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Ford can deny its cars to sheriff, judge rules
St Petersburg Times ^ | 09/29/2004 | Associated Press

Posted on 10/01/2004 6:50:09 PM PDT by 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.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Extended News; Front Page News; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; US: Florida
KEYWORDS: automakers; ford; lawsuit; leo
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To: yarddog
One thing I don't understand about this is why can't the Sheriff find a dealer to buy from or does Ford have power over it's dealers to decide who they sell to?

I don't think you can find the "cop" version of the Crown Victoria at a dealer.

21 posted on 10/01/2004 7:25:06 PM PDT by rmmcdaniell
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To: jim_trent

gun makers should just charge cities whose mayors try to sue them 10 times more for that city's PD to buy.
they can claim it as insurance against law suits.
might start a neat little pissing contest ,too...


22 posted on 10/01/2004 7:25:37 PM PDT by Rakkasan1 (Justice of the Piece:If Marx is your hero, Kerry is your candidate.)
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To: go star go

SHHH! don't tell Dateline NBC.
(remember the GMC truck debacle?)


23 posted on 10/01/2004 7:27:03 PM PDT by Rakkasan1 (Justice of the Piece:If Marx is your hero, Kerry is your candidate.)
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To: Moleman
They care only about cost not quality.

Hmm...I had heard that, 15+ years ago that FORD's std. is 3000 hrs for major component/materials failure...the others (GMC..etc.) were 5000 hrs. :/

24 posted on 10/01/2004 7:39:45 PM PDT by skinkinthegrass (Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get you :)
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To: DeepInEnemyTerritory

Pinto redux?


25 posted on 10/01/2004 8:01:55 PM PDT by NautiNurse (Bonnie, Charley, Frances, Ivan Sr, Ivan Jr, and Jeanne...painting curtains on the boarded windows)
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To: skinkinthegrass

I have a 94 Lincoln Town Car. It is essentially the same car as a Ford Crown Vic.

It has 194K miles on it and it has not had a major failure.

It uses a quart of oil to 4500 miles. Not bad.

It runs and drives like new.

Taxi companies buy old cop cars and run them as taxis.

They routinely run them to 400K miles without replacing the engine.


26 posted on 10/01/2004 8:29:16 PM PDT by Dan(9698)
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To: Jorge

If Ford only cared about cost, they would not have been installing switches that cut power to the electric fuel pumps in a collision on all of their models since at least 1987.


27 posted on 10/01/2004 8:31:03 PM PDT by brianl703 (Border crossing is a misdemeanor. So is drunk driving. Which do we have more checkpoints for?)
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To: DeepInEnemyTerritory

I defy anyone to name a front-engine vehicle that can be rear-ended at 75 miles-per-hour and not catch on fire.


It doesn't exist.


28 posted on 10/01/2004 8:31:19 PM PDT by Petronski (DEMS: Kim tested, Osama approved.)
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To: Poohbah

Which, the car or the missile?


29 posted on 10/01/2004 8:38:18 PM PDT by Frumious Bandersnatch
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To: brianl703

Good point.


30 posted on 10/01/2004 8:47:36 PM PDT by Jorge
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To: DeepInEnemyTerritory

Unrelated to this lawsuit, I have had the gas tanks fall out of two Ford products. I will grant that these events happened prior to 1985, but I still remember.


31 posted on 10/01/2004 8:50:56 PM PDT by js1138 (Speedy architect of perfect labyrinths.)
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To: Dan(9698)

I've read that limo companies in NYC routinely run new Town Cars 750K+ miles. They change the oil every 2000 - 3000 miles and aggressively maintain the cars.

Ever since GM stopped making the Chevy Caprice, Ford is the only manufacturer who still offers the large rear wheel drive sedan.


32 posted on 10/01/2004 8:53:41 PM PDT by CFC__VRWC (I'm running out of middle fingers to give to the hurricanes!)
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To: DeepInEnemyTerritory

This is the tactic I had urged the cigarette companies to take with the states that joined in the tobacco lawsuit. Refuse to sell smokes in those states.


33 posted on 10/01/2004 8:53:47 PM PDT by DefCon
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To: Dan(9698)

Have you ever had the valve seals replaced? It's a relatively cheap procedure and might be the cause of your oil consumption. It was a known flaw in that era.


34 posted on 10/01/2004 8:57:05 PM PDT by Petronski (DEMS: Kim tested, Osama approved.)
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To: Dan(9698)

The Crown Vic drivetrain is wellnigh indestructible with regular maintenance.


35 posted on 10/01/2004 9:00:25 PM PDT by Petronski (DEMS: Kim tested, Osama approved.)
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To: Dan(9698)
I have a 94 Lincoln Town Car...without replacing the engine.

..No Doubt, for the higher priced autos (like LEO cars.), but for lower priced...one word: pinto/chevette/hornet :))

36 posted on 10/01/2004 9:00:44 PM PDT by skinkinthegrass (Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get you :)
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To: DeepInEnemyTerritory
Do police depts. buy directly from Ford ? or a local dealer ? If a dealer, doesn't the dealer own the car ?
37 posted on 10/01/2004 9:00:45 PM PDT by stylin19a (Of all the things i have lost in my life, I miss my mind the most.)
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To: Petronski
I defy anyone to name a front-engine vehicle that can be rear-ended at 75 miles-per-hour and not catch on fire.

I had an '86 Chevey Cavalier that was a year old when some drunk rear-ended it while I was at a friend's house one night. The police estimate he was doing at least 70 when he hit my car. The impact crushed it like an accordion, but the car didn't catch fire.

I wasn't in the car when he hit it - even though it didn't burn, I doubt I would have survived the impact had I have been. At the very least I would have been seriously maimed and/or crippled.

38 posted on 10/01/2004 9:00:57 PM PDT by CFC__VRWC (I'm running out of middle fingers to give to the hurricanes!)
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To: Petronski

It was burning a quart in 400 miles before I changed the valve seals.

It now uses a quart to 4500 miles. The manufacturer says burning a quart in 800 miles is considered normal in the new ones.

My point is that the engine is as good as new. Certainly not the "cheapest" as was asserted above.


39 posted on 10/01/2004 9:04:05 PM PDT by Dan(9698)
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To: CFC__VRWC

And there are photos of Vics which, after catastrophic rear-end collisions which did not burn either. I did not mean to speak of 100% of all incidents, but rather on the average. Possible variables in non-fire cases could be quantity of gas in the tank, relative humidity, angle of incident, etc.


40 posted on 10/01/2004 9:05:07 PM PDT by Petronski (DEMS: Kim tested, Osama approved.)
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