I work at a Ford dealer in IL, and currently drive, you guessed it, a Saturn VUE. I am falling behind on the current payments of $400/mo, and am considering trading the VUE for another car, to get lower payments.

I've always wanted an interceptor, and we have a few for sale. I have talked to a police officer who works in the same town one of the cars I'm looking at, and he was telling me how strict they are with maintenance on the cars.
I know it would be reliable for some time to come, but can anyone tell me how these are for families? I'm married, have a 4yr old son, and in June will be having another baby.
Another thing I need to know is how these are in the snow. I've never seen a police officer having trouble in the snow, but then again, I'm sure they use really good snow tires that I may not be able to afford.

Any help is appreciated! Thank you!

 

Well here goes a California Boy answering a question about snow.

I am going to guess that your interceptor is a rear wheel drive, and there is the problem with snow, rear wheel drive vehicles compared to your front wheel drive are hell with snow, traction is a problem. Once in Washington state during the winter one of my buddies with a front wheel drive Plymoth Horizon pulled me and my rear wheel drive AMC Pacer up a hill because I could not grip the road and was just sliding off to the side.

Ok, All season tires are much better these days, I just put a new set on my Thunderbird and woke up to about an inch of snow on the ground and the temperature at about 28 Degrees F, and traction was not a problem. You know how bad it gets for you and maybe just having a set of chains in your trunk will take care of the problem.

Now for the Interceptor part, here is how I view having extra power for your car even when you have family. There are times when you get into a situation on the road, be it freeway or back road. Sometimes the only way out of a situation is to put pedal to the metal and just power out. You have no Idea how many times I have needed to really get going and could not because the power was not there. You can always choose not to go fast or accelerate hard, but when you need to save you or your loved ones life it is nice to have it there.

Go for it.

 

The CVPIs do get regular maintenance but are still subjected to very harsh use, so I would thoroughly check out any prospects. If bought from an individual, you can pretty much assume that it has been thrashed even further by a wannabe CHiP. The 200hp standard model CVs (in my opinion) offer very adequate performance, along with decent MPG (for a big car). They also offer great room for a family and pretty good crash protection.

You can always add extra weight to the cavernous trunk to make it go in the snow. It is more important to know how to drive in the snow with a RWD vehicle. They are not as stable or forgiving as most FWDs. Just make sure you have good tires!!

 

I bought a 2003 PI with 81,000 mi. two years ago for $6900.00, I was very careful in the selection process, but what a car for the money! I just love the way it drives, handles and performs in all aspects, except probably not great in snow unless you use snow tires or chains, (same as any R.W.D. car). Many of the ones I looked at had winter tires already on them though. I have owned 14 Fords over the years and the P.I. is by far my favorite. I plan on keeping mine for a very long time, then getting another one! Ford has been making this car for a while and most of the bugs have been worked out of this design. I have found that mine is relatively inexpensive and easy to maintain and repair, and is free of annoying squeaks and rattles. One of the main advantages to getting an interceptor vs. a standard CV is the auxillary oil, power steering, and trans coolers greatly extend powertrain longevity often to 300,000 mi if well maintained. There is a good reason the majority of taxi's that you see are CVPI's! The heavy duty steering and suspension components make the thing handle like a sports car, as well as being the most stable car I have ever owned. Finally, if you tend to drive fast, many police officers will just wave at you rather than pull you over to give a ticket (this is of course no guarantee)!

Be very careful in your selection process however, look for a car with maintenance records, a supervisor or detective's car, rather than a regular patrol car. There are many sites on the internet that have made a business out of selling nice, lower mileage cars from warm climates such as Texas or Florida. I would not be concerned about buying one with 80,000-100,000 miles on it if you can be assured it was well maintained, especially oil changes. The inside of the engine on mine now with 105,000 mi., is so clean, the oil does not even darken for 3000 mi. after a change, and never uses a drop of oil. The acceleration and braking ability of the P.I. is also substantially greater than the standard Crown Vic. if you use Ford police grade brakes. My car when purchased with 81,000 mi. still had the original factory brakes with a little wear left on them. I replaced the pads and rotors all around with new Ford parts and have since driven 25,000 mi. with almost no measurable brake wear. I have also never experienced any brake fade with the car.
If you decide to get one and need help finding and selecting one, contact me, and I will be happy to assist if I can! I looked for two years before buying and can point you in the direction of some of the places I found that sell them.

Good Luck!

Jayrome03CVPI