Ex-police car - buy or avoid???

Octane_Flash · 12-10-2015, 02:24 PM

I'm looking to buy a FGII XR6 Turbo and there are some good looking units with F6 rims and Brembo's for sale.
Upon further investigation the couple I have looked at are ex-Highway Patrol cars. I have seen the service history and they had regular 10,000km servicing.
The car I'm looking at has done 80,000km and still has a year until warranty runs out or if I drive it over 100,000km.
The interior isn't marked and for all intensive purposes only a trained eye could tell it is an ex-police car.

Has anyone purchased an ex-police vehicle and had a good / bad experience with them??

Vesper Martini · 12-10-2015, 02:37 PM

I had a VY commodore - white. it had been fitted with leather and a clubsport body kit.
It had FE2 suspension for what its worth and seemed to handle really well.
overall no complaints relating to the fact it was formerly a Police car.
but the paint was shot within a coupe of years no clear left, and I think it was due to the acid wash it would have received after removing the police stickers.

Sioso · 12-10-2015, 02:45 PM

Depends on the car, have heard good and bad but mainly good.
I've owned 2 ex chasers, VK 4.9L & VT2 5.7L, both great cars, never had any problems with either.

sprintman1 · 12-10-2015, 03:50 PM

Fwiw I worked for a Ford dealership that serviced NSW Highway Patrol cars and they are very well serviced indeed and far better than most vehicles on the road.

XB GS 351 Coupe · 12-10-2015, 04:45 PM

Police cars are serviced every 10,000km, however they are thrashed and driven with little to no regard for the vehicle, they are a tool that is to be used and often abused. Cops driving them don't care as they get replaced at 80,000km, and some see it as a challenge to see if they can stuff the engine before the car gets replaced.

XR6 Turbo would have been a HWP car and depending on where it was stationed would have seen zero to north of 200km/hr full throttle runs repeatedly from day one, and in some cases several times a day, then there is the gutter jumping, and general hard driving day in day out, the 80,000km would be equal to at least 200,000 plus thousand km's of normal driving. I have seen these cars getting engines replaced under warranty at 50-60,000km on the odometer

Personally I would not go near one with a barge pole.

BIONIC MAN · 12-10-2015, 05:14 PM

Yes.. Exactly.
I know of a certain officer who is onto his 3rd turbo under warranty on his fg2 xr6t.

It appears some kind of game to see who can break them the most. Especially if the cars got the opposite badge to your favorite brand, ie Ford or Holden. Pretty childish really.

Having said that, some of the cars are driven sensibly, positioned at stations where some older guys may have had more respect for them. Not involved in pursuits or city driving every day.

STINKY NINJA · 12-10-2015, 05:17 PM

If I was a copper id get the most out of my 91 octane powered 270kw turbo and thrash the **** off it!
Wouldn't you?
Cop cars are like ex hire cars,run on no oil or coolant and run on the lowest possible octane fuel and do 100kph in first gear lol

BlueBear · 12-10-2015, 05:28 PM

Had 3 ex police cars so far all been very good.
Never had a turbo one though.
Dad currently has an FG Option 20 and it's a good thing.

Cheers,

STINKY NINJA · 12-10-2015, 05:30 PM

So they still have opt 20 on the build plate then?
Ive had an el and an au both v8s,both were super rusty underneath and in the sills,both had bulk gouge marks and damage underneath and bogged up roofs with dodgy paintjobs lol,they did go good though.

BlueBear · 12-10-2015, 05:38 PM

Yep, still Option 20 on the plate.
Standard with 6 speed auto, XR suspension, LSD etc.
No rust or dings and it's a nice colour - Sensation Blue.
Does have a few scratches though, some unruly people over the boot and bonnet i expect.
Was an unmarked HWY Patrol from around Rockhampton QLD.

**Dave R** · 12-10-2015, 06:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BIONIC MAN

Yes.. Exactly.
I know of a certain officer who is onto his 3rd turbo under warranty on his fg2 xr6t.

It appears some kind of game to see who can break them the most. Especially if the cars got the opposite badge to your favorite brand, ie Ford or Holden. Pretty childish really.

Should probably tell him that it's likely nothing to do with his thrashing of the car. To be on its 3rd turbocharger (within presumably low kays as they tend to offload them once they hit 80-90k) is highly abnormal unless there's some underlying problem, like the dealership re-used the original oil feed line when they replaced the first one (which is generally how they fail on stock FGs). I was also under the impression that they run these cars basically 24 hours a day with multiple drivers, not necessarily getting the same drivers each time?

On topic though I know people who've had ex highway cars, they've been very reliable. At the end of the day it's very hard to hurt an engine on the factory tune. Ford thrashes them worse than the end user is capable of during development.

sbutler · 12-10-2015, 06:47 PM

Just like buying any other car, there are good & bad, its up to you how you check them out. I would buy another one in a heart beat. Never had a problem with my ex NSW hwy car 2010 XR6T.

Sprint · 12-10-2015, 06:55 PM

This reminds me of childhood, where everyone would claim "mate it used to be a cop car with cop motor, cop rims aka blues brothers lol.

I'm not sure the kms they let them go but they would be thrashed, I'm pretty sure they would give them a coat of paint after, all dash and everything replaced to a point you could not tell it was a cop car. eg, no hidden 12 gauge shotgun under the parcel shelf.

Simple6 · 12-10-2015, 07:13 PM

I would never buy an ex-Police car. They are so thrashed, you'd never buy one if you rode in one for a couple of days and saw what they were put through.

GDs vehicles are worse for abuse, but at least a HWP car is far more likely to stay on the bitumen I guess...

damo76 · 12-10-2015, 07:23 PM

I bought a xd falcon probably 12 years ago now.
It was advertised for $1200 with a $1000 stereo in it but had a blown head gasket.
No rust or other issues so i bought it and took it home.
Took the head off and got it reconditioned and put it back on.

Anyway didn't know at the time but the car was a bit of a freak, it was 250 x-flow with the alloy head extractors and webber carb.
It also had lsd rear disk with a 4 speed single rail box.
I thought it was strange to have those things on a 1980 xd.
It was silver with dents on the roof near where the back doors were and looked like some electrical equipment was mounted to the dash because of some screw holes here and there.

Why i said it was a freak was it used to have more power than regular 6cyl xd and the suspension was a lot firmer than usual with no body roll.
Very quick of the mark but had it for many years turned out to be the most reliable car/ best car i have owned.

sbutler · 12-10-2015, 08:07 PM

Not all are thrashed mate, some have a very easy life just cruising the hwy's all day doing radar checks. City cars would have a harder life. Stop start & gunning them around. There is a thread on here all about ex hwy cars, & people that have them or have had them have commented, & the overwhelming percentage get glowing reports.

Yellow_Festiva · 12-10-2015, 08:09 PM

I was under the impression that Police cars didn't have the same warranty as a regular car? Bit like how some items have different warranty for regular or commercial use.

Guess I was wrong.

blackf6 · 12-10-2015, 08:12 PM

It will be run in good.

Sprint · 12-10-2015, 08:16 PM

Comes with free bonus kicked in rear doors and B pillars lol.

XG_Falcon · 12-10-2015, 08:24 PM

I had an ex-police VX Commodore back in the day, it was easily the best V6 Holden I ever drove. The engine was very strong, transmission was smooth and the FE2 suspension was much better than standard. As you have noted, the government maintain their vehicles to manufacturer's standards as well - so service history was all good too.

This is an ideal time to buy an ex-cop XR6T. It will be out of the price range of most young hoons, big cars are still hard to get rid of - this gives you an edge in negotiations.

I don't think it would be a bad choice, as long as the body is clean. Compared to a private or dealer sale, you should be able to save some cash to spend repairing the diff bushes and getting an aftermarket cooler fitted for the ZF.

**Jastel** · 12-10-2015, 09:12 PM

Had dozens, still have some running around as taxis.
They will not be prisitine for a 12 -18 month old car but you will only pay $17 - 180000.
Like you said it will still have warranty for a bit longer.
Downsides are a few dents scratches and screwholes...the only thing that will be worn out will be the brake discs...engines and gearboxes are pretty bulletproof.

Smoke Pursuit · 12-10-2015, 09:13 PM

As others have said nothing wrong with them. Over serviced, most of the time treated pretty well. I'd try and find one that had no stickers / lights stuck all over it. Check throughly for accident damage and any noticeable wear and tear. They aren't painted unless they have been damaged, most have some superficial damage from throwing criminals over the boot. Just make sure you buy one at auction, don't let a dealer charge a premium for the same car!

sbutler · 12-10-2015, 09:29 PM

Mine was unmarked inside & out. Slight pilling on the drivers seat. Nothing a set of lambs wool seat covers didnt fix. Its life was Campbelltown to Marulin.. 59000Ks on it & Ive just sold it to a mate with 135,000 trouble free Ks & he loves it as much as I did..

irvinnie · 12-10-2015, 10:05 PM

Worked in HWP both country and city stations, if it was me buying one I would look for a country car over a city one as they are more likely to have had an easier life. When I worked at my western region location we used to get over 40k Kms on our tyres!

The service history will show where the car was stationed, if buying from the auctions ask to see them.

damo76 · 12-10-2015, 11:41 PM

Now years ago i was told by a cop that after every car chase they had to send the police car in to get new brakes, not sure if it's 100% but what i was told.

TheInterceptor · 12-10-2015, 11:58 PM

Tough life? I would have thought they'd have an easy life these days. Easy pursuits cos outsourced camera cars now police speeders, highway patrol play with the defect notice book and do breathos. Go for it!!

Sabantien · 13-10-2015, 12:50 AM

They don't tend to pursue these days, so the only thrashing is the maccas run. So they'd get thrashed pretty damn hard.Had one overtake me on the left easily doing 100+ in a 60 zone just to get the chips back to the station still hot.

Check how far the station is from maccas and you'll know how hard they had to drive it.

belieber_ · 13-10-2015, 01:08 AM

Is it a case of the wear and tear being seen in the later half of the cars life?

Maybe a privately owned car might do 250,000km when significant wear begins to show but a police driven car might show these issues earlier? 150,000km maybe?

**ebxr8240** · 13-10-2015, 05:04 AM

I've bought them in the past.. Your not going to get a new car..
For the right price they are ok.. Keep in mind if rotors etc needed replacing ? They would be done ... Rotors etc are a serviceable part..
Can usually buy one before private vehicle are available for the price for same model...

**ebxr8240** · 13-10-2015, 05:05 AM

I've bought them in the past.. Your not going to get a new car..
For the right price they are ok.. Keep in mind if rotors etc needed replacing ? They would be done ... Rotors etc are a serviceable part..
Can usually buy one before private vehicle are available for the price for same model...