The Chicago Auto Show opens this week and among the vehicles to debut are new police cars made locally. Ford is showing off two models of police “Interceptors” manufactured at Chicago’s Southeast Side plant. One model is a sedan, the other a SUV.

Mike Moran is a communications manager at Ford.

“This is moving into the next generation of police pursuit vehicles for us. For 15 years the Ford Crown Victoria was the leader in the sales of police units,” Moran said.

Moran said the all-wheel drive Interceptors are well-positioned to become the squad car of choice around the country. He said rigorous tests done by Los Angeles and Michigan Police departments have given the vehicle high marks across the board. He added that Cook County and Illinois State police have already placed orders, and cars should be on the road sometime this Spring. Manufacturing on these models began in January of this year.

Among the specialty features, the 2013 model vehicles have “EcoBoost” engines that can boost speed in a chase situation, but otherwise operate in a more fuel-efficient mode.