Ford can deny its cars to sheriff, judge rules

St Petersburg Times ^ | 09/29/2004 | Associated Press

[DeepInEnemyTerritory]

SHALIMAR - Ford Motor Co. can refuse to sell police cars to Florida law enforcement agencies that join a lawsuit against the automaker over fuel tank fires, a judge has ruled.

Circuit Judge G. Robert Barron denied Okaloosa County Sheriff Charlie Morris' request that he order Ford to resume selling cars to his department Monday. Ford has refused to sell Crown Victoria interceptors to Morris since July 2003, a year after he sued.

The suit claims the full-size, V-8-powered, four-door sedans have exploded in flames when struck from behind at high speed, in some cases killing officers. It blames poor design.

Barron last month granted class action status, permitting other Florida law enforcement agencies to join the lawsuit. No deadline for joining has been set.

With Barron's ruling in hand, Ford also will refuse to sell the cars to any other agency that participates in the suit, said company lawyer David Cannella.

"It's fundamentally illogical for Sheriff Morris to, on one hand, sue us and, on the other hand, seek the court to order (Ford) to sell him more vehicles," he said.

An attorney for Morris, Don Barrett, has said that although the sheriff views the Ford interceptors as defective, he wants to buy new ones to replace aging cars because seeking other vehicles would be more costly.

Morris' lawyers say there have been 14 accidents nationwide in which Ford interceptors caught fire after being rear-ended. Ford attorneys say that represents 0.01 percent of its interceptors on the road - none of them Morris' cars.

[skinkinthegrass]

the states that joined in the tobacco lawsuit. Refuse to sell smokes in those states.

ALL SMOKES..that'll teach 'em...PITCHFORKS! MEN/LADIES! PITCHFORKS!..."Burn down the statehouse"..."We want our Smokes!" :))

[Petronski]

Excellent.


I should point out that I'm a kind of Crown Vic wonk: I would drive nothing else, I service my own, and have amassed a pretty extensive knowledge base (for a lawyer, anyway) on their operation. Mine's a 96 with 148k. Runs like a top (LX trim, cop guts).

[coloradan]

Too bad gun manufacturers don't do the same thing.
That was my first thought after reading the headline.

And mine as well. There's no shortage of jurisdictions where the police chief calls for lawsuits against gun manufacturers.

[CFC__VRWC]

I have an aunt who has a '96 Grand Marquis, it's getting near 100,000 miles now. She just recently had a problem with the transmission "hunting" at highway speed, which the mechanic traced to a bad vacuum fitting. He replaced it and the car runs like new. That's the only trouble she's had with it in all the time she's owned it. It still looks like a new car.

I'm partial to pickup trucks, but if I were to get a car, it probably would be a Crown Vic or a Grand Marquis.

[Petronski]

I'm partial to pickup trucks, but if I were to get a car, it probably would be a Crown Vic or a Grand Marquis.

Oddly enough, the Ford F-150 line uses the same modular drivetrain, with modifications of course (higher torque rating for the tranny, for example).

Ford has a lot to learn about transaxles and CV joints, IMO, but this rear-wheel drive combo has been in production in its current form since 92 (again, with periodic improvements).

My next vic will be 2001+, with the performance improved heads: an extra 30 hp for free.

[Petronski]

Interceptors are ordered from Ford through the dealer and are delivered through that dealer. As mentioned upthread, Ford will not knowingly sell the police interceptor to a member of the public, so Ford is involved at that level early on.

On the other hand, if you have a friend in a dealership he can search inventory computers for PI 'misorders' (which are new but, not matching the order properly, can be sold to anyone who wants it).

A new police interceptor is a very good thing indeed (though some amenities like cruise control and stereo will be missing and must be added on).

[Centurion2000]

Many are probably correct by asserting that many of the crashes are unsurvivable, but many of the autopsies show the Officer died from burning to death instead of the impact of a collision.

You drive a vehicle that harnesses the explosive power of up to 300 sticks of dynamite for a fuel tank.

If it gets hard enough, it leaks and it burns. It's called LIFE. IF you want to avoid this problem, start issuing M1 tanks to police officers.

[stylin19a]

thanx for the explanation

[Clinging Bitterly]

I'd guess that any car with a tank of gasoline strapped underneath could possibly catch fire if impacted at high speed.

I'd also guess that most of the time they don't. Even Crown Vics, or Pintos, or GM trucks.

That said, it still happens, and sometimes more often in some models than others. Don't know the actual statistics because it doesn't interest me enough to bother looking for them, but I'd be willing to bet the Crown Vic is one of them. If Ford could identify a cause for that the right thing to do would be to fix it, but I doubt Ford's legal department would allow them to voluntarily do that because it could be taken as a sort of admission of guilt - which would be a problem for them with claims currently in litigation.

I think I read somewhere that it was determined by someone that a particular bolt in the rear structure of the Crown Vic was puncturing the tanks. It would probably cost just a few bucks a car to fix, but there are those darn lawyers.

It's too bad things have to be that way. Society needs to realize someday that cars and trucks have inherent dangers, and that it is not possible to foresee every possible danger and build a model that will guarantee survival of any accident. Sometimes folks even get killed in fender benders.

[Petronski]

Ford makes a retrofit kit. As I understand, there are one or two bolts that are cut off with a grinding wheel, followed by the addition of some kind of rubber bumper or gromet.

I never had it done because I'm just not concerned with that tiny chance of an incident.

[Clinging Bitterly]

Dodge Magnum.
RWD, available with 340 HP 348 CI Hemi.

In time we'll probably see gumball machines start sprouting out of the tops of these things.

[Ronin]

I agree with Ford -- period.

If someone is in the process of sueing me, the last thing I am going to do is make anything easier for him.

[Boiler Plate]

Actually a classmate of my wife was killed here in MD when his car spun out and hit a telephone pole when it was backwards. The ford exploded as described, however it was a freak accident and I do not recall any other incidents.

[Abogado]

"The manufacturer says burning a quart in 800 miles is considered normal in the new ones."

Not likely. Do the math. Most cars would run out of oil between oil changes consuming 1 quart every 800 miles.

[Clinging Bitterly]

It's not normal but the manufacturers will say it is. Most cars I have had didn't use a quart of oil between changes, but on the ones that have, it's neither difficult nor a great expense to dump one in every 500 miles or so. Depends on where you buy it I suppose. I get a good name brand API grade SJ oil for $1.19 but I don't buy it at the gas station.

[pepsionice]

If I was going to be in a accident, and given a choice of vehicle...its either the Crown Vic or a Volvo...its that simple. Ford is correct in their action. Make the cops go to GM...where the same kind of lawsuit will occur in five years with them.

[ApplegateRanch]

although the sheriff views the Ford interceptors as defective, he wants to buy new ones to replace aging cars because seeking other vehicles would be more costly.

Glad the sheriff is more concerned about money than he is about his officers' safety.

Wants money from Ford for "unsafe" cars; wants to save money by buying more "unsafe" cars, thus gaining from both ends.

IF Ford had sold him the additional vehicles, couldn't he then be held PERSONALLY liable for any future accidents, for knowingly and willfully providing those self-same "unsafe" vehicles?

[SirLurkedalot]

I just hit 137k in my '93 LX. Best car I've ever owned. Gotta love the Vic!

[Michael121]

Ohio did something right. It is a law to change lanes or if not posible, SLOW DOWN when an officer is on the shoulder.

Not that there are not law breakers, I always move over because I do not want to be the one to hit a cop if he steps out or gets pushed out into the lane.

On the tanks they could dothe Huey things, put honeycomb material in the tanks which almost eliminated the blow ups.

And put more frame around the tanks.

[Still Thinking]

gun makers should just charge cities whose mayors try to sue them 10 times more for that city's PD to buy.No, gun makers should apply that policy to cities who have sued them or any other gun maker. Otherwise the cities will just switch from Smith to Colt, etc.