I would think RWD would do better in the winter. Every time you accelerate/go up a hill, that's weight over the back end. These cars are 53/47 (Same as my 370Z, which the engineers were SO proud of...), so it doesn't take much to shift that weight to a rear bias.
Crown Vic P7B...a good buy?
- Thread starter Ws6
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Perhaps. My last experiences with RWD was a Tundra and an Astro Van. Both light in the rear, and easy to swap ends on. The Tundra, as a rule I drove in winter with TC off as it (or VSC) was overly aggressive and useless. The Astro didn't have either, and was the first vehicle I ever went off-roading in without planning to do so ahead of time. So I haven't been crazy about going back to RWD. For the right price, maybe.
Dude, trucks are the worst. I literally saw one a few years back (may have been a Trundra actually) gently going up and icy bridge. It just whipped into the gaurd rail. I say it, because the driver surely didn't dial that request in. Zero fishtail or anything, just WHACK 90* into it. My experience with rwd cars that are even close to 50/50 has been that they are very forgiving and give lots of feedback and warning.
Every ice storm you know what I see in ditches? Trucks. Sure there are all things, but the #1 thing I see is trucks.
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Well, I bought it. I looked all over the engine. Zero leaks. I crawled under it. Zero leaks to diff, axles, front or rear of trans, etc. Bushings all healthy and uncracked. Car ran great. My obd scanner revealed all things nominal regarding voltages, temps, vacuum, all of it. It has some minor dings, but honestly less than most civilian 2011 sedans. Some paint peel in some of the creases, etc. Just super minor stuff. We took it down a dirt road and there were zero rattles. Honestly creepy how silent it was suspension wise. Car was dirty. This guy put Zero effort into making the sale beyond being chill to deal with.
Should you go that route, ADTR offers some really nice suspension upgrades for the Whale Panthers. A friend has their coilovers, control arms, and watts link on his and the handling is outstanding. He also used that setup on a 70 F-100 on a Vic frame swap.
Right now, the main thing I want is a new seat cover for the driver's seat cbottom cushion. It has a tear. Probably from a holster/radio.
Im doing a radio, ceramic tint, moon hubcaps, led drop in bulbs (confirmed to have oem beam pattern, not that other nonsense from cheap drop ins.), windshield film, and otherwise just fixing little wear and tear stuff.
The ground clearance is literally why I sought this out. Rims, I kindof like the 10 hole. Cheap sure, but they give it presence in a way nothing else can at 4300#/250hp.
Still miss my 2005 Crown Vic. Sold it back in 2016 for 2K bucks. Had 300K miles on it. Besides regular maintenance only needed a water pump and a/c work. Nothing else. Wish I kept it. It was the lowest maintenance vehicle I ever owned or ever will own.
The problem is actually achieving the weight transfer when there is no grip and can't get moving to begin with.
That said, it's quite doable. I drove my 2011 Crown Vic daily for 11 years through Wisconsin winters. In the bad stuff, the trick is to plan ahead and avoid coming to a complete stop. Once you are moving, you're good to go for the most part.
Quiet can be fixed with a set of free flowing mufflers. Let that 4.6 eat!
It's actually pretty loud. There is literally zero sound deadening in this car. You can hear the transmission, diff, etc. very clearly. I had kindof forgotten just how aggressive these actually were. They are absolutely what you'd expect of LE/MIL gear: Bare bones minimum refinement.
I spent a few hundred bucks and got it detailed out, and other than a few small tears (hinge and holster point) in the driver's seat cushion, this thing's interior is in amazing shape. I'm still on the hunt for a replacement seat/cushion, but will just seatcover it if I cannot find. Got it scheduled for a multipoint inspection and diff and other fluids service at the local Ford dealer in a couple weeks.
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I always wanted a police crown victoria but they're super rusty and just beat to death. And having all the bodily fluids in the back ... . One thing with police cars is idling kills the pump on the 4R70/5 since they're always engaged. Not like a mopar where the pump doesn't work in park. The pump wears out on cop cars and kills the transmission.
The ruggedized interior, vinyl floor, steelies are all things I like.
I "settled" for a grand marquis and made it as close to a cop car as I reasonably can for now. It gained a set of steelies, a HPP rear axle and a dorman rear swaybar kit.
The ruggedized interior, vinyl floor, steelies are all things I like.
I "settled" for a grand marquis and made it as close to a cop car as I reasonably can for now. It gained a set of steelies, a HPP rear axle and a dorman rear swaybar kit.
You have to have a LOT of weight in the trunk for them to be better than FWD. That's what I did with mine and it got me around during a snowstorm where we got 3' of snow. I was , at one point, plowing snow up to the headlights with mine. I am surprised it got through but it did!
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