Speed Addict

Hate to burst your bubble, oh wait, no i don't...

The information I have collected (from local law enforcement officers) indicates that the Newer Crown Vics Top out at ~119 MPH, while the LT1 Caprice's topped out at 127-130. I am not up to date on the Impalas as none of the officers I know is driving one yet. I heard a couple of years ago that police Firebirds topped out at 159 MPH.

Also, mustungs do not all handle poorly. My neighbor drives a 96 or 97 Saleen (with upgraded suspension)and it is handles/corners very well.

Dak

I read an article in car and driver that said the police Impala( which is a Chevy)topped out at 115 to120mph.As for the Camaro if it is a newer(93 and above) he will be faster than your n/a.Like others have said you can't outrun the radio.

sinfestboy

saleens arent mustangs, when it comes to suspension. they have racecraft suspensions, not Ford ones. that means that when it comes to handeling, its not a ford, its a saleen.

Felix Wankel

My dads Crown Vic cop car only had a 4.6L SOHC Mustang GT engine in it. It did good to run 120. Also the 1LE cop Camaros are basically stripped Z28s. Don't **** with em unless you have a modded up TII with no tag on it, and a death wish.

Drakk0r

Just thought I'd throw this out as food for thought... Earlier this summer I was out in the country finding some fun roads to drive... And got passed by a V8 Firebird Vert with the top down. I chased him as best as I could. We came to a stop sign and stopped. We both took off. He went sideways and was gone... Not surprising. When I cought up with him, he took off again. Now we're in some slight turns going 110-130mph. Now... Surprise... He outhandled the **** outt my upgraded N/A. I was pushin it pretty hard too. Harder than I felt comfortable with anyway. To the point I could hear the tires start to scream. I'm sure when it comes to shallow turns (country roads, freeways), where a light RX-7 doesnt have the advantage of quick weight transfer. A heavy, yet powerful car would chase your *** down with ease. So lets just leave it at that and not find out.

West TX RX-7

If the police cars up there are anything like they are down here then no, you would not stand a chance. The impalas will run about 125-130 which is doable not counting radio, ect. The camaro's probably have a 4 speed in them which is not an option available to the public. The hi/po camaro's here would run around 160mph and it was very quick off the line as well.

DC350

we have not heard any straight ideas, there all boggled, recently in the newspaper there was a ford mustang (nothin impressive) base model like 98 it outran out crown vics, and impala's. The only way it got caught was the licence plate number!

Felix Wankel

Thats not an option available to anyone... You either get a 4 speed auto or a 6 speed manual. The 1LE cop package uses the standard Z28 drivetrain.

More Power

You guys make me laugh! LOL I have read tests on the Crown Vic and Impala. The Impala has a 200 hp V6. It goes 0-60 in 9.7 seconds, or about there. The Crown Vic has a 4.6L V8 (Detuned Mustang engine) that makes around 235 hp. It goes 0-60 in 9.5-10 seconds too. The police packages are actually a little slower than the regular models because of the extra weight and drag of the lights, cages, etc. There is no way an Impala could run with a 3rd Gen RX-7.

As for the Camaro, I haven't read anything in magazines about them, but I think they are just Z-28s. 305 CI 300 hp engine.

Now with that said, don't try to out run them. If they don't call someone that gets in front of you, they will get your tack number and you will be in BIG trouble for resisting arrest. Drive safely.

RX7_2ner

The police edition caprice has the interceptor engine. This allows the car to run low 17's. Not very fast. I assume the crown vics are just as slow. All cop cars handle like poo. They are made to run ppl off the road, not to drift around turns.

The Ace

Talking about fast police cars, you should see the cars the the special "Force S" here in Greece has...

This is a special task force created to chase down -supposedly- criminals with powerful getaway cars, but in reality these are cars used to chase down participants in car gatherings/happenings

Some of their cars are Porsche Carrera 4S, Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500, Ford Escort Cosworth, Mercedes 190-2.5 24V, Alfa 156 3.0 V6 etc.....some of these cars are heavily modified as well....

crossbar17

the chevy impala's they drive now have 205 HP in a 3.8L v6 engine, and all they have is a better exhaust ssytem and different computer....some poeple are just sooo full of ****

CB

Stepdaddy

whoever said saleen's arent mustangs is a fool, its just a modded mustang. thats like saying a rx-7 with mods isnt a rx-7 b/c its been changed a little

No7Yet

Thought I'd throw in my $0.02, since my stepdad is an ex-cop, and I've spent a good bit of my life around cops...

The Crown Vic police package, called the "Interceptor", while not slow, isn't fast. It's got a detuned 4.6 SOHC engine and tops out at about 118. They're very heavy (heavier than the civilian versions) due to a heavy duty suspension. Avail only in 4 spd OD auto. The drag of the lightbars prevents them from reaching the top speeds of the civilian version.

The Fox-bodied mustang police packages are stock 5.0 cars, all notchbacks. They pull slightly lower times than the civilian versions, and top out about 140. BUT they get very floaty about ~120, so cops don't like to take 'em much faster than that. Only AOD. C_d is higher due to lightbars and notchback body.

The Fox-body T-bird po packages basically follow the same formula - stock engine/drivetrain, heavier suspension, high C_d. 5.0 V8, slightly less power than the mustang versions. 4 spd AOD only (seeing a trend yet?)

The Impalas have 200 hp V6s. Cops don't like 'em because of bad experiences with the old Luminas. FWD cars tend to break axles when hopping curbs and the like. They do 0-60 in about 9, due to the high C_d and weight.

Keep in mind that all these cars are carrying a few hundred pounds of equipment in the form of firearms, ammo, light bars, computers, forms, radios, etc, etc. It adds up.

The new Camaro police package cars are Z28s with spoilers and the AOD tranny. They generally do not use light bars in order to keep the C_d roughly the same, which also saves weight. Their drivers go through extensive training in both high-speed and low-speed-tight-quarters maneuvering. Their cars have beefier suspensions, and can handle very slightly better than stock Z28s. All the ones here (Tallahassee, FL) are of the latest generation, and thus have the 350 cu. in. pushrod V8 good for 310 hp (underrated). Their top speed is closer to 165ish MPH.

But remember... no car is faster than Motorola. Even at top speed (155), your car is doing %0.00001389 of the speed of light. You don't stand a chance.

Brandon

West TX RX-7

I know for a fact a 4-speed manual is on the hi/po camaros down here at least because I used to work for the chevy dealership in town and delivered the hi/po camaro from the dealership to the officers home on several occasions. I asked the boss about ordering one for me with a 350 and 4-speed and he said it only comes that way in the police package. This would have been in 1989.

West TX RX-7

Umm Not the impalas here, they have a LT1 vette engine. Dunno bout the crown, we have a couple those too, they say they are not very fast. Maybe we talking 2 diff impalas. i'm talking the big 4 door ss rear whell drive a couple years back not the new midsized.

might429

I'll try to post up this site, It has a detailed list of what the cop cars are packing in different states. You gotta remember that alot of these cars are repoed (ex; that sweeeeet looking vette the cops got, u'know the blue one they show in the ads all the time) Also the local state PDs make a deal with the factories (mainly ford or chevy) (factories are only out to make $$) Ex, one of the police crusiers here WAS a vette w/ the L88 engine (i think) they sold it cause someone out ran it (video also will be posted,...no it wasn't me)

crossbar17

you all amuse me.....when u post make sure to add year models and engine sizes so as not to confuse others and even yourselves about what your saying.....impalas haev a 350 cu in. motor w/270 hP IF they are from 1994-1996 the new ones are no longer rear wheel drive and have a 205 hP 3.8l v6 engine, i own both so i know the differences, my 1996 impalla SS will do 0-60 in just about 6 seconds, and the front wheel drive 3.8l v6 will do it in about 8

CB

Speed Addict

Ok, the police did not use an Impala SS they used a Caprice equipped with the LT1 motor. When the rest of us refer to an impala we mean the new mid-sized fwd ones w/ 3.8 V6. The 4-door you are reffering to is the one we talk about topping out at 127-130 while the civilian 94-96 Impala SS tops out at ~135. Again the added weight and drag from the police equipment reduce the speeds. These cars are capable of much more but the popos don't bother to soup them up very much, as most taxpayers wouldn't go for that expense.

copandengr

In terms of sheer speed the fastest cop cars I have dealt with are the Impalas. In Arkansas cop cars are bought with a state wide contract bid. When Chevy had the contract the Impalas came equipped with the police package, which included among other things the LT-1 engine. They are fast, fast, fast. I know for a fact they will smoke our Ford Crown Vic Interceptor cars. I do not know what the top speed actually is but I have had the Impala at 140 and the Ford at 130 as indicated by the RADAR unit. Both cars had speed left. I was too chicken to push either of them faster.

Turtle's TII

Comnpletely agree with nathanbdarby67.

I too own a 87 TII and a 94 Formula. Both cars a a great joy to drive. I used to race a 79 RX7 with slicks and fully setup for racing.

One day I raced it and a friends 2000 T/A, I thought for sure a fully setup RX7 with race tires would be faster. Especially on a tight autocross track. I drove both cars so drivers were the same. I was 4 seconds faster in the T/A, which by the way I had never driven before that day. I could not beleive it. So of course I had to buy one. Of course it's not a LS1 but is the same suspension and overall car.

And I have never been beat buy a second gen while racing my first gen. Even the guys with the hopped up TII's. I have yet to race my TII I will race it this season just to see how it does.

So the Cam/Birds are not by any means a boat, they will hang right with you in the twistys. And then some. But I still love my TII, just something about it.

Cipher

First thing. I once tried to race an LS1 Camaro at highway speeds. I never caught him (89 NA with mods, a little over 200HP at the wheels). So, good luck....

Second. My cousin is a cop. We have had many conversations on this sorta thing This is what he has told me (statutes for all Texas Peace Officers).

If a car is traveling 130+ MPH and the cop is standing still, they CANNOT persue you. They would have to 1) Travel faster than you to catch you (duh). 2) Have to catch you in a "reasonable" amount of time. It would take the cop 1-2 minutes to catch you from a stand still if you where going that fast. And most importantly - they CANNOT lose sight of you.....

About the radio..... If he cannot see your plates (how could you @ 130+ MPH) he cannot prove IN COURT it was you So, if you're going that fast and you pass a cop, better find a turn off sooner or later. The cop will still be behind you a ways, so he will not see you, and you further improve your chances of winning in court (if he decides to cite you).

I have outrun cops before by finding turn offs when they where out off site, but I was scared as hell. I don't know if I would ever try to outrun them and stay on the same road. And if I EVER saw a `copter overhead I would give it up !!!!

Cipher

One more thing. This "boat" bussiness doesn't mean diddly. They (Car and Driver I believe) did a test on a `Vette last year. Sure, a Rex could out Slalom the thing, but as they said, and I quote "The shear horsepower of the car makes up for any short commings in the handeling department".

And how many times do you tell a guy who is "romping" his engine at you - "Hey, follow me to this winding road and I'll race" ?????

Felix Wankel

Yeah 89 was before the 4th gen was even released.... I'm talking about the 4th gen Camaros, only the poorest police department would still be using a car from 1989.

scathcart

Well, one thing I'm sure we can agree on is that if you aren't around some really twisty roads where you can duck into, don't run on a cop, no matter HOW fast you are. All they gotta do is get your licence plate on their camera's.
Sean