Cantaloupe said:

The PIs still on police duty today are 2011 and older models, which shows their rugged dependability.

That just means that this particular police dept doesn't have any money. My local police gets a fleet of new Tahoes every year.

Edited by alabbasi on Saturday 6th July 13:35

[Matt Harper]

P71 Crown Vic has stiffer springs/shocks than non-police variants - also oil and trans coolers, bigger radiator and fan, bigger F/R sway bars and a Posi LSD.

[croyde]

My Middle East bound Mercury had the same set up as the P71 as Matt mentioned above.

It actually handled pretty well for a big ol' thing and surprised a few young lads trying for the traffic light Grand Prix lol

[Roo]

kapiteinlangzaam said:

NYPD car for sale here in NL.

Ford Crown Victoria Police interceptor Origineel van NYPD
€ 12.990,00
http://link.marktplaats.nl/m1425342992?utm_source=...

That's not worth anywhere near that.

[Roo]

croyde said:

My Middle East bound Mercury had the same set up as the P71 as Matt mentioned above.

It actually handled pretty well for a big ol' thing and surprised a few young lads trying for the traffic light Grand Prix lol

As was my old one.

[croyde]

Roo said:

kapiteinlangzaam said:

NYPD car for sale here in NL.

Ford Crown Victoria Police interceptor Origineel van NYPD
€ 12.990,00
http://link.marktplaats.nl/m1425342992?utm_source=...

That's not worth anywhere near that.

The Mercury I bought had been originally priced at £8k. I got it for £3.2k. It was in excellent condition with only 30k miles on the clock.

I think people think they are worth more or paid silly money originally.

I did with my Yamaha TMax. Couldn't believe how much their prices were privately. Stupidly paid more at a dealer only to find a year later that I could not sell it.

I had to drop the price drastically in order to entice a couple of phone calls.

If I ever buy a Panther again, I'd like to btw, I would go in with a very low offer hoping the seller had realised that they never were going to sell.

I could be wrong of course, maybe they are now rare collectors items, after all the car I bought for £3.2k, I advertised for £5.5k only 9 months later and I guy came to view it and offered £4.5k which I was happy to accept.

[optimal909]

Roo said:

That's not worth anywhere near that.

It depends.

Seems to be in decent shape, and the registration of the car worth a lot too - plus such cars are in demand by police car enthusiasts in EU.
Nice police interceptors do fetch $8k+ in the States too.

You can always argue, that you can get reasonable ones in the U.S. for much less, but again, nowhere else can you get a robust, dependable large V8 sedan for peanuts.
I recon mine was definitely too expensive at $16k serviced, on the road, but it still proved to be a lot of car for the money.

[Ewanph]

Cantaloupe said:

More fun than a lovely late model Grand Marquis ?

Why do UK importers go for the Interceptors rather than the civvy Vic or Marquis, ?

The cop version is the banjo playing, 6 fingered cousin of the Panther family, unrefined, basic and utilitarian,
invariably high mileage with shabby, spartan interiors with big f*** off holes
in the dash and headliners where equipment was removed.

Because if you know anything about these cars, the Police Interceptor models are far better built than the civilian models. You can’t compare the 2! Most don’t have holes drilled everywhere as they will have had professional installations (not the botched jobs that UK police cars have! Some cars have lead hard lives but those from small departments that have only had one driving are very well looked after. Indeed mine was only ever driven by the same one officer who got to take it home. It was lovingly waxed and cleaned it and it amazed me when I first shipped it over.

[alabbasi]

Ewanph said:

Because if you know anything about these cars, the Police Interceptor models are far better built than the civilian models. You can’t compare the 2! Most don’t have holes drilled everywhere as they will have had professional installations (not the botched jobs that UK police cars have! Some cars have lead hard lives but those from small departments that have only had one driving are very well looked after. Indeed mine was only ever driven by the same one officer who got to take it home. It was lovingly waxed and cleaned it and it amazed me when I first shipped it over.

If they're buying them used, they're getting them cheap. Unless it's a chief's car, it would have been ridden hard and put up wet. They were also sold to fleets (city utility companies etc) and those cars lead an easier life.

[Ewanph]

Not true at all! Not all of them have been ridden hard. Mine is like new. It really has been looked after. I wouldn’t touch one from a large department that has numerous drivers though as these are normally the ones beaten to hell. I seen pristine ones from federal service police and sheriff’s departments and state cars. It is still very easy to find good condition, well cared for cars.

[alabbasi]

Not at all true??

[Cantaloupe]

Ewanph said:

Because if you know anything about these cars, the Police Interceptor models are far better built than the civilian models.

Really ? their construction was no different or more rugged than the other models

Sure, more beefier springs, shocks and sway bars yes, but the frames and bodyshells were the exact same as the Vic and Marquis.

Edited by Cantaloupe on Monday 16th September 06:31

[Superleg48]

Cantaloupe said:

Ewanph said:

Because if you know anything about these cars, the Police Interceptor models are far better built than the civilian models.

Really ? their construction was no different or more rugged than the other models

Sure, more beefier springs, shocks and sway bars yes, but the frames and bodyshells were the exact same as the Vic and Marquis.

Edited by Cantaloupe on Monday 16th September 06:31

Thereby better built...no?

[alabbasi]

Not really, the grand Marquis and Lincoln have air springs for a better ride and nicer appointments. If it was owned by a blue haired old lady in Florida. It's a safer bet.

[optimal909]

Cantaloupe said:

Really ? their construction was no different or more rugged than the other models

Sure, more beefier springs, shocks and sway bars yes, but the frames and bodyshells were the exact same as the Vic and Marquis.

Edited by Cantaloupe on Monday 16th September 06:31

Frame and body are the same, but mechanical differences run way deeper than suspension bits, including dual exhaust system (without resonator), aluminum composite drive shaft, different final drive ratios, LSD, engine oil cooler, etc....

Otherwise I wouldn't say better built, I think savings on NVH and fit&finish are quite apparent.

[RoverP6B]

Never had the slightest interest in these until I started watching Cleetus McFarland's YouTube channel... he's had a load of Vics (just bought about twenty-five of them in a job lot from a police auction for a stock car race at his own racetrack), his daily driver is an ex detective chief smoker barge, and then there's the one he bought for a since-deceased neighbour that now has a full GT500 drivetrain swap in it and makes 900hp at the wheels (which must be, what, a thousand at the flywheel?). There's also a guy in Norway building one with a certain 27-litre Rolls-Royce engine...

[Ewanph]

@RoverP6B
I love Crown Vics. I have 2 here in the UK. Absolutely solid cars and great fun to drive. I have too many cars though so will be putting one up for sale this year.

Do you have a link for the Norwegian build? I have not heard of this and I’m in the European Crown Vic owners club!