1999 Ford Crown Victoria LX V8

Summary:

Great car for the money... but you have to know how to take care of them

Faults:

The only thing is the throttle body had to be cleaned twice during the past 5 years.

General Comments:

I have been shocked at how good this car has turned out to be. I drive the wheels off of it and it has never failed me.

It is very comfortable and efficient. I have never gotten worse than 23 MPG, but usually average 25MPG.

It's not a Porsche or a BMW 750, but for the money it is incredible value... these cars are getting somewhat of a celebrity status with the hotrodders too. Read Hot Rod magazine or Car Craft and you see them mentioned routinely... too bad they've stopped making them for the common consumer.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 8th March, 2009

28th Mar 2009, 00:30

I don't care what the EPA guidelines say. As I said in my earlier comments "you have to know how to take care of a crown vic... but also how to drive one to get the best MPG. I just came off a 2 day road trip. The second leg of trip - I drove 426 miles and filled it up with 16.42 gallons. Use a calculator if you have to but... it comes to 25.97 MPG.

11th Jun 2010, 03:03

Those EPA fuel economy ratings are notoriously inaccurate. In most cases they are a gross overstatement of the cars' actual MPG in real-life driving. They don't test the new cars in everyday conditions and the engines aren't broken in at the time, so what you see on the sticker is basically a rough estimate! Once your new cars' engine is broken in, the MPG's typically improve. There's many things one can do to make his car actually EXCEED the EPA ratings, such as getting rid of extra weight (the full-size spare comes to mind, especially if you already have Triple-A), and keeping a FINELY TUNED ENGINE, (with/without aftermarket modifications to improve performance and fuel economy) are all steps you can take to keep your fuel costs reasonable.

18th Jun 2010, 08:23

I can confirm + 25 mpg on newer fuel injected versions of the Crown Victoria; I've achieved 27 mpg at best. Actually this is the typical mpg driving long stretches doing a steady 50-60 mph. City driving is of course another thing, where the mpg drops to 15 or even lower. But this car with its large understressed engine with a lot of torque does good MPG highway driving.

2nd Jan 2011, 22:31

Mine gets 20 to 25 mpg and drives great. Best used car I ever purchased.

1999 Ford Crown Victoria P71 Police Interceptor 4.6 SOHC

Summary:

Great Value, Great Car

Faults:

Gas Gauge doesn't work. (like that when purchased)

Driver's side windshield wiper needed replacement.

Passenger side headlight faded to yellowish tint.

General Comments:

I purchased my Crown Vic for $2,300. The only thing wrong with it at the time was the forementioned Gas Gauge, it always reads empty. I talked to a mechanic who told me it would cost about $200 to fix. I go by mileage on the odometer and have never had a problem nor fixed the problem.

Gas mileage isn't great, all around driving I average 18 MPG. I've heard of these vehicles getting 23 MPG, perhaps with a cold air intake.

Top Speed is supposedly 139 MPH. Cruise Control works nicely at 115 MPH (professional driver, closed course.) Highway driving is almost on par with my BMW (2005 325ci.) Handling is also excellent considering the vehicle's size and weight.

Bottom line is that these are excellent vehicles with amazing reliability. I have seen one and heard of others (former police vehicles used as taxis) reaching and exceeding 1 million miles with the original engines. I just purchased a second for $3,000 (2003 103k miles.)

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 12th March, 2008

4th Oct 2011, 18:15

Ummm, one thing, this is a Police Interceptor, and well these cars are abused like crazy. If you're going to buy an ex police car, then don't be surprised if anything doesn't work. Cops love driving fast and abusing cars, so just don't hate the Crown Vic because you bought an ex cop car.