You now have one more reason to not put the hammer down when you see the red and blue behind you: the 2020 Ford Police Interceptor Utility is officially the quickest police car in the United States.
This lean, mean, law enforcing machine is based on the 2020 Explorer SUV, which means that the Police Interceptor Utility boasts standard all-wheel-drive and Ford’s 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 mated to a hybrid setup. Competitors like Dodge employ HEMI V8 engines in their Charger cruisers, while the new Ford utility uses a turbocharged and electrified V6 engine with a projected EPA-estimated combined rating of 24 mpg, according to the Blue Oval.
Official horsepower and torque numbers weren’t released, but the new Utility is faster from zero to 60 and zero to 100 than any competitor vehicle, and it does so while burning less fuel.
Vehicle manufacturers who produce pursuit-rated vehicles for law enforcement regularly take their vehicle offerings to the Michigan State Police for testing, where vehicles must complete a 32-lap vehicle dynamics testing circuit in its entirety without mechanical failures and have fully functioning brakes at the end of the test. This testing is performed by the Michigan State Police as a third-party, so the test data generated is then used by police departments and municipalities across the country when it comes time to purchase new law enforcement vehicles.
Like the industry as a whole, police departments are looking to sport utility vehicles for patrol work. They’re more spacious for carrying cargo and equipment, along with hauling the baddies off to jail. The spaciousness also improves the comfort for the officer or officers who spend long shifts behind the wheel.
While it may seem like a niche product to the general public, the Police Interceptor Utility is important to Ford. The current generation of its justice-mobile outsells all other pursuit vehicles combined, and Ford anticipates SUV sales to account for 50 percent of overall sales by 2020.
The Police Interceptor Utility will be available in the summer of 2019, so if you’re a habitual lawbreaker then make sure to keep your eyes peeled open for one anytime after that.