Moonshine
03-09-2011, 07:43 PM
OK, after getting to wring out the new Caprice PPV last month I went to beautiful Florence, Tx today (in case you're unfamiliar, it's smack in the middle of BFE, south of Ft. Hood, home of rattlesnakes and the really nice Tx DPS EVOC track) to wring out the Next Generation Police Interceptors from Ford, which are now being named Police Interceptor Sedan, Police Interceptor Utility, and Police Interceptor Sedan EcoBoost (PIS, PIU, and PISEB, presumably). All built on the same platform, all with standard AWD, the base sedan gets a 3.5 liter NA V6 making 280 HP, 250 torque, the utility gets a 3.7 liter NA V6 making 300 HP, 280 torque, and the EcoBoost is the 3.5 with twin turbos cranking out 355 HP, 360 torque.
So, how'd they drive? Well, the NA sedan and utility ride and drive almost identically. There really isn't much difference, very little body roll with the utility, and the AWD is pretty cool. But if you get the front end pushing the AWD won't pull it out and you just plow around with all four tires screaming. Brakes are good, 6 speed tranny works fine, steering feedback (or lack thereof) is typical Ford. The handling is the high point, and they do handle quite well, particularly when driven back to back against a Crown Vic. You can feel every day of the 20 year age difference in technology and development. And, Ford openly admits that the Crown Vic was the target, wanting to meet or beat its' performance across the board. And in that respect, they've more than achieved their goal. Either vehicle outclasses the CV in every respect,........except interior room. Whoops. Take large men (we've got at least a 1/2 dozen over 6'5", 250+), put them in a vest and gunbelt, then add in a cockpit full of radios, radars, laptops, cage, siren and light controls, and two long gun racks and suddenly even a car as big as a Crown Vic feels pretty cramped. And the new cars have less interior space, to the tune of 3 cubic feet. Not good. At just 6'1", 195 lbs, and without vest, belt, or any police equipment mounted they felt very snug to me. The interior volume is the same as the Charger, which is widely criticized for being uncomfortably tight. It's a shame, because in every other respect they are a quantum leap ahead of the Crown Vic. And they do have some rally cool features (AWD, Sync, programmable buttons on steering wheel, etc.).
And the EcoBoost? It runs strong, really shoves you back into the seat nicely at WOT, no noticeable turbo lag, no torque steer, and the extra 75 horses really helps bring you off corners. Very nice powertrain, easily the equal of the Caprice, even though they got there by different paths. As for the handling, the butt meter says it's the equal of the Caprice, but the AWD is compensating for lousy weight distribution while the Chevy's near perfect balance makes it feel like a much lighter car. Although I'd guess the lap times will end up nearly identical, to me the Chevy feels much better and is easier to really hustle around.
So, although Ford really outdid their goal by surpassing the CV, they lost ground in an area they couldn't afford to, interior volume. And they didn't keep up with the competition. The Caprice offers the performance and a roomy interior. For me, for uniformed patrol use, I'd easily call the Caprice the winner over even the EcoBoost sedan. Sadly, if I had to call a second place winner it would be the Tahoe, based purely on driver comfort, despite the fact that any Interceptor version could run circles around a Tahoe. I would pick any of the Fords over the Charger.
My $.02, YMMV.
So, how'd they drive? Well, the NA sedan and utility ride and drive almost identically. There really isn't much difference, very little body roll with the utility, and the AWD is pretty cool. But if you get the front end pushing the AWD won't pull it out and you just plow around with all four tires screaming. Brakes are good, 6 speed tranny works fine, steering feedback (or lack thereof) is typical Ford. The handling is the high point, and they do handle quite well, particularly when driven back to back against a Crown Vic. You can feel every day of the 20 year age difference in technology and development. And, Ford openly admits that the Crown Vic was the target, wanting to meet or beat its' performance across the board. And in that respect, they've more than achieved their goal. Either vehicle outclasses the CV in every respect,........except interior room. Whoops. Take large men (we've got at least a 1/2 dozen over 6'5", 250+), put them in a vest and gunbelt, then add in a cockpit full of radios, radars, laptops, cage, siren and light controls, and two long gun racks and suddenly even a car as big as a Crown Vic feels pretty cramped. And the new cars have less interior space, to the tune of 3 cubic feet. Not good. At just 6'1", 195 lbs, and without vest, belt, or any police equipment mounted they felt very snug to me. The interior volume is the same as the Charger, which is widely criticized for being uncomfortably tight. It's a shame, because in every other respect they are a quantum leap ahead of the Crown Vic. And they do have some rally cool features (AWD, Sync, programmable buttons on steering wheel, etc.).
And the EcoBoost? It runs strong, really shoves you back into the seat nicely at WOT, no noticeable turbo lag, no torque steer, and the extra 75 horses really helps bring you off corners. Very nice powertrain, easily the equal of the Caprice, even though they got there by different paths. As for the handling, the butt meter says it's the equal of the Caprice, but the AWD is compensating for lousy weight distribution while the Chevy's near perfect balance makes it feel like a much lighter car. Although I'd guess the lap times will end up nearly identical, to me the Chevy feels much better and is easier to really hustle around.
So, although Ford really outdid their goal by surpassing the CV, they lost ground in an area they couldn't afford to, interior volume. And they didn't keep up with the competition. The Caprice offers the performance and a roomy interior. For me, for uniformed patrol use, I'd easily call the Caprice the winner over even the EcoBoost sedan. Sadly, if I had to call a second place winner it would be the Tahoe, based purely on driver comfort, despite the fact that any Interceptor version could run circles around a Tahoe. I would pick any of the Fords over the Charger.
My $.02, YMMV.