Meet Ford’s new F-150 police pickup

Ford is touting its 2021 F-150 Police Responder as “America’s Only Purpose-Built Pickup With Pursuit Rating”

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The next time you get run over, it can be done by an officer in a Ford pickup instead of a traditional “patrol car”.

Ford Motor unveiled its new 2021 F-150 Police Responder on Tuesday ahead of the spring state and local government bid cycles. Commercial vehicles such as police vehicles are the focus of the company under Ford boss Jim Farley, who took over the helm from Jim Hackett in October.

According to a spokeswoman for the automaker, the demand for a police version of the Ford F-150 has grown steadily since its introduction in 2017. It declined to disclose certain sales of the Chase-rated pickup truck or Ford range of police vehicles.

Switching from police cars to commercial vehicles like pickups and SUVs is a major trend of automakers away from passenger sedans. Ford retired its last police car, a Ford Taurus, a few years ago. A police version of its Ford Explorer is now the best-selling model, according to the company.

2021 F-150 Police Responder

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Police pickup is based on the consumer version of the truck, but includes special options and settings to accommodate “strict law enforcement” at speeds of up to 120 mph. The vehicle also has a new “police engine idling” with which officers can remove the keys from the ignition and leave the truck safely at the push of a button while the engine is running.

Like the consumer truck, the new police pickup has a remote or radio connection as well as data and telematics analyzes to improve vehicle availability, operating costs and driving behavior. Customers can also choose to order a vehicle with no front console between the driver and passenger, which makes it easier for agencies to install their own department-specific consoles.