Common Cop Cars, Classically
Fair warning: this isn’t a wholesale spotter’s guide for modern cop cars. There are plenty of resources online for that endeavor. Besides, gathering all the paint schemes and ‘ghost models’ across this nation is an undertaking far beyond the scope of this particular post. Maybe next time.
But taking a quick breeze through what are undoubtedly some of the most recognizable police machines in recent history? That’s something we can tackle in the word count suggested for this story. Most of what follows are rear-wheel drive bruiser cruisers - though the world of enforcement definitely took an all-wheel-drive turn once the mighty Crown Vic was put out to pasture.
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Ford Crown Victoria
Which is, of course, the model with which we are starting this article. The venerable Crown Vic found its way into fleets across this entire continent, with generations of gearheads committing their headlight shape to memory in the days before apps like Waze. Once the likes of Dodge stopped making rear-drive body-on-frame cars, and Chevy bailed on the Caprice in 1996, Ford pretty much had the market all to itself for nearly a decade.
Ford Crown Victoria
Production halted in 2011, though fans know a small batch of 2012 model year examples were shipped off to the Middle East. The car’s obit was written by the need for mandated gear like stability control, a shift in consumer tastes, and a global economic hammering. Still, some departments kept these aging models in their fleets for years, citing ease of repair and general reliability - not to mention stockpiles of spare parts which needed to be consumed.
Dodge Charger
Picking up the mantle of the rear-drive workhorse was the Dodge Charger, showing up long before the Crown Vic vanished but sticking around for over a decade after. In fact, there's a good argument that the 2005 appearance of the Charger was the first time in a decade the Crown Vic had any real competition in terms of these types of fleet sales.
Dodge Charger
Decently simple - at least compared to some other models, if not on the same plane as the almighty Vic - and available with a V8 engine, three generations of headlight designs were taught to drivers trying to keep an eye out for these things on the interstates. With the new Charger getting an internal combustion engine in the next model year, there’s a chance we’ll have to learn a fourth headlight design pretty soon in some markets. Find one (or several) at yer nearest cop shop.
Ford Explorer
Sure, plenty of jurisdictions used four- or all-wheel drive rigs before the Explorer showed up for Interceptor duty (the Tahoe, numerous pickups in the north, and a scattered Durango) but it wasn’t until Ford dropped the Crown Vic and was seeking a way to stay in the fleet game did this model really enter the cop lexicon.
Ford Explorer
Technically called the Ford Police Interceptor utility vehicle, fleet wonks at the Blue Oval brag its newest iteration is the only pursuit-rated hybrid police utility vehicle available to American forces in large numbers, though a 3.0L EcoBoost making 400 horses is also available. Neither are as practically simple as the Crown Vic.
