Wouldn’t this be a sight on our roads?
Michigan carmaker Ford has unveiled the very first “pursuit-rated” ute, in the form of the über-macho 2018 F-150 Police Responder. While it may be a surprise body style for a law enforcement vehicle, considering how many police fleets maintain SUVs alongside saloon-bodied counterparts, we’re wondering why it wasn’t done sooner.
Based on the F-150 FX4 model, the SuperCrew body (made with military-grade aluminium alloy, no less) gives the Police Responder the largest passenger volume, payload, and towing capacity of any pursuit-rated police vehicle in history, and offers the best shoulder, hip, and legroom in its class.
“Ford’s 2018 F-150 Police Responder is the perfect all-terrain law-enforcement vehicle,” said the marque’s police brand marketing manager Stephen Tyler. The all-terrain nature of the F-150 means that the Police Responder is suited to both on-road and off-road duty, and we foresee demand for this vehicle coming from law enforcement departments that patrol and secure areas with difficult terrain (like border patrol and rural environments).
While utes in the States can take very luxurious routes, the F-150 Police Responder is a clear-cut work vehicle, with upgraded brakes and front stabiliser bar to keep the vehicle under control even at its 160km/h top-speed. Power comes from a 3.5-litre EcoBoost turbocharged V6 petrol engine, with 279kW and 636Nm, putting power to all four all-terrain 18-inch wheels through a ten-speed automatic gearbox. There are underbody skid plates, all-terrain tyres, and a Class-4 trailer hitch that allows it to pull up to 3,175kg.
The interior is perfect for law enforcement too, with things like heavy-duty cloth upholstery (replete with anti-stabbing protective plates on the seatbacks), a column-mounted gear lever, a deleted front centre seat (freeing up space for all sorts of police paraphernalia), and heavy-duty vinyl flooring that should prove easy to clean.
While there’s no mention of this police-ute coming to Australia, we’d love to see a few of these doing duty in some far-flung locations or even as motorway patrol vehicles, if only for its aesthetic appeal. Can’t blame us for wishing.
For more information on Ford, check out our Showroom.
