used police cars

[kei9th]

i am thinking about buying a used police car. they have them all over down here in Florida and was wondering what all of you had to say about doing this. i know that they can be ran hard but at the same time i think the maintenance on them is kept up pretty well. some of the old crown vics i have seen also have a class 3 hitch on back. this would be my wifes car. i think since she has destroyed 3 cars prior to this, that a big honkin car may be what she needs. plus we are on a tight budget and most of the nicer cars are under 5000 and look almost new. ive been reading online about buying one and everyone is about 50/50 yes to no. thoughts? and they are pretty awesome at getting people to move out of your way on the highway cause they think you are a undercover cop. at least i always move out of the way.

 

[BuzzStPoint]

Re: used police cars

Thats a hard one.

It would all come down to where the cruiser was located and how hard it was driven.
There's a place about 30 miles from me and sells old police cruisers.

If it were me.. I say go for it.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: used police cars

I had a young friend at my old job. I think he was just out of college. He drove an ex-police car. White Interceptor, black grill, spotlight the whole deal. LOVED IT. He said the "benefits" far outweighed the fuel economy. He said he feels a little bad though when police or emergency personnel wave at him. He got his for a ridiculous deal though from a county auction. It had some sort of problem with the tranny so he got it for like less than a grand I think and were able to fix the problem themselves.

I don't know if I'd recommend buying one because you "think the maintenance on them is kept up pretty well", I'd perhaps be more likely to recommend based on "they're solid cars that are inexpensive to repair". How's that?

 

[Boomyal]

Re: used police cars

I personally like the idea. The P71 Crown Vics had a lot of good additions. Upgraded suspensions, transmissions, oil coolers and probably tons of other stuff.

Look close though, some came with plastic back seats for when all the tweakers puked in them.

 

[98Shabah]

Re: used police cars

I love my vic.. If you want a floor shifter, rear air suspension, steeper gears, 17" aluminum wheels, leather, moonroof, and power everything (similar equipment to a marauder), look for a crown vic lx sport. I picked mine up for 1/3 of the sticker when it was 3 years old.

I work for a municipality that uses vic for patrol cars, they remove the back seats and stick them in storage in favor of the plastic seat insert that they can easily clean up, so when they auction the cars they put the brand new back seats back into the cars.

If you have any questions about vics or panthers in general, PM me.

 

[tswiczko]

Re: used police cars

Had a P71 and was one of the best cars I owned, dual exhaust, I was lucky where I got mine from they had the Marauder engine, and upgraded suspension and brake package.

MAN was that car fun ..Wish I still had it

 

[sublauxation]

Re: used police cars

There are a lot out there so parts including seats should be easy to come by. My brother is a cop and he loved the crown vics. He would say on average the county cars tend to be driven harder than the city cars, but they are all abused. They do maintain them very well but it would depend on when you buy yours in the maintenance cylce. They beat up breaks, master cylinders, boosters and trannys pretty hard, but then those are all replaceable parts. Just don't buy something like a campus security car, they spend a lot of time at idle and don't get abused enough to clean things out.

 

[yabuoy]

Re: used police cars

I have discussed this subject with some friends of mine that are Sherriff's officers and they wouldnt touch one of those cars with a ten foot pole. To say they are ridden hard is an understatement. Whatever the miles on a CVPI are, think of how many hours those things have sat there idling on top of all those miles. You live in FL, so I would imagine those cars are left idling for hours with the AC running alot. Throw in the interior wear and tear (like duty belt wear on the seats, perps puking all over it, radio mount hardware holes, messed up paint, etc. etc.) While it's true they are maintained, cops drive them pretty damn hard, and I mean HARD. Pretty much driven worse than a taxi cab. Would you wanna buy a used taxi? probably not. It will also get pretty old when everyone slows down in front of you everywhere you drive.
If anything, try to buy a take home/detective car, bc those are much better maintained. That would be the only circumstance where buying a CVPI would be a great deal. Otherwise, you are talking ragged vehicles. Hell, alot of the ones that get old end up being passed down to cadets and rookie cops where they get even more beat to hell before going up for surplus.

 

[CN Spots]

Re: used police cars

Looked into these myself. The best option I could find was one that was used as a munitions transport. The seller should know as it had a number of omitted options (rear seat for example) and large metal boxes mounted in the trunk. Most resellers remove the boxes and replace the seats. I was told that they are in better condition since most officers tend to drive with a little more discretion when they are carrying a carload of ammo.

 

[sasto]

Re: used police cars

Lauderdale City Police? Sure thing I'd buy one!

 

[robert graham]

Re: used police cars

Maybe get a SLED car or a constable car, but you gotta know those Highway Patrol cruisers have had the guts run out of them! Still a lot of car for the money!

 

[98Shabah]

Re: used police cars

Even the P74 "civilian" cars have a lot of the same parts.. Contrary to popular belief all the late model vics (marquis and towncars) have the same engine, transmission (although the P71 has a longer tailshaft/shorter driveshaft for sustained high speed runs), rear axle (the ratio in P71 is higher however), transmission cooler, etc. The P71s get a higher amp alternator, extra electrical distribution points, spotlight(s), rear door handles disabled, interior light "dark" mode enabled, higher idle speed, traction control disabled, base interior, hour meter in the odometer, larger mass air flow sensor, and a few other little things.

Ex rental and lease vics and marquis are also a really good buy and have been fleet maintained, and you can get all those civilian creature comforts like 8way power seats, leather, power lumbar, auto climate control, adjustable pedals, heated mirrors. My dad has an off lease 2007 vic, that thing routinely gets 27-28mpg highway.. my 05 sport gets 20-22mpg city/highway due to the higher gear ratio.

 

[RogersJetboat454]

Re: used police cars

This thread reminds me of this...

 

[bassman284]

Re: used police cars

This thread reminds me of this...

Yeah. Fix the cigarette lighter.

 

[PS94]

Re: used police cars

I'd go for one, without hesitation. The cars are flogged mercilessly, but, being government owned, they are meticulous about maintaining them.
I had a friend owned a Taxi company, and would purchase only ex Police cars. they'd run them well into the 400,000km mark, after converting to propane. they weren't maintained or treated well as taxis.....and usually 'new to country' individuals would be driving them...

 

[drrpm]

Re: used police cars

It worked for the Blues Brothers.

 

[yabuoy]

Re: used police cars

It worked for the Blues Brothers.

"It's got a cop motor, a 440 cubic inch plant, it's got cop tires, cop suspensions, cop shocks. It's a model made before catalytic converters so it'll run good on regular gas"

 

[fishrdan]

Re: used police cars

Just don't add the huge 4' megaphone like Jake and Elwood did, and your wife should be OK with it.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: used police cars

yabouy beat me to it....

 

[yabuoy]

Re: used police cars

Just don't add the huge 4' megaphone like Jake and Elwood did, and your wife should be OK with it.

Haha that right there is awesome