Retired Ford Crown Victorias

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OK, so I know that there are going to be some differing opinions on the subject, so I wanted to see what people think of the retired police cars that we see some people in the Open Carry community driving.

Some people think that they are great cars at an affordable price, and some people think that the person shouldn't combine OC with trying to look like a cop.

PersonallyI am usually very skeptical of people that drive police cars and OC. I'm not saying that they are all trying to play dress-up, I'm just a little more skeptical unless I've gotten to know them. To me, it seems likea lot of them are just acting out a fantasy of being a plain-clothes cop. Not all of them, but a lot of them. I hope I'm wrong.

I thought this topic would go well with the CWP Badge debate.

So... what are your opinions?

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I personally don't like them, but it's just a car, after all. Perhaps there should be some stricter rules about "de-copping" them before selling them off. Remove the spotlight, for starters, and anything else that makes it look like a cruiser.

When I was in the USMCR there was a guy in my reserve unit who was a cop in DC. He was talking about these old cars one day and he was bragging about how whenever he saw one, especiallyin "the hood", he would pull them over and give them crap. I asked him if the drivers were doing something illegal, and he said usually not. So of course I asked why he pulls themover and he tells me it's "because they can impersonate police officers".

I gave up trying to reason with him, as he seemed to have his mind made up and at the time we were busy and I had no time for a long argument. But two things stuck in my mind ever since: Cops will often pull you over because of their personal opinions rather than because you were witnesed breaking the law, and I do not want to be driving one of those cars. Ever. Especially when carrying.

Unless you spend the time and money and refurbish it so it looks like a normal car, you may be placing yourself in a bad situation. YMMV

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Tomahawk wrote:

Unless you spend the time and money and refurbish it so it looks like a normal car, you may be placing yourself in a bad situation. YMMV

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I'd think only if you use it in the manner you described. Crown Vics are nice because they're full sized, roomy, have a nice wide wheelbase and a lot of trunk space -- if you can get one cheap, more power to you... Just don't be suprised to find some blood, spit or other fluids in the backseat of the car...

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"4. It's just a car"

I think some people have WAY too much time on their hands...

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It's just a car.

I have a car that does look a little like a cop car, but itnever was one. If retired cop cars aren't good, then the government should ban all Crown Vics, Grand Marquis, Chevy Malibus, and Marauders. It's easy to tell the difference; just look at the plates. Government vehicles have difference plates than private citizens.

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Pa. Patriot wrote:

"4. It's just a car"

I think some people have WAY too much time on their hands...

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Like, for instance, the DC police officer I spoke of...

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It's only a car. If you like that kind of paint job then more power to you. It's pretty obvious to anyone driving that they aren't cop cars due to the lack of a light bar.

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Particle wrote:

It's pretty obvious to anyone driving that they aren't cop cars due to the lack of a light bar.

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I'm just playing the devil's advocate, but many police cars around here (Ohio) are unmarked without light bars.

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I voted "it's just a car", but they realy are nice cars. There is a reason that they were made into crusers, and you can usualy pick them up cheap at an auction. Not a bad deal most of the time.

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dngreer wrote:

It's just a car.

I have a car that does look a little like a cop car, but itnever was one. If retired cop cars aren't good, then the government should ban all Crown Vics, Grand Marquis, Chevy Malibus, and Marauders. It's easy to tell the difference; just look at the plates. Government vehicles have difference plates than private citizens.

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Nobody said anything about banning them. I think you should have the right to own just about anything under the sun that your little heart desires. The question isn't whether people should be allowed to own them, but rather does driving an ex cop car (some still even with the pusher bars, spotlights, etc..) while open carrying make you a wannabe cop, or is it just a car.

I personally think that it can go either way. But we all know that there are guys out there that wear a bunch of 5.11 clothing, drive a cop car, open carry, have a CWP badge, a police scanner, and handcuffs on their "duty belt". Now none of those things are necessarily a bad thing by themselves, but in combination they can spell impersonation.

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expvideo wrote:

To me, it seems likea lot of them are just acting out a fantasy of being a plain-clothes cop. Not all of them, but a lot of them. I hope I'm wrong.

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I love mine; it’s fast, handles like a sports car, gets 21+ MPG, has plenty of room, stops so fast it’s frightening, and it’s a great platform for ham radio. I know it might seem odd, but I have many hobbies, firearms are only one of them. I don’t wanna-be a cop so that had nothing to do with my decision to purchase one.

Is it fun to drive? Of course it is. I haven’t seen even one incident of road rage since I’ve gotten it. I think there should be more of them on the road, people behave much more courteously when they think there are police around.

If this sort of ignorance was applied to firearms, you would all be stomping your feet and rending your garments. You are not a cop wanna-be when you OC, but someone driving a P71 and OCing is? That’s human nature I guess. This group bashes that group because they own guns; a segment of the gun owners bashes another segment over open carry or hunting. It seems like everyone has to have something to feel superior about. Instead of forming your opinion of someone based on stereotypes, wouldn’t it be better to actually meet them, talk to them, and base your judgment on that? I know one gay man who proved a lot of stereotypes wrong.

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Mainsail wrote:

expvideo wrote:

To me, it seems likea lot of them are just acting out a fantasy of being a plain-clothes cop. Not all of them, but a lot of them. I hope I'm wrong.

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I love mine; it’s fast, handles like a sports car, gets 21+ MPG, has plenty of room, stops so fast it’s frightening, and it’s a great platform for ham radio. I know it might seem odd, but I have many hobbies, firearms are only one of them. I don’t wanna-be a cop so that had nothing to do with my decision to purchase one.

Is it fun to drive? Of course it is. I haven’t seen even one incident of road rage since I’ve gotten it. I think there should be more of them on the road, people behave much more courteously when they think there are police around.

If this sort of ignorance was applied to firearms, you would all be stomping your feet and rending your garments. You are not a cop wanna-be when you OC, but someone driving a P71 and OCing is? That’s human nature I guess. This group bashes that group because they own guns; a segment of the gun owners bashes another segment over open carry or hunting. It seems like everyone has to have something to feel superior about. Instead of forming your opinion of someone based on stereotypes, wouldn’t it be better to actually meet them, talk to them, and base your judgment on that? I know one gay man who proved a lot of stereotypes wrong.

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I've met you, and I know that you are not a wannabe cop. You have a very, very nice crown vic, btw (kind of made me want to consider one). You are absolutely not the kind of stereotype that frustrates me. It's the ones that try to act like cops. In fact, you are a lot of the reason that I was rational enough to say "not all of them". So don't think that I'm trying to cast a bad light on you, mainsail. You are an excellantexample of the kind of person that can OC and drive an ex cop car without seeming like you just want everyone to think you're a cop.

Unfortunately, there are some people that are not like you, that do like people to mistake them for cops and want to pretend that they have some kind of authority.

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It's just a car, just as long as you don't mind having everone around you slow down to the speed limit. That would drive me crazy.

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drkarrow wrote:

It's just a car, just as long as you don't mind having everone around you slow down to the speed limit. That would drive me crazy.

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Especially when they're in front of you

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If it's a USED cop car, it must be a pile of crap. If it were still good.......it would still be a cop car.

Just what I've always wanted, a car with 465,385 miles on it where almost every passenger has hawked a loogie on the floorboard.

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I drive a 1985 Dodge Diplomat police package. Only thing is I bought it brand spanking new in 1985! I had a Federal rotating bar in the back window (Clear). Ironically, my agency required the lightbar to be covered when not in use. Cops hated that, because they did not know what color it was. Agency was emergency management. Still drive it today, although it is sluggish and I go through a few cans of white spray paint keeping the rust white.

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Superlite27 wrote:

If it's a USED cop car, it must be a pile of crap. If it were still good.......it would still be a cop car.

Just what I've always wanted, a car with 465,385 miles on it where almost every passenger has hawked a loogie on the floorboard.

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"Most" police departments don't retire their cars on a mileage basis, rather on a fixed schedule of age that has nothing to do tiwth the actual mileage.

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Superlite27 wrote:

If it's a USED cop car, it must be a pile of crap. If it were still good.......it would still be a cop car.

Just what I've always wanted, a car with 465,385 miles on it where almost every passenger has hawked a loogie on the floorboard.

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Not to mention any kind of company car, former rental car, or vehicle used primarily by people who didn't own it tends to be beaten like a red-headed stepchild.

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j2l3 wrote:

Superlite27 wrote:

If it's a USED cop car, it must be a pile of crap. If it were still good.......it would still be a cop car.

Just what I've always wanted, a car with 465,385 miles on it where almost every passenger has hawked a loogie on the floorboard.

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"Most" police departments don't retire their cars on a mileage basis, rather on a fixed schedule of age that has nothing to do tiwth the actual mileage.

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Actually, I think you'll find many (especially smaller) departments retire their cars on a 'there's money available to buy new ones' schedule. And yes, that doesn't have anything to do with the milage either. Used cop cars can be all over the place in terms of condition, pay attention if you're going to buy one...

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I had to say it and I also believe that: It's just_a_car.

ROFL!

Sorry, had to make the joke, since you put it out there.

But I like the idea of driving one in the future not only as a way to make people drive safer around me, but also because I've heard of people getting out of "should have received a ticket" situations, just because they were driving a Crown-Vic.

And I am more than happy to let people driving around me to think I'm an undercover cop if it makes them drive safer around me. I have no issues with people being safer because of their mis-assumptions.

Do I want to be a cop? I've considered it as an employment option, but it would be in the Forensics division, due to my working towards a B.S. in chemistry. It's certainly not my first choice, since there's much more out there to be had that's more interesting and more lucrative. Would I drive a Crown Vic just to look like a cop? Heck no; I would buy it for the spaciousness, durability, and handling. Plus, they're a very aesthetically-pleasing vehicle.

It also helps that I was brought-up a Ford-guy. First car was an '88 T-bird and second car was a 1972 Mach1 Mustang. I only drive the 91 Honda CRX because of gas milage and parking around the UW; I've never gotten less than 30 MPG (usually 32-35) and it's a very tiny and maneuverable vehicle.