Sedan: Gen3 Panther-body Ford (Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis)Consider how far a New York taxicab is likely to travel in its lifetime, with virtually all of those miles being in stop-and-go city traffic. Also think of a highway police interceptor, which is expected to go full-throttle on a moment's notice without issues. Ford introduced the Panther platform in 1979, using it for fleet vehicles like the Ford LTD and Mercury Marquis. For 1983, Panther models included the LTD Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis, and Lincoln Town Car. These cars became staples of police, taxi, and limousine fleets almost from the get-go. Bear in mind that most of those jobs involve long, hard miles, meaning Ford had to overbuild the Panther platform to ensure its longevity. That's exactly why it's so dependable and easy to work on today; for one, the 4.6-liter V8 is notably reliable to begin with. Panther body cars wouldn't have lasted long as fleet vehicles otherwise; less maintenance equals a lower overhead and less downtime for businesses. Moreover, its traditional large body-on-frame build favors simple and durable construction, with owners noting that its size also means that parts are reasonably well-spaced and accessible. That makes them easy to identify and inspect, even for DIYers without a lot of experience. And for seasoned mechanics, these larger, more spread-out parts mean fewer backaches and skinned knuckles as you contort yourself to grip that last pesky bolt head. The third generation Crown Victoria and Grand Marquis models that debuted in 1998 got an updated version of the 4.6-liter V8 that made between 200 and 220 horsepower, as well as OBD2 diagnostics that had become standard two years earlier. The volume of sales to fleet customers during this model's heyday means parts availability is plentiful, including direct from Ford.
![BMW, Humanoid robots get to work at German BMW factory [video]](https://cdn.topcarnews.net/thumb/id/aHR0cHM6Ly9pMC53cC5jb20vZWxlY3Ry-ZWsuY28vd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRz-L3NpdGVzLzMvMjAyNi8wMy9CTVdfaHVt-YW5vaWQuanBnP3c9MTUwMCZhbXA7cXVh-bGl0eT04MiZhbXA7c3RyaXA9YWxsJmFt-cDtzc2w9MQ/6056ad5af33356536b1c75135aae0969.jpg)
![BMW, Humanoid robots get to work at German BMW factory [video]](https://cdn.topcarnews.net/thumb/id/aHR0cHM6Ly9lbGVjdHJlay5jby93cC1j-b250ZW50L3VwbG9hZHMvc2l0ZXMvMy8y-MDI1LzAzL0RFUy0xMDM4X0VsZWN0cmVr-LUJhbm5lcnNfRVZzXzA3OTdjMi5wbmc/e850e929e3168f8c7ff73cd888e54add.png)
