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Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Ford's 2020 Explorer for police has hidden lifesaving design feature

Michigan State Police 1st Lt. Mike Shaw has been nearly hit by speeding vehicles four times, twice while outside his car.

“And four times is actually low. I know a trooper who has been hit more than 10 times,” Shaw said. “You can probably talk to any state trooper. It’s not a matter of if, but when. People just aren’t paying attention out there, and sometimes they’re impaired with alcohol or marijuana or even their cellphones. Maybe they’re just gawking. And our troopers are getting hit.”

Police say that officers being maimed or killed while investigating accidents or conducting traffic stops is a rising danger. Sometimes, drivers strike a parked police vehicle, pushing it toward officers working on the roadway. Other times, officers are still inside their cars when they are struck.

"I actually climbed over a median wall. You get used to it," said Shaw, 54, who has been a Michigan trooper for 24 years. "We’re trained to pay attention to what’s going on around you. You have one eye on the crash site and the other on what’s driving toward you.”

More on the Ford Explorer:2020 Ford Explorer ST and Hybrid First Look: Welcome to the Family

Ford Motor Co., which supplies 65 percent of U.S. police vehicles, has responded to the growing concern by redesigning the body of the 2020 Explorer-based Police Interceptor Utility with 160 pounds of extra steel, creating a new protective frame.

Related video: First Look: The 2020 Ford Explorer - Provided by MotorTrend

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

How appropriate to have a Praise The Lord parking spot.

Anonymous said...

STOP sticking your cars in the slow lane fools.

Anonymous said...

Here’s an idea ..... move over or stop. Or better yet stay in your mommas basement.

Anonymous said...

11:50, Stop speeding in the left lane, fool. Speed limit signs are on BOTH sides of the road, numb nuts. And the reason there is a left lane is to handle the amount of traffic, not for idiots to speed in.