The United States is home to roughly 12,000 police departments patrolling various jurisdictions across the country. According to CNBC, if you happen to see a police car in your neighborhood, odds are 50% or greater that it’s wearing a Ford badge.
In fact, the Blue Oval has pretty much cornered the police vehicle market, with 2018 figures pointing to a 63% market share, thanks to the highly successful Police Interceptor lineup.
While providing police forces with Interceptors isn’t a particularly large part of Ford’s business plan, it is a fairly important one, according to Guideouse Insights analyst Sam Abuelsamid.
Related: Some Employees Want Ford To Stop Making Police Cars, CEO Rejects Their Call
Based on the Ford Explorer, the Interceptor utility vehicle is the best-selling police vehicle in America, accounting for half of all new police vehicles sold. The success of the Interceptor Utility, as well as that of other SUVs from rivals like GM, points to a connection between the police and the passenger vehicle markets.
In other words, SUVs are taking over from sedans and station wagons, a trend that’s been ongoing in the civilian car market for some time now.
So what does this have to do with Ford? Well, in 1950, the Blue Oval seized an opportunity and became the first carmaker to offer a dedicated police package, debuting the Interceptor name a year later. Fast-forward 10 years and 58% of police vehicles used in the 50 largest U.S. cities were Fords.
Later, the Chrysler Corporation would take control of the market thanks to its Dodge and Plymouth brands, up until 1985. Then came the Crown Vic and the Chevy Caprice, but as passenger cars started shrinking in size, the SUV became the better option for a patrol vehicle.
Last year, Ford brought to the market the first pursuit-rated hybrid vehicle in the form of the Interceptor hybrid, which totaled 19% of orders for the nameplate among law enforcement entities.
The video below will take you on a more in-depth journey on the topic of how Ford got to where they are as far as this specialized segment of the market is concerned.