Let’s have some odd, cool, iconic and awful police cars of yesteryear and today

Much favoured mofe of transport for Manchesters gangsters. Ex-police Volvo’s

@cougar is that Skid Mark’s car? I remember my mum telling me that a manual transmission was a novelty in the USA when I asked why there were so many shots of Mark changing gear.

🤣 It is indeed, yes.

Let’s have some odd, cool, iconic and awful police cars of yesteryear and today … and tomorrow:

https://cyclehistory.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/lawmaster-602×447.jpg

Rumor was that the Cumbria police Sierra’s and Sapphire’s all had bags of sand in the back to keep them down on the road. There was one story of one going to rescue crew of an overturned police Sierra on Shap in a gale, only for the second to get blown off the road.
Another missed the bend over the bridge at Lazonby only to end up like this hanging above the Eden.

Not easy forcing someone into the back seat who didn’t want to go there.

Similar tale from an ex-airport-shooty-copper I know. It’s difficult getting 2 burly blokes in body armour with sub machine guns out of the back seats of a 2 door Capri in a hurry.

Sweeeeet!

Matt_Outandabout…….. I hate to correct you, but I don’t think Cumbria never had Sapphires, certainly not as Motorway cars, they had very few Sierras, mainly XR4i’s, these weren’t motorway cars either. The photo you show isn’t a car in Cumbria livery, it isn’t a Cumbrian registered number, and isn’t a Cumbria Logo on the ROS arch, in fact it looks to me like a Nottinghamshire car and if its on the bridge between Lazonby and KO then its a long way from home.

I’m a bit late to this thread, but cannot believe this hasn’t been posted yet:

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And for good measure I’ll add:

and

#Edit: DT’s just pipped me

Sorry Kroix. Ineptitude linking gif.

Am enjoying this. When I were a kid in deepest London overspill Essex, we’d nod and wink at the larger Fords, because the Tall Tale de jour was that we knew someone who knew another mate whose dad worked at the Police garage nearby and that all the Sierras and Granadas were fitted with Cosworth engines.

Anyway, I went on holiday to Sicily once. I saw something that looks a lot like this. Damn that Alfa 159…

@Pyro good old Ford Timelord, oddly enough I was just listening to Doctorin the Tardis on the Shag Times LP earlier this evening.

My vote would be for Gene Hunt’s original mk 3 Cortina, allegedly a pre facelift GXL, the filmed car was actually a late ‘74 2000E. I loved my old GXL that I had around 2013, 70s Ford handling was always interesting.

Can’t post pics via my mobile.

But the definitive Rozzer’s motor of my youth was the 24v Senator.

I remember seeing a Police Escort
Cosworth on TV, I think it was a Northern Force that had them to chase joyriders. They had slightly raised fronts to skip kerbs and ‘rally’ suspension, whether they meant the standard stuff or they’ve borrowed some from Carlos Sainz I don’t know.

Famously Ford dressed up an RS200 in police colours, I don’t think it was actually used though.

I remember seeing a Police Escort
Cosworth on TV, I think it was a Northern Force that had them to chase joyriders.

Memory says Cleveland but possibly whichever force covers Grimsby?

Let’s go for super cool and probably quite crap at the same time.

Have some Police Interceptors.

Name: Stuart
Nickname: Stewpot
Favourite Film: Die Hard 5
Favourite Food: Chicken Tikka Masala
Dislikes: Uninsured drivers and Spurs

Escort Cosworths were used by Northumbria Police. I remember a red one

Backseat you say? Erm.

Drove one of these (not in police guise) and they are a handful and half. Chassis twisting torque.

Drove one of these too. Same engine, worse handling. Plus really annoying lockout on the transmission forcing a 1st to 4th shift unless you’ve got it matted. That’s how much torque they have. Mad.

@yosemitepaul The photo you show isn’t a car in Cumbria livery, it isn’t a Cumbrian registered number, and isn’t a Cumbria Logo

I didn’t claim it was Cumbria – I said “like this”.

Shap – A6 not M6, a friend from school and his dad were local farmers who helped out, hence why I regale the story…

They definitely had some Sierra’s, I had a lift in the back one day*.
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After helping the police training at Penrith out by being an interview actor for the day while in 6th form… The neighbours didn’t know, of course I asked the officers to lead me out the car somewhat formally when they took me home. By the time I headed to school the next day the rumour was I was up for robbery…

This is one of ours, a real handful to drive.

Pull over comrade.

Matt_outandabout

Subscriber
Rumor was that the Cumbria police Sierra’s and Sapphire’s all had bags of sand in the back to keep them down on the road. There was one story of one going to rescue crew of an overturned police Sierra on Shap in a gale, only for the second to get blown off the road.
Another missed the bend over the bridge at Lazonby only to end up like this hanging above the Eden.

You say it like it was the cars fault & not the drivers!

I have no idea how to post pics but can someone post the Opel senator 3.0

RS200 looking for a new home after Group B rally cars were dropped

In the 60s Dumbartonshire Police purchased a pair of Hillman Imps to patrol around Loch Lomond when the roads became busy with tourist and construction traffic. One was blue and the other white, to make them more visible the bonnets and doors were swapped over. And hence the ‘Panda’ colour scheme was born. They were named ‘Pinky’ and ‘Perky’
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I’ve been in the back of one of these a few times. (Cant tell you why!)

Love the Cooper S! N Yorks police used to have Escort Cosworths. Mainly used to chase bikes up and down Settle bypass IIRC. They also had Subarus. Don’t know what they have now, but someone said they have got an unmarked Golf R.

Lovin the Max Power air dam on that Hillman Imp

@Votchy

Like this one?

Reminds me of this. If you’ve a spare hour and haven’t seen it it’s brilliant. Only 40 years ago.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvw9DNQWymod

When I was riding past Detroit I stayed with a cyclist whose brother was a local cop. The cars all had the bull bars fitted to stop suspect cars reversing into them after a stop.

Not a real police car, obvs. But very cool.

This comes under the heading “iconic.”

Back in the day (ca. 1978) there was a fleet of 36 of these dedicated to patrolling the M62.

Gonna call bollocks on that one. My dad was a sergeant in West Yorks traffic in 70s-80s. From what I remember there were 3 cars covering their patch – M62 from Brighouse to Ferrybridge, M1 to Barnsley, A1 to Dishforth. He had a Range Pig with the whizzy extendable light on the roof, the pc’s had “cars”. That area covered also included all the “other” roads too.
Ok, so add the GMP, Humberside and Merseyside bits and you might be up to 10-15 total, but that includes a stack of other motorways. GMP would probably had more Range Pigs due to more hilly terrain.
His fave? Sunbeam Tiger 4.7.
Most memorable drive? SD1 to London and back at 120mph.