2005 U.S. Park Ranger Crown Vic Cruiser



Copyright © 2011 Jonelle DeFelice



UPDATE: My Trunk(lip) is Sealed...

Yesterday I saved myself some cash by taking a drive to a local junkyard.  After a walk over oil soaked mud mixed with car bits, I got to the Crown Vic/Marquis section.  I was after a trunk gasket.  Mine finally ripped in one spot due to age and twice-yearly attacks from tires being moved in the trunk...

Anyhoo, most of the cars had the trunks shut and no keys.  The few with open trunks had gaskets worse than mine.  But I remembered one rather new Marquis up by the front entrance, and after walking back over the mud and oil, found that car had a minty gasket.

Ford Price: $68.00  Junk Yard Price: $10.00

I did, though, install it wrong.  Turned out someone had put mine in wrong, and when I copied that one, it didn't fit right.  But I fixed it this morning, and so far, so good. 

Police test-drive new cruisers to replace venerable Crown Vics

EDMONTON — In his pursuit of a new police cruiser, Const. Scott Anthony folds his six-foot-10 frame into the driver’s seat.

“I’m the tallest guy in the service. If I can fit in the car, so can everybody else,” said Anthony, the lead driving instructor in the officer safety department with the Edmonton Police Service.

“But I also have to take into consideration the officers that we have who are shorter in stature, too,” he said. “Do the seats adjust properly so that everybody ... from the shortest member we have all the way up to me can operate that vehicle safely?” Anthony asked............. READ WHOLE ARTICLE: Police test-drive new cruisers to replace venerable Crown Vics

One of the Last Crown Vics Rides the Rails...

Below is a poignant photo.  What is it exactly?  If you are not into trains, you most likely don't know.  This is what is called an autorack.  Railroads use these large freight cars to move new automobiles around the country.  Currently, Norfolk Southern Railroad delivers autoracks filled with Fords to an unloading facility at Ayer MA.  The cars are then put on trucks for delivery to dealers. 

Why am I posting such a crummy photo?  Well, today's autoracks make it harder to vandalize the new cars.  You can't see what's inside that well, but you can often make out what type of car is behind the metal sides... in this case, one of the last Crown Victorias.  Try as I did, I couldn't get a decent photo to share while the train was moving.  But if you click the image and see it full size, you can see a white Vic inside...

... and THAT is how some of the last Vics are being moved to new homes!





124,000 Miles...

Lexington MA Police Vic at Touch a Truck Day 7/15/11

Took a peek at Touch a Truck Day in Lexington MA this morning.  After finally finding a parking spot in Lexington Center (right by the famous Minuteman statue), I found myself in a sea of parents and little kids.  It became obvious I would not be getting any clear shots of the Lexington PD Vic.  I also became obvious I would look very silly waiting in line to sit in it!  I snapped a few shots anyway, while kids crawled all over the fire truck and big town vehicles...

Saying Goodbye to the Crown Victoria Police Car Sad for Some...

April 14, 2011 By Colin Wood

The iconic Ford Crown Victoria squad car, which has remained relatively unchanged since its introduction in 1992, will stop production late this year and be replaced by Ford’s new line of Police Interceptors. The automaker says the new model, based on the Taurus, will be more fuel efficient, safer and come with more horsepower under the hood.....................

READ WHOLE ARTICLE: Saying Goodbye to the Crown Victoria Police Car Sad for Some

UPDATE: Charge it...

Wellp, turns out Vic's battery was indeed almost 3 years old.  I bought it in August 2008.  Thankfully, the dealer gave me a new one under warranty since I had the original receipt. It suddenly popped into my head that during one visit to Taxi Guy when Vic was broken, there were jumper cables attached to it while it sat.  So it actually first died while it was in the shop, then I drove it a few times, then it sat for almost a week, resulting in the really dead battery.