Ford has removed a few new large SUVs from the market if you were in the market for one with a hybrid option. Ford has decided to concentrate its hybrid production skills on the Explorer Police Interceptor Utility Hybrid vehicle, so the 2024 Ford Explorer Hybrid and Lincoln Aviator Hybrid have been axed. Police departments all around the country seem to be obsessed with the 318-horsepower, 322-pound-feet of torque hybrid beast.
Ford does not disclose the number of Police Interceptor vehicles it sells annually, but because sales of Explorer and Aviator vehicles are declining overall, Five-Oh must be driving the model’s sales higher than average. Ford and the Explorer have historically enjoyed strong fleet sales, but it seems like every new law enforcement vehicle sold these days is an interceptor. Although the Explorer no longer has the same sway over the police market as the Crown Victoria did, Ford must still have a sizable share of this market.
According to Ford spokesperson Mike Levine, “the 2024 model year Explorer will only be offered with the fuel efficient 2.3-liter four-cylinder EcoBoost, which offers up to an EPA-estimated 24 mpg combined fuel economy, and the 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 to meet continued strong demand for the Ford Police Interceptor Utility hybrid and other Ford hybrid vehicles.” “The majority of Explorer sales are made up of those two engines.”
In any case, the Explorer Hybrid is quite an outdated hybrid in the current market. It utilizes a modest 44-horsepower electric motor on the transmission input shaft in addition to a 3.3-liter naturally aspirated V6. It is powered by a 1.5 kWh lithium battery, which is even smaller, and stored under the back seat. The EPA gave the massive seven-seater car a combined mileage rating of barely 25 mpg, which was only 2 mpg better than the base 2.3-liter Ecoboost model.
Given that hybrid vehicles frequently remain idle for extended periods of time, police departments seem to really prefer this concept. Officers can presumably run the accessories on a smaller engine thanks to the lithium battery, which lowers fuel consumption even further and lowers wear and maintenance expenses.
Thank the stars that the cops are more ecologically sensitive the next time a police chase results in a bystander being crushed to death.
