Own cop cars?

[millitsky]

Do cops make their own patrol cars or does the PD give them one for use? Can an officer build his own patrol car and use it as the "official" squad car? Cna a civilian, which is not a cop drive around in a car which has sirens? I've seen on a website that you can actually buy sirens and lights for cars which are exactly like the ones used on squad cars, is it legal to make like ur own patrol car without being an officer?

[mcsap]

Departments supply the cars , perform the maint, pay for the gas and insurance , equipment etc. Some departments allow officers to take their cars home or they are assigned to one car.

In my opinion , it would be foolish to have your OWN car as a cruiser due to liability/insurance reasons. I would much rather drive a company car.

In my state, it is illegal for a civilian to have any kind of lights or sirens that are used on or resemble those used on an emergency vehicle. This includes, lights, sirens, wig-wags, PA systems, neon strobes etc.

So it would be illegal to "make" your own patrol car here and it would attract a LOT of our attention if someone were to try.

[Lawson]

I would think you could equip the sirens, but it would be illegal to operate on a public street, I knew someone who was an ex-cop who made it a hobby of rebuilding a police car to be just like the one he used back in his day, he made it just like an official police vehicle [even bought dummy exempt plates ] and kept it in a garage for show

[mcsap]

Illegal to even have a vehicle equipped with police equipment in PA. Regardless of it being used. If it is there, it will be used in some manner. You don't want yuor girlfriend to be "pulled over" by one of these types do you ?

[Oldbillplod]

Do cops make their own patrol cars or does the PD give them one for use? Can an officer build his own patrol car and use it as the "official" squad car? Cna a civilian, which is not a cop drive around in a car which has sirens? I've seen on a website that you can actually buy sirens and lights for cars which are exactly like the ones used on squad cars, is it legal to make like ur own patrol car without being an officer?

Why would you want to build your own police vehicle in the first place?
I think that is a little sad.

[Lfpdlieu302]

i actually heard of a deparment in missiouri where the officers had to provide their own patrol vehicles. i heard this in a class i took in MO several years ago. they said the guys were driving around in old pickups, station wagons, or anything else they could get their hands on. it was a pretty po-dunk place though. they are the exception to the rule though. the insurance on a patrol car for an indivdual using it on the street would be ungodly i would assume. thats if you could even get insurance on your own.

[gdowkpc]

I couldn't imagine having to do that. It would be difficult to get a decent insurance rate.

My department just got approval to buy a million dollars worth of Police Interceptors.

[DeputyMadMax]

I know it's not quite what you are asking, but we have been known to use loaner cars from a local dealership for undercover/scouting when makeing buys, or staking out a place before serving a no-knock warrant. In a small area they learn fast what all the unmarked cars look like.

[P01IC3M4N]

Do cops make their own patrol cars or does the PD give them one for use? Can an officer build his own patrol car and use it as the "official" squad car?

some of them do. this is a privately owned patrol car.
http://www.pacek9.com/promo/z28/

[Norm357]

Several small Alaskan depts have their officers use POVs.

[corporal716]

I have heard that they drive their own cars in Hawaii.

I have also seen classic Police cars built or restored by Civilians at car shows. These cars were from the 40's and 50's. Both were owned be retired cop and only driven in Parades and car show.

[DeputyMadMax]

We use seized cars for undercover work. We take quite a few cars from people and once we get title, we use them for U/C work for a while and then sell them at auction.

We would do this too, but since it's a small area, they would be suspicious when they see the car that was siezed from them a few months earlier sitting outside their house.

[Group9]

I've known departments, even large ones, where cars were so hard to come by that detectives would occasionally use their own vehicles from time to time.

I've been in four wrecks while driving a government vehicle on duty. I would not want to have done that in a POV.

[Zantar]

I think that in Oregon it might be possible to register a vehicle as a "Vehicle of Special Interest" and then mount things on it that are otherwise illegal like flashing lights and sirens and such. I've looked over that section of the law but am not intimately familiar with it. I presume such a vehicle would not be allowed to be used as a daily driver though. Gdow might know more about this.