Lightning will be used as Special Police Fleet Vehicles

[Mr. Flibble]

So, a little birdie told me that some of the fleet vehicles going out will be purchased by Police Forces. Ford already performs full police-conversions on fleet vehicles, with all the accoutrements - lights sirens, push bars, radio, cages etc.

Should be interesting to see the occasional lightning as a police vehicle.

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[RavenYZF-R6]

So make sure your ICE is gassed up and ready to exceed 320 miles for the chase!

 

[Mr. Flibble]

So make sure your ICE is gassed up and ready to exceed 320 miles for the chase!

Heh. In truth, for pursuits, they hand off between chasing vehicles.

In this case, I am pretty sure that the use case for the Lightnings is in a support role. That is, you need someone to show up to a crime or accident scene and do all the scene work, and run various equipment. Basically more of a work-truck role than a patrol/pursuit role.

My guess is that these will be pro's with an ER battery.

I also know that some Teslas were tested, but were disliked as it is very difficult to enter/exit with gear on.

 

[sotek2345]

So make sure your ICE is gassed up and ready to exceed 320 miles for the chase!

But my ICE vehicle I would use in a chase (GT350) can't go 320 miles. I can't even go 230!

I get about 220 miles per tank in normal driving and if you are driving spiritedly that can drop down well below 100 miles.

 

[p52Ranch]

The Lightning (or any EV) would be a great choice to keep all of the police electronics running without idling the car. Also the Lightning's ability to provide on-site power without bringing in a trailer and generator would be a benefit.

Great, now reservation holders will be passed over for build dates until every police department gets their Lightning's.

 

[Mr. Flibble]

The Lightning (or any EV) would be a great choice to keep all of the police electronics running without idling the car. Also the Lightning's ability to provide on-site power without bringing in a trailer and generator would be a benefit.

Great, now reservation holders will be passed over for build dates until every police department gets their Lightning's.

I am pretty certain that these ones that I am aware of are coming directly from the fleet side of the house. That is, they are part of the normal fleet sales chain that was already planned for.

I don't know for certain if these are part of a Ford-Specific test program though. Just that more than one has been ordered from the fleet sales specifically to be converted to police trucks for testing.

 

[PV2EV]

In an effort to spread them around, did Ford not delay fleet sales until MY2023?

 

[Mr. Flibble]

In an effort to spread them around, did Ford not delay fleet sales until MY2023?

I heard something like that as well.

All I know about these Lightnings is that they have been ordered. I have heard nothing about a potential delivery date.

 

[greenne]

The Lightning (or any EV) would be a great choice to keep all of the police electronics running without idling the car. Also the Lightning's ability to provide on-site power without bringing in a trailer and generator would be a benefit.

Great, now reservation holders will be passed over for build dates until every police department gets their Lightning's.

I was going to say EVs(or hybrids) perform great as police vehicles as they idle for long periods of time. Then there is the gas savings of being able to stay at a speed trap for hours without burning any gas....

 

[Mr. Flibble]

I was going to say EVs(or hybrids) perform great as police vehicles as they idle for long periods of time. Then there is the gas savings of being able to stay at a speed trap for hours without burning any gas....

Out here they don't really run speed traps anymore. Or much of anything. Too many resignations from the police units out here. Most of them are so over worked that they only respond to major calls. Small calls like property crimes are rarely checked out. There just isn't enough manpower to do anything but the worst crimes out our way. That, plus the general uselessness of the prosecutors office, a lot of crimes are currently catch-and-release programs.

I suspect that the folding center console will be really popular given the massive amount of paperwork most officers have to do.

I doubt we will see them parked at public chargers though - that's probably an officer safety issue. I expect them to be only charged at home (if used by detectives) or at the depot's if part of something like the pool vehicles.

Come to think of it.... I wonder if Police Issue EV's would have an "Eject Charger" feature eventually, so that you can rapidly disconnect and drive off...


I also found this:

https://www.ford.com/police-vehicles/f150-police-truck/

Not sure if the lightnings will be constructed like this. I don't have any fine details yet. But I give it a good chance that they will be. When I find out more concrete details I will update the forum. (I suspect they won't arrive locally for about a year though).

 

[greenne]

But my ICE vehicle I would use in a chase (GT350) can't go 320 miles. I can't even go 230!

I get about 220 miles per tank in normal driving and if you are driving spiritedly that can drop down well below 100 miles.

haha...reminds me of my '85 F150 with a 302. 16gal tank. 11mpg. I would step on the gas and literally see the gas gauge dip.

150mi on a full tank if I was lucky....

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