Where would cars like the Chevrolet Caprice and Ford Crown Victoria fall under?

[InsecureLivesMatter]

D-segment (like Audi A4, BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C-Class)

E-segment (like Audi A6, BMW 5 Series, Mercedes E-Class)

F-segment (like Audi A8, BMW 7 Series, Mercedes E-Class)

Updates

+1 y

Mistake on my behalf (thanks to me getting high on meds), the Mercedes entry to the F-segment is the S-Class

Updates

+1 y

To be specific, I'm talking about the 1979-2012 Crown Victoria (including the initial LTD Landau) and the 1977-2017 Chevrolet Caprice (1997-2010 model years skipped in North America).

[SnowedIn]

I selected C. BUT... there's an important few nuances and they are size, engineering, and luxury. The Caprice and the Crown Vic fall into the C category in size, but in engineering and cabin luxury they're on different planets from BMWs, Mercedes, and Audi.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

They also, um, have luxury counterparts?

The Cadillac Fleetwood and (later) CT6. The Lincoln Town Car.

[SnowedIn]

I'll chew on that one. Yes, the Fleetwood and Town Car were considered luxury cars and may have shared some platform and drivetrain components (but not all) with the Caprice and the Crown Vic, but I still think it's like comparing two different kind of apples. Again, the size is right, but the rest of it isn't. I'm not making a value statement that one is better than the other, but you can't compare a GM or Ford product to a BMW or Mercedes.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Kia had the K900. Hyundai had the Equus. Volkswagen had the Phaeton. All non-luxury cars if you count the brands.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Even Toyota sells the Century in Japan, and it is more expensive than any Lexus.

[hypojoe]

They are fullsize rear wheel drive vehicles both proven to be great police cars the crown vic is one durable car the punishment it can take is impressive and with out a light bar is capable of speeds around 140ish i have driven both of those cars i personally do not like the caprice body style but it can boogie on down the road also

[legalboxers]

had a grand marquis (below a crow vic) they were decent cars.. boats.. old nypd cars..

[InsecureLivesMatter]

I would say a GrandMa was above a CV

[legalboxers]

probably.. my father had one. I took my road test on one.

[OfDeath]

In terms of size, they're either E or F

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Let's see, a Crown Vic has always been consistent with its ~114+1/2" wheelbase. A Caprice is at 116", and even at 118+1/2" if you take the much newer Australian import.

Overall lengths are at over 200 inches for all cars. In fact, over 210 for all generations of the Crown Vic and the 1977-1996 Caprice Classic.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Now interior sizes are a completely different story. Their passenger volumes are around 110 cubic feet (Caprices, even the 2011+ models, are bigger than Crown Vics in that area); their cargo volumes are around 20 cubic feet (maybe a bit less for the 2011+ Caprice). Either way, though, they are bigger than even most modern flagships from Germany.

[OfDeath]

Yeah, they're big for sedans. I don't think they make them anymore though. The police drive Chryslers and shit like that now.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

That being said, especially in the case of the Crown Vic, its rear legroom is much closer to a SWB E38 7 Series or even an E39 5 Series, despite having an overall length surpassing that of a LWB E39. I used BMW as the benchmark because Mercedes is far too overengineered (usually) and Audi is a front-driver or 4x4 only (not RWD).

Crown Vic: 39.6" rear legroom
LWB E38: 41.9" rear legroom
SWB E38: 36.7" rear legroom
SWB E39: 34.2" rear legroom

Consider this also, 114.7" wheelbase.

740iL, 740i, 540i. 120.9", 115.4", 111.4". Note that I used the "40i" versions because they are mid-displacement V8s just like the Crown Vic.

Now, rear headroom:
740iL, 740i, 540i. 38.1", 37.9", 37.8".

A Crown Vic? A dead 38".

My bet is on F-segment, albeit lacking the materials needed to compete over there. I'd say it is more of an in-betweener

[OfDeath]

I think as far as size goes they're F. But they're not considered luxury brands. I'm not sure what kind of price segment they would go in for Europe.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Now here's where things get even trickier:

curb weight !!

Crown Victoria ('98): 3917 lb
Comparable BMW models:
A 540i, 3748 lbs.
A 740i (non-L), 4255 lbs.
A 740i (plus-L), 4288 lbs.

Also notice the difference in horsepower, too.

Crown Vics usually made 200 hp at the time. The "40i" Beamers made an underestimated "282", and sometimes up to 310 actual horsepower.

A more logical comparison would be a 740i versus a Marauder (which weighed 4165-4195 lbs and made 300-302 hp depending on the sources).

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Chrysler advertised the 300, the Charger/Magnum, the Ghibli all as E-segment, but their coupe equivalent technically rivals the coupe "semi-"equivalents to the Ford Falcon and the Holden Commodore (aka Pontiac G8 or Chevy SS over here); the sedans mentioned are all sports sedans.

A 300 is agile in many ways a Crown or a Caprice isn't

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Volkswagen used to sell the Phaeton. Kia used to sell the K900. None are luxury brands, even though their cars are. Also the first K900 (even in V8 form) was barely more expensive than a non-loaded 535i at the time of its release.

[strateguy632]

bmw 7