Ace of Base: Ford Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan

Nov 19, 2023

Despite what y’all may think sometimes, we do listen to you guys around here. Take this week's Ace of Base as an example: Suggested by an alert reader, Ford's current foray into the fleet of police forces across the nation do fit the Ace of Base ethos: a sparsely equipped example of a mass-market car offered at a rock bottom price.

Seven investigations on Autotrader quickly turned up several examples of current model year Ford Taurus Police Interceptors with under 100 miles on their clocks for around $22,000.

Barren interiors, steel wheels, plus Blues Brothers-style cop car modifications? Watch your head getting in, sir; we’re going for a ride.

Clad in Oxford White, these low-mile Interceptors haven't seen their Charcoal Black interiors sullied by the bodily fluids of America's finest miscreants. That's usually the (valid) knock against buying a used-up police cruiser: the thing has probably seen more perps than Night Court at 100 Centre Street in Manhattan.

Not these. With scarcely a lap around the block under their base-model belts — one example is listed with only 18 miles on the clock — it would seem their engines haven't even burned a cup of gasoline, let alone a full tank. A 3.7-liter V6 with a six-speed automatic is standard equipment on all-wheel-drive models, while Interceptors with 3.5-liter V6 send power solely to the front. Want more power? A 2.0T does its civic duty as the optional engine for front-drive Taurii, while a 148 mph EcoBoost V6 roams the streets for those wanting some turbo-go in an all-wheel-drive package. Check under the hood before you sign on the dotted line.

It's not a complete and barren wasteland inside the Interceptor. A single USB port and Line-In connection reside waaaaay over near the passenger, but means riders need not rely on vapid terrestrial radio. A backup camera embedded in the rearview mirrors helps prevent drivers from reversing over hapless pedestrians.

Lost your key? No need to pony up big bucks for a gee-whiz chip enabled proximity unit here. A simple metal and plastic ignition key is on duty, just like the one in my father's 1995 Aerostar. Keyless-entry fobs are cribbed from a 2001 Focus.

Air conditioning is on tap, natch, as are power windows, pedals, and front seats. Speaking of seats, hearty cloth buckets are installed in the front row, with a full 9 inches of space between them designed to house all manner of electronic equipment for the local constabulary. Civilians will find there is plenty of space for McDining. A handy flat plastic surface on top of the dash, intended for a radar gun, is a handy spot on which to rest your Big Mac. The vinyl rear bench makes for easy clean-up after a night of debauchery.

Included is an A-Pillar mounted spotlight, perfect for blinding random winos and gutter dwellers, plus an honest-to-gawd column shifter like nature and Henry Ford intended. The steering wheel is a standard Ford design but dispenses with volume buttons in favour of AUX switches. This means you can wire in some annoyingly bright LED bars (for off-road use only, right?) and toggle their operation without ever taking your hands off the wheel.

Police Interceptors tinted a natty shade of blue allow drivers to indulge in gritty undercover detective fantasies. Bonus points will be awarded to any member of the B&B who buys one of these Interceptors and paints it with a jaunty theme.

Cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks … although today's cruisers definitely have catalytic converters. Just make sure to fix the cigarette lighter.

Not every base model has aced it. The ones that have? They help make the automotive landscape a lot better. Any others you can think of, B&B? Let us know in the comments. Naturally, feel free to eviscerate our selections.

The model above is shown priced in American dollars. As always, a dealer may sell for less.

I'd get rid of the light and get different wheels, but for 22k, a virtually new full size sedan with a far more robust suspension and braking system?* That's an AoB winner.(* Can any one speak to what the typical upgrades are on a police version of a vehicle are vs the consumer version? I have always heard that the brakes and suspension are more 'heavy duty', but what does that mean? Are they throwing in stuff from the F-Series trucks or what?)

I can't confirm it either, but you might see how much stuff from the Taurus SHO shows up on a base Taurus PI; that might be the source from which Ford is drawing the high-performance / heavy-duty parts.

@Kyree I was under the understanding that for the Crown Vic the civilian units used aluminium suspension components while the PI used cast iron. (But I'm sure Scoutdude can give us the straight story.)

They do have pursuit rated specific spring sway bar and shock rates, and usually that means softer sway bars to improve off-road articulation. Some have different friction material on the brake pads/shoes but otherwise the same foundation brakes, though some use steel pistons in the calipers rather than phenolic. The ABS and stability control may be tuned differently. The power train calibration will often be different with a higher P/N idle speed, later, firmer, shift points ect. Some add engine oil coolers, auxiliary or power steering coolers, or a larger radiator.

@PrincipalDan No the suspension thing was based on year, not application, so all of the 03-04 and early 05 models have cast aluminum lower control arms while the later models had stamped steel.

@Scoutdude Right on. Thanks for answering that, Scoutdude.

Before you go and remove the light, drive the car for awhile. Marvel at the fact that when you are searching for a street sign in the dark, you can easily light it up like daylight. Oh, I forgot, your smart phone is telling you where to turn, nevermind!My 1969 Cadillac ambulance had two of those pillar-mounted lights on it, and they were awesome.

@Kyree, if the EcoBoost option is selected on the Sedan Interceptor then yes the engine is pretty much the same as the SHO. However the suspension is police specific. Typically the spring rates are increased significantly and the vehicle has a resulting higher ride height. The sway bars on the other hand are typically less than the performance civilian version. For example on the later Panthers the police spec has a 17mm rear sway bar while the HPP cars had 21mm.

@redmondjp I don't have a smartphone, but I also have never had issues seeing a street sign. I just think that the light comes off too much as 'playing cop', which makes me uncomfortable. I wouldn't want to misrepresent myself, even unintentionally.I'm not in the market right now anyway. But if I were, this seems like a very good deal.@Scoutdude - thanks for the answer.

@redmondjp I'd want to turn the pillar light around 180 degrees to "gently" remind the person behind me to please turn off their high beams.

@JimC2 In fact, I'd even pump up the wattage of the lamp bulb just for that purpose

I used to want a P71 Crown Vic, but the detective version, with a normal back seat, instead of the hard plastic seat.

Actually all P71s came with a normal back seat, either vinyl or extra cost cloth that matches the front. Depending on the agency they either auction off the new unused seats, and often the bags of door linkages. Others would swap the seat from the new cars into the old when they transferred the plastic perp seat. Others store them and throw them in the cars when they go to auction whether with or without the plastic seat installed. I wish that the county didn't auction them off as a single lot. Last time it was 7 pallets of the seats from the Utility Interceptors. In a few years I figure they will be worth a decent chunk of money once the vehicles actually make it to auction.