Oklahoma authorities to keep using Crown Victorias despite safety concerns in Dallas, elsewhere

<br>OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Oklahoma law enforcement officials say they will continue using Ford Crown Victorias in spite of safety concerns that have prompted police in other states to sue the manufacturer.

Monday, January 6th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Oklahoma law enforcement officials say they will continue using Ford Crown Victorias in spite of safety concerns that have prompted police in other states to sue the manufacturer.

The car has been criticized for what some say is a design flaw that causes the gasoline tank to explode in a high-speed rear-end collision. Thirteen officers have died in rear-end collisions since 1983, including a Dallas officer in October and a New York officer in December.

Dallas officials filed a lawsuit last month against Ford Motor Co., demanding more information about safety improvements on the police vehicle.

But Oklahoma law enforcement officials say the Crown Victoria is as safe as any other police vehicle and that some of the cars have been hit in the rear without fatal consequences.

``The last car that caught fire wasn't even a Ford, it was a Chevy Camaro,'' said Lt. Chris West, spokesman for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, which has about 900 Crown Victorias in its fleet.

``Any department that's going to operate with large fleets like we do is going to have crashes, and some of them are going to burn. And who knows what's going to cause them to burn,'' West said.

Oklahoma City police Lt. Jeff Pierce said that rear-end collisions resulting in explosions have been at speeds well above the legal limit.

In Dallas, officer Patrick Metzler died in a fire when a suspected drunken driver rear-ended his Crown Victoria while traveling more than 80 mph.

``Those kinds of speeds, I don't care if you're in a Volvo, you run a risk of rupturing a gas tank,'' Pierce said.

Oklahoma law enforcement agencies are expressing support for the car with their pocketbook.

``I think we've got an order of Fords out, and we're waiting for delivery,'' said West. ``We're still buying them.''

The company has opted for a nationwide recall on about 350,000 police-issued Crown Victorias and is installing protective shields around gasoline tanks.

Some departments, such as the New York State Police, have stopped driving Crown Victorias until all are retrofitted. Many of Oklahoma's departments already have had their cars retrofitted.