Police: “Dodge Chargers are a maintenance nightmare”

[Jesda]

http://www2.newsvirginian.com/news/2011 ... ar-915762/

A News Virginian investigation found the Chargers break down more often and cost the city more money to repair than Crown Vics that are older and which have logged more miles. Charger repairs contribute to maintenance expenses that outpaced anticipated costs in each of the past five years, records show.

The cars roll into the city garage on Essex Avenue so often, that mechanics there said it’s become a joke that they’re so adept with the Charger they should seek dealership jobs.

[themadscientist]

They bought Dodges, what the hell did they expect?

Drips
Oil
Drops
Grease
Everywhere

My
Only
Problems
Are
Repairs

They don't build them like the Bluesmobile anymore.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yil9wlfa0yo[/youtube]

[Bubba1]

Stop the presses! What a shocker!!!. The News Virginian discovered that the cars supplied by the American car manufacturer with the worst reliability record of the big 3 are.... (gasp).... more unreliable in heavy police use than the more reliable Fords they replaced????. Uh, Wow. Boy, the next thing you know the News Virginian will report Nissan's gonna use CVT transmissions...

[frapjap]

I'm surprised they eliminated the fleet manager position. Now you've got a bunch of dudes saying, "well, at least it looks cool" instead of "how will this hold up in service?"

[OriginalWheelman]

The Erie County Sheriffs just got a Ford Focus 4 door. That thing is stealth. I imagine operating costs are a lot less, and with pursuit regulations, might as well drive a Focus.

[Jesda]

Stop the presses! What a shocker!!!. The News Virginian discovered that the cars supplied by the American car manufacturer with the worst reliability record of the big 3 are.... (gasp).... more unreliable in heavy police use than the more reliable Fords they replaced????. Uh, Wow. Boy, the next thing you know the News Virginian will report Nissan's gonna use CVT transmssions....

[MinisterofDOOM]

Condsidering that the Crown Vic was vastly simpler and vastly more toughly-built, this is no surprise.

I don't expect feedback for the new police package Tauruses and Exploders to be a whole lot better. It's not ALL Dodge's fault. You can't replace vehicles that face this kind of workload with unibody alternatives without changing how you use them.

The Crown Victoria was IDEAL for police work. It has been replaced with cars that are not. Results sure as hell aren't going to improve.

The Caprice is unibody, too, but at least GM went into it prepared for extra abuse. GM did the same with the Impala, too--refusing to offer V8s in police spec vehicles because they weren't confident the supporting systems could keep the V8 alive under increased abuse with the FWD packaging. Instead they used V8 parts (like the cooling system) to make the V6 models more robust. Still wasn't anything close to a true alternative to the Crown Vic, but at least it was designed with tough work in mind.

I honestly can't wait to hear feedback from Highway Patrol on the new unibody Exploders. I can't imagine they'll be happy with them. They feel huge, visibility is terrible, they handle like garbage, and the weigh as much as the Death Star. But, unlike the outgoing body-on-frame model, the new one offers no benefits in exchange for these downsides.

DURABILITY. Say it with me, ladies. Durability.
It's what makes a truck a truck, and a crossover a waste of gorram space.

[themadscientist]

They need some Ford Falcon XBs with the V8 intercepter and a supercharger sucking nitromethane.

[Bubba1]

They need some Ford Falcon XBs with the V8 intercepter and a supercharger sucking nitromethane.

Or how about some indestructible Checker cabs retired by NYC cab service. simple, roomy and comfortable. And so tough, they could ram a perps car and barely scratch the paint.

[hudy]

They could switch to Land Rover LR4 or Range Rover Sport. They are unit body on frame. And would still be replacing brakes every 3-6k...

[MinisterofDOOM]

I'm really astounded that no one stepped up to buy the tooling and manufacturing rights for the Crown Victoria to sell for fleet use exclusively. Ford might feel the need to pretend their TT V6 makes more power than God and gets better fuel economy than a fountain that sprays gasoline in exchange for whispered sweet nothings, but that doesn't change the fact that the world still has a need for a REAL CAR.

Reality check, Ford--
"Ecoboost" V6: Two turbos. 350hp. 17mpg city, 25mpg highway.
LFX V6: No turbos. 330hp. 17mpg city, 28mpg highway.

TURBOS LOSE. GO HOME AND CRY.

Oh, did I mention the Caprice comes with the LFX? So yeah. My anti-ecoboost rant is still thread-relevant.

[nissangirl74]

I bet the criminals are loving it. They don't have to do so much to their own cars in order to outrun them.

[themadscientist]

[mmkeller]

I stopped you kid because I can't catch anybody else.........