Howdy, I'm replacing my Jeep Wrangler with a more comfortable vehicle for long trips and have a chance at a 2001 Crown Vic with low miles. I'm curious to ask any Crown Vic drivers about their experience with mechanical reliability? This one has air suspension -- is that likely to cause problems? Any other notable problem areas? Thanks,
John

I just posted on this in general.  They're good cars.  Better than just about anything out there, though there are folks that swear by Caprices.

Just think of the abuse that gets heaped on fleet cars, and then look at the fact Ford has a very large majority of the fleet market sewed up tight.

The only other option out there at the moment is the Chevy Impala, and they just don't hold up. A dept to our north has them, and is very disappointed. At one point they had 40% of their fleet in the shop, all 2002 models. It was so bad for them at one point they were "hot seating". The off-going shift would swap cars with on-coming in the parking lot.

I just swapped my 2000 Impala for a 2000 Crown Vic, I'm real happy about that, the Impala while having a comfortable seat, left a lot to be desired...one biggie was trunk space...I'm on the dive team and there was no space for my gear...my Crown Vic on the other hand has over load shocks and a lot more power...

Our dept.'s been using the C.V. for about ten years. The 95/96 years had alot of problems with the engines, but since then we've had pretty good luck with them. Ours are driven 24 hours a day each by three shifts (and pretty much abused), and they keep on goin'.

Hi, guys,
Thanks much for the information -- it's most appreciated!  Any other experiences y'all can share will be very helpful!
John

I was at Bob Bonderant Driving school a coulpe of months ago, the instructers drive these:

Instructor Car
1999 Police Interceptor Crown Victoria

Engine
1999 SVT Mustang Cobra 4.6L 4V
320 HP
Full length Cobra windage tray with modified Mark VIII oil pan

Emissions controls removed
Custom Bondurant engine calibration
Custom H - pipe with catalytic converters removed

Borla custom dual exhaust system
Custom cooling system including production 6.8L V10 water pump and radiator, engine driven fan with custom shroud and an 18" electric cooling fan

1995 SVT Mustang Cobra R engine oil cooler
Battery relocated to trunk
Weight4,800 Lbs.
Transmission/Drivetrain

1999 SVT Mustang Cobra T-45 5 speed with carbon fiber blocking rings

B & M Ripper Shifter
Custom steel drive shaft with safety loop

3.73:1 axle ratio with production limited slip
Fuel System

Custom 22 gallon racing fuel cell
1999 SVT Mustang Cobra fuel pump
Custom stainless steel and braided fuel lines
Suspension Front Eibach 1000 lb per inch springs
Monroe Shocks with custom calibration

Winston Cup style 2" diameter solid front sway bar with custom links

Modified alignment settings:Camber 1.8 degrees negative Caster 7.0 degrees positive
Toe 0.0 degrees Rear Eibach 160 lb per inch springs Monroe shocks with custom calibration
Production .708 diameter solid sway bar Recaro SRD drivers seat

Four point safety harnesses at all four seating locationsSix point fully integrated Roush safety cage10 lb dry chemical fire extinguisher
Halon fire suppression system with four nozzles

[img]www.bondurant.com/images/bondurant/Car-42.jpg[/img]

In my opinion, the cars are top notch.  Check out crownvic.net...  lots of good info....

A non-LEO here...

My brother is a trooper and I have ridden in his take home cruiser ('01 CV PP) quite a bit.  I am a Euro-snob and all the cars I own are from europe (except my big-ass truck) and held  little interest in domestic cars.  The CV did impress me.  Between the power and handling of the loaded PP CV, it should be a no-brainer as a fleet or family car.

Out of all of his Crown Vics, none have given him any issues and one gave it all to save my brother's life in an on-duty MVA.  After seeing the wreck and riding in his car, I have new found respect for Crown Vics.

Taking it to another level, I just started (aug) a job as a driving instructor and all the training vehicles are former fleet PD Crown Vics of varying eras.  I am doubly impressed with the amount of abuse these cars take after a life of patrol and winding up in our hands.  J-Turns, slides, power oversteer, braking, slaloms, etc.

YMMV;

-934

We  have a fleet of Crown Vics and we get good service from them and cops aren't known for babying their cars either. We used to run Caprice Classics but the Crown Vics are a big improvement and the Officers like them better than the Chevys. We just bought a new batch of Crown Vics, in fact they haven't even been placed into service yet...

7th

I love my take-home 2000 CV with 58k miles on it!  I also own a 92 CV (retired Chesterfield county cruiser) with 118k miles as my POV. It has taken me from the DC area to PA and back on many occasions, and to Chicago and back once with no incidents.  She burns about  quart of oil every 3k mies, but after a full service life as a marked unit, she still gives me reliable service, comfort, power, and in VA in the summer this is a must, COLD A/C!

For my next car, I would like to find a 68-72 CV and paint it black and white, and put FOP tags on it that read, "ADAM12".  : )

Be safe!

Go here. [URL]www.crownvic.net[/URL] Great site.
SorryOciffer

WOW,  Fords answer to the 1996 Impala SS.

Thanks for all the good info, guys!

I just saw that Ford will be retro-fitting all the Police model CV's with shield kits to help prevent fuel tank punctures & fires in high-speed rear-end collisions.  Wish they'd do it for the civilian CV's also!
john

The newer crown vic's are ok but I would recommend a '94 to '96 Chevy Caprice 9c1 (police package)over any of the crown vic's. The police package caprice's with the LT1 motor are identical in performance to the Impala SS, they just don't have the nice paint and interior. It was a sad day when my dept got rid of our last Caprice.  They had more power and better handling than even the crown vic's that are coming out from ford right now (I will say that the latest Crown Vic's are the best cv's I've driven yet).
There are lots of web sites and clubs related to the Caprice and Impala SS and there are lots of aftermarket performance parts available too.