AZN_ZX2
04-17-2008, 04:24 PM
I figured I'd compile the information I currently know for how to spot a cop car. I am NOT trying to support street racing. This is for those of us who do a little spirited driving and to know what to look out for.
Common Types of Cars
Chevy
Chevy Impala
Chevy Tahoe
Chevy Trailblazer
Chevy Suburban
Dodge
Dodge Charger
Ford
Most commonly Ford Crown Victoria.
Ford Explorer/Expedition
Ford Taurus
These are the most common. If you have any others you know of please let me know and I will add it
A few police departments use alternative police vehicles.
California
* The Santa Clara County (California) Sheriff's Office has several unmarked Toyota Camrys, primarily for use by the auto-theft unit.
* The Azusa, California, Police Department owned the first Chevrolet Camaro police car ever built
* The Colton and Chino, California, Police Departments each had a Chevrolet Corvette in their fleets.
* Fremont, California, police use three Toyota Tacomas given to the city by the local NUMMI Plant (which manufactures Toyota trucks).
Colorado
* The Lone Tree, Colorado, Police Department purchased two Hummer H3s in 2006.
* The Lafayette, Colorado, Police Department has a unmarked Ford F-150.
* The Central City, Colorado, Police Department has three Hummer H3s in its fleet.
* The resort towns of Vail, Colorado, and Aspen, Colorado, used Saab sedans and hatchbacks as their standard patrol car for over 25 years. Vail started replacing them with Ford Explorers in late 2003, and Aspen began replacing them in late 2005 with Volvo XC90s.
* The Colorado State Patrol uses the current Dodge Charger in its fleet, alongside the Magnum and Subaru Impreza WRX.
Florida
* Brevard County Florida they use Black Saleen Mustangs
* Orange county they use Jeep Libertys.
Georgia
* Georgia State Patrol BMW 318i used during the 96 Olympics
* Georgia State Patrol BMW 318i used during the 96 Olympics
* The Georgia State Patrol used BMW 3 series for patrol use during the 1996 Olympics.
* Various police departments in the state of Georgia have implemented the use of the Mercury Marauder to their vehicle sleet. Most notably the Lamar County Sheriff's Department.
Hawaii
* A "New Edge" Mach 1 Ford Mustang being used as a cop car by the Honolulu Police Department.
* The Honolulu Police Department and the Hawai'i County Police Department supplements its fleet of marked patrol cars by allowing the use of the personally owned vehicles of police officers which are partially subsidized by department funds. These include not only American cars but Japanese cars such as the Toyota 4Runner and Camry, Honda Pilot, Nissan Altima, XTerra and Murano. These cars are made distinguishable as on duty police vehicles with the addition of a removable blue light bar.
Indiana
* Indiana State Police has 18 brand new Mustang GT's; one to each district.
Kansas
* Republic County has an all white unmarked new Chevy Tahoe that has no visible lights on it.
* Topeka, Kansas has a new red Ford Shelby GT500
Kentucky
* The Georgetown, Kentucky, police department had a few older Toyota Camrys that had been donated to them by Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky, but these vehicles have not been seen recently.
Michigan
* The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, police department has several Chevrolet Corvettes
* Clayton Township, Michigan, has a Saturn VUE donated by Saturn of Flint.
Minnesota
* Blaine township has an unmarked Ford Taurus
* Chaplain township has a dark brown Cadillac Escalade with 20 inch rims
* The Police Department in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, uses an unmarked 2001+ GMC Yukon Denali, 20" Rims, blacked out, and tinted windows all around.
* The Mankato, Minnesota Department of Public Safety has a fleet of Ford F-150 pickup trucks, used primarily for traffic enforcement.
Nebraska
* The State Troopers based out of Omaha have several all black unmarked 4th Generation Ford Tauruses used on the highway. They also have a blue 2nd Gen Ford SHO that looks beat to crap that they use for speed traps on the interstate and a modified red 3rd Gen Ford SHO with "State Trooper" down the side in ghost graphics.
* Cass County has an all white Chevy Corvette with yellow undercar neon.
* Sarpy County has a couple Silverados, 2 Hummer H2s, a Hummer H1 and a Dodge Caravan that are all white. Across the back of the Silverados and the Hummers, it says that they were confiscated from drug dealers.
New Jersey
* The Edison, New Jersey, Police Department has a marked 1995 BMW M3 that was seized from a drug dealer. This vehicle is used for D.A.R.E and other awareness and education programs.
* The police department of Clifton, New Jersey uses 2006-2007 Jeep Grand Cherokees for the traffic division.
* The Passaic County of New Jersey Sheriff's Department uses Ford Mustangs.
New York
* The Ithaca, New York, Police Department uses a Volkswagen Beetle as the patrol car in the downtown "Commons" area.
* In Western New York a state trooper drives an early 2000 Chevy Camaro
* In downtown Albany, the police use several Dodge Stratus' and Intrepids. There are no known distinguishing characteristics that identify them as patrol cars. They are in various colors.
North Carolina
*Union County, North Carolina has Mustangs, and Camaros
Ohio
* Akron, Ohio has a Chrysler PT Cruiser in their fleet
Pennsylvania
* The Police Department in New Hope, Pennsylvania, uses a Ford Focus.
Rhode Island
* Rhode Island the police have a white Mazda RX-8 with a body kit along with a black BMW M3 with a body kit. They will attempt to race you and if you do so they will pull you over.
* The State Police have new black and silver Dodge Chargers as well as a green Dodge Intrepid
* Charleston Police have a fleet of Chevy Malibus
South Carolina
* The South Carolina Highway Patrol used three BMW M5s during the early to mid 1990s. These cars were given to South Carolina after BMW chose the state to host their first assembly plant in the U.S. They have also been known to use Chevy Camaros
Texas
* During the mid-1980s, the Missouri City, Texas, Police Department used a few Volvo 240s. Most but NOT all Texas patrol cas including unmarked cars have the word "exempt" on their license plate. It is located below the state name and above the plate number.
* Austin- the Police jurisdiction is clearly marked on the side of the car under "Police." Regular cops just say "Police", highway cops will say "Highway Enforcement" and then security for the schools will say "Austin ISD".
* Brownsville- Officers use Ford Excursions, Ford Crown Victorias, Chevy Impalas, Dodge Chargers, and Harley Davidsons for patrol
*Harlingen- Officers use Ford Excursions, Ford Crown Victorias, Chevy Impalas, Dodge Chargers, and Harley Davidsons for patrol
* McAllen- Officers use Ford Excursions, Ford Crown Victorias, Chevy Impalas, Dodge Chargers, and Harley Davidsons for patrol
* Travis County (where Austin is located) is in the process of auctioning off all of their brown Crown Victorias and replacing them with new Magnums, 300Cs and Chargers. All of the new cars are varying shades of grey or black (most of the 300Cs are light grey, most of the Magnums are bluish grey and most of the Chargers are dark grey or black.) Some of them have light bars on top, others don't. All of them have "Sheriff" down the side in ghost graphics, so it blends in and is only seen at certain angles. They also have an all black, modified 03/04 Civic Si.
* Temple, Texas has patrols on motorcycles, as well as unmarked Chevy Impalas and Chevy Malibus which are usually white, black, or blue.
Utah
* The Utah Highway Patrol use 2 unmarked Subaru Impreza WRX STi's to combat street racing in the Salt Lake City area.
Vermont
* The Vermont State Police have a limited amount of Chevy Silverados in their fleet.
Virginia
* The police department in Southampton, Virginia, once owned a very rare Audi 4000 police car.
* The Virginia State Police in recent years, introduced Chevrolet Camaro sports cars, Chevrolet Tahoe SUVs, and Dodge Charger sedans.
Washington
* The Colfax, Washington, police uses a Subaru Outback sedan
* The Kitsap County, Washington Sheriff's Office uses an unmarked 2006 Subaru Legacy GT sedan for traffic enforcement.
* Lakewood, Washington has been known to send tickets by mail. Cars that are speeding can be spotted by parked patrol cars with cameras
Wisconsin
* The sheriff's department in Outagamie County, Wisconsin, tested an unmarked 2005 Toyota Prius hybrid vehicle for non-patrol use in 2005.
* Manitowoc, Wisconsin, has an unmarked Ford Taurus they use for patrol.
Canada
* The North Vancouver, British Columbia, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) use a number of impressive vehicles including, Jaguars, Land Rovers, and Volkswagens.
* The Montreal Police employ a fleet of minivans, including the Ford Windstar, Chevrolet Venture and Dodge Caravan.
* In Calgary, Alberta, Canada the police department has various unmarked vehicles in their fleet including Dodge Chargers, Ford Excursions, various Ford pickup trucks, Chevy Colorados, and an assortment of minivans
What to look out for
Most (not including confiscated vehicles) police cars are domestic
Look for a grill guard
Lights in the grill
Some usually marked police cars have a spot light near one or both of the side view mirrors
Typically they don't have fog lights
Unusually large antenna. Sometimes this isn't a patrol car, just a regular person with some extra equipment in the car.
In certain areas taxis look very similar to patrol cars
Crown Victorias are getting quite old. So keep your eyes peeled for newer looking patrol cars
If you aren't sure and you are passing the car look at the driver. It might give a clue. If a Crown Victoria is being driven by a young or middle aged man or woman it is more likely a cop. If it is a super old person it obviously isn't. Sometimes you can also see the uniform they are wearing but I wouldn't recommend staring that long.
If trying to avoid speed traps travel in the speed lane. Officers will be less willing to give chase when they must cross 2 or 3 lanes of traffic in order to get to you. Keep in mind that when you are in the slow lane the radar gun can sometimes be less accurate.
Speed traps are often right after a hill or elevated area of the road which reduces your visibility.
Even though you might be on the same road the speed limit can change and even if it changes the speed limit might not be posted. Keep your eye open for new township signs. The speed limit tends to change with the towns.
There is a new system to determine speed so don't always rely on radar detectors because this used lasers. It is known as VASCAR and it measures how long it takes you to get from one point to another. Based on this it calculates your speed. One method is a car in the shoulder that appears to be changing the tire but it is actually a VASCAR checkpoint. Thanks to Cyberman for this piece of info!
What to do when if you are pulled over
1. Pull over in a spot where the officer can get out without risking someone running him over. Side streets and large shoulders work well.
2. Put your hazard lights on, turn the radio off, roll the window down, and put your hands on the steering wheel. This allows the officer to see your hands and it makes them feel a bit safer. Turn your cell phone on silent or vibrate. The officer might get annoyed if it rings when he is speaking to you.
3. Be courteous, ask the officer how he is when he walks to the window. Remember if you are an asshole then he can be an asshole right back and give you a ticket.
4. If you get a ticket, don't argue. This will only cause more problems.
Warning
If you attempt to outrun a patrol car even if you do escape keep in mind you are putting many people at risk for driving recklessly and patrol cars often have an on dash camera which might get your plate number!
Also do not completely rely on this to avoid being pulled over. These are just tips nothing more. If you are weaving in and out of traffic or doing 120 don't blame me for getting pulled over.
If you are driving like an asshole I hope you do get your ass pulled over.
Common Types of Cars
Chevy
Chevy Impala
Chevy Tahoe
Chevy Trailblazer
Chevy Suburban
Dodge
Dodge Charger
Ford
Most commonly Ford Crown Victoria.
Ford Explorer/Expedition
Ford Taurus
These are the most common. If you have any others you know of please let me know and I will add it
A few police departments use alternative police vehicles.
California
* The Santa Clara County (California) Sheriff's Office has several unmarked Toyota Camrys, primarily for use by the auto-theft unit.
* The Azusa, California, Police Department owned the first Chevrolet Camaro police car ever built
* The Colton and Chino, California, Police Departments each had a Chevrolet Corvette in their fleets.
* Fremont, California, police use three Toyota Tacomas given to the city by the local NUMMI Plant (which manufactures Toyota trucks).
Colorado
* The Lone Tree, Colorado, Police Department purchased two Hummer H3s in 2006.
* The Lafayette, Colorado, Police Department has a unmarked Ford F-150.
* The Central City, Colorado, Police Department has three Hummer H3s in its fleet.
* The resort towns of Vail, Colorado, and Aspen, Colorado, used Saab sedans and hatchbacks as their standard patrol car for over 25 years. Vail started replacing them with Ford Explorers in late 2003, and Aspen began replacing them in late 2005 with Volvo XC90s.
* The Colorado State Patrol uses the current Dodge Charger in its fleet, alongside the Magnum and Subaru Impreza WRX.
Florida
* Brevard County Florida they use Black Saleen Mustangs
* Orange county they use Jeep Libertys.
Georgia
* Georgia State Patrol BMW 318i used during the 96 Olympics
* Georgia State Patrol BMW 318i used during the 96 Olympics
* The Georgia State Patrol used BMW 3 series for patrol use during the 1996 Olympics.
* Various police departments in the state of Georgia have implemented the use of the Mercury Marauder to their vehicle sleet. Most notably the Lamar County Sheriff's Department.
Hawaii
* A "New Edge" Mach 1 Ford Mustang being used as a cop car by the Honolulu Police Department.
* The Honolulu Police Department and the Hawai'i County Police Department supplements its fleet of marked patrol cars by allowing the use of the personally owned vehicles of police officers which are partially subsidized by department funds. These include not only American cars but Japanese cars such as the Toyota 4Runner and Camry, Honda Pilot, Nissan Altima, XTerra and Murano. These cars are made distinguishable as on duty police vehicles with the addition of a removable blue light bar.
Indiana
* Indiana State Police has 18 brand new Mustang GT's; one to each district.
Kansas
* Republic County has an all white unmarked new Chevy Tahoe that has no visible lights on it.
* Topeka, Kansas has a new red Ford Shelby GT500
Kentucky
* The Georgetown, Kentucky, police department had a few older Toyota Camrys that had been donated to them by Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky, but these vehicles have not been seen recently.
Michigan
* The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, police department has several Chevrolet Corvettes
* Clayton Township, Michigan, has a Saturn VUE donated by Saturn of Flint.
Minnesota
* Blaine township has an unmarked Ford Taurus
* Chaplain township has a dark brown Cadillac Escalade with 20 inch rims
* The Police Department in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, uses an unmarked 2001+ GMC Yukon Denali, 20" Rims, blacked out, and tinted windows all around.
* The Mankato, Minnesota Department of Public Safety has a fleet of Ford F-150 pickup trucks, used primarily for traffic enforcement.
Nebraska
* The State Troopers based out of Omaha have several all black unmarked 4th Generation Ford Tauruses used on the highway. They also have a blue 2nd Gen Ford SHO that looks beat to crap that they use for speed traps on the interstate and a modified red 3rd Gen Ford SHO with "State Trooper" down the side in ghost graphics.
* Cass County has an all white Chevy Corvette with yellow undercar neon.
* Sarpy County has a couple Silverados, 2 Hummer H2s, a Hummer H1 and a Dodge Caravan that are all white. Across the back of the Silverados and the Hummers, it says that they were confiscated from drug dealers.
New Jersey
* The Edison, New Jersey, Police Department has a marked 1995 BMW M3 that was seized from a drug dealer. This vehicle is used for D.A.R.E and other awareness and education programs.
* The police department of Clifton, New Jersey uses 2006-2007 Jeep Grand Cherokees for the traffic division.
* The Passaic County of New Jersey Sheriff's Department uses Ford Mustangs.
New York
* The Ithaca, New York, Police Department uses a Volkswagen Beetle as the patrol car in the downtown "Commons" area.
* In Western New York a state trooper drives an early 2000 Chevy Camaro
* In downtown Albany, the police use several Dodge Stratus' and Intrepids. There are no known distinguishing characteristics that identify them as patrol cars. They are in various colors.
North Carolina
*Union County, North Carolina has Mustangs, and Camaros
Ohio
* Akron, Ohio has a Chrysler PT Cruiser in their fleet
Pennsylvania
* The Police Department in New Hope, Pennsylvania, uses a Ford Focus.
Rhode Island
* Rhode Island the police have a white Mazda RX-8 with a body kit along with a black BMW M3 with a body kit. They will attempt to race you and if you do so they will pull you over.
* The State Police have new black and silver Dodge Chargers as well as a green Dodge Intrepid
* Charleston Police have a fleet of Chevy Malibus
South Carolina
* The South Carolina Highway Patrol used three BMW M5s during the early to mid 1990s. These cars were given to South Carolina after BMW chose the state to host their first assembly plant in the U.S. They have also been known to use Chevy Camaros
Texas
* During the mid-1980s, the Missouri City, Texas, Police Department used a few Volvo 240s. Most but NOT all Texas patrol cas including unmarked cars have the word "exempt" on their license plate. It is located below the state name and above the plate number.
* Austin- the Police jurisdiction is clearly marked on the side of the car under "Police." Regular cops just say "Police", highway cops will say "Highway Enforcement" and then security for the schools will say "Austin ISD".
* Brownsville- Officers use Ford Excursions, Ford Crown Victorias, Chevy Impalas, Dodge Chargers, and Harley Davidsons for patrol
*Harlingen- Officers use Ford Excursions, Ford Crown Victorias, Chevy Impalas, Dodge Chargers, and Harley Davidsons for patrol
* McAllen- Officers use Ford Excursions, Ford Crown Victorias, Chevy Impalas, Dodge Chargers, and Harley Davidsons for patrol
* Travis County (where Austin is located) is in the process of auctioning off all of their brown Crown Victorias and replacing them with new Magnums, 300Cs and Chargers. All of the new cars are varying shades of grey or black (most of the 300Cs are light grey, most of the Magnums are bluish grey and most of the Chargers are dark grey or black.) Some of them have light bars on top, others don't. All of them have "Sheriff" down the side in ghost graphics, so it blends in and is only seen at certain angles. They also have an all black, modified 03/04 Civic Si.
* Temple, Texas has patrols on motorcycles, as well as unmarked Chevy Impalas and Chevy Malibus which are usually white, black, or blue.
Utah
* The Utah Highway Patrol use 2 unmarked Subaru Impreza WRX STi's to combat street racing in the Salt Lake City area.
Vermont
* The Vermont State Police have a limited amount of Chevy Silverados in their fleet.
Virginia
* The police department in Southampton, Virginia, once owned a very rare Audi 4000 police car.
* The Virginia State Police in recent years, introduced Chevrolet Camaro sports cars, Chevrolet Tahoe SUVs, and Dodge Charger sedans.
Washington
* The Colfax, Washington, police uses a Subaru Outback sedan
* The Kitsap County, Washington Sheriff's Office uses an unmarked 2006 Subaru Legacy GT sedan for traffic enforcement.
* Lakewood, Washington has been known to send tickets by mail. Cars that are speeding can be spotted by parked patrol cars with cameras
Wisconsin
* The sheriff's department in Outagamie County, Wisconsin, tested an unmarked 2005 Toyota Prius hybrid vehicle for non-patrol use in 2005.
* Manitowoc, Wisconsin, has an unmarked Ford Taurus they use for patrol.
Canada
* The North Vancouver, British Columbia, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) use a number of impressive vehicles including, Jaguars, Land Rovers, and Volkswagens.
* The Montreal Police employ a fleet of minivans, including the Ford Windstar, Chevrolet Venture and Dodge Caravan.
* In Calgary, Alberta, Canada the police department has various unmarked vehicles in their fleet including Dodge Chargers, Ford Excursions, various Ford pickup trucks, Chevy Colorados, and an assortment of minivans
What to look out for
Most (not including confiscated vehicles) police cars are domestic
Look for a grill guard
Lights in the grill
Some usually marked police cars have a spot light near one or both of the side view mirrors
Typically they don't have fog lights
Unusually large antenna. Sometimes this isn't a patrol car, just a regular person with some extra equipment in the car.
In certain areas taxis look very similar to patrol cars
Crown Victorias are getting quite old. So keep your eyes peeled for newer looking patrol cars
If you aren't sure and you are passing the car look at the driver. It might give a clue. If a Crown Victoria is being driven by a young or middle aged man or woman it is more likely a cop. If it is a super old person it obviously isn't. Sometimes you can also see the uniform they are wearing but I wouldn't recommend staring that long.
If trying to avoid speed traps travel in the speed lane. Officers will be less willing to give chase when they must cross 2 or 3 lanes of traffic in order to get to you. Keep in mind that when you are in the slow lane the radar gun can sometimes be less accurate.
Speed traps are often right after a hill or elevated area of the road which reduces your visibility.
Even though you might be on the same road the speed limit can change and even if it changes the speed limit might not be posted. Keep your eye open for new township signs. The speed limit tends to change with the towns.
There is a new system to determine speed so don't always rely on radar detectors because this used lasers. It is known as VASCAR and it measures how long it takes you to get from one point to another. Based on this it calculates your speed. One method is a car in the shoulder that appears to be changing the tire but it is actually a VASCAR checkpoint. Thanks to Cyberman for this piece of info!
What to do when if you are pulled over
1. Pull over in a spot where the officer can get out without risking someone running him over. Side streets and large shoulders work well.
2. Put your hazard lights on, turn the radio off, roll the window down, and put your hands on the steering wheel. This allows the officer to see your hands and it makes them feel a bit safer. Turn your cell phone on silent or vibrate. The officer might get annoyed if it rings when he is speaking to you.
3. Be courteous, ask the officer how he is when he walks to the window. Remember if you are an asshole then he can be an asshole right back and give you a ticket.
4. If you get a ticket, don't argue. This will only cause more problems.
Warning
If you attempt to outrun a patrol car even if you do escape keep in mind you are putting many people at risk for driving recklessly and patrol cars often have an on dash camera which might get your plate number!
Also do not completely rely on this to avoid being pulled over. These are just tips nothing more. If you are weaving in and out of traffic or doing 120 don't blame me for getting pulled over.
If you are driving like an asshole I hope you do get your ass pulled over.