ORIGINAL: DamnSkippy
They probably went with the sedans because of some silly stigma or concern over IMAGE. That is the exact same reason they would opt for a Challenger, simply because it'll look tough. I'm not saying they'll have ton's of 'em...but I'd be surprised if there weren't more than a few across the nations PDs or state police.
You're point is absolutely valid, the most practical vehicle would have been the Magnum, but they didn't opt for it.
Think about it, why would they purchase HD's over Honda's or some other more reliable bike? They get Harley's because of image I would venture.
Skippy, your misunderstanding the point. The police simply like sedans better than coupes because they are more functional for their purposes. During the late 90s-02 the Camaro was by far the fastest police package. the acceleration times were about 5.9 secs on the police version 0-60 run and the top speed was about 159mph. The Camaro suppsively was less expensive than the Crown Vic whos acceleration times were in the 8 sec range and the top speed was between the mid 120 to low 130 range, yet it sold very few units.
Will there be at least 1 or more Challengers used by the police? I'm sure they will, just don't expect an offical police package is all I'm saying. It would be an excellent undercover cop vehicle as no one will suspect a Challenger just as most people still don't suspect Chargers like they suspect Crown Vics since it is newer to the market. There are some police stations that have used Cadillac Escalades in the past and we know that the Escalade does not come in a police package.
There have been other station wagons used as police interceptors, in fact I've seen a few Caprice wagons of the last gen Caprice, but they were not popular enough in recent years to use let alone offer an offical package and things haven't changed. The police simply like sedans better for some reason. Also the use of an SUV seems to be favored probably for those times they have to chase someone down a backroad.