Chrysler-Badged Formal Police Cars

[amazinblue82]

How far from Bland W.V. is that?
He looks just like guy that stopped me in our 74 N.Y. on way back from Fl.

Looks like cop was on I-64 (or thereabouts) near Goff Mountain Rd in Cross Lanes WV, so that's 125 miles from Bland Va (don't see a Bland WV).

In any event, if not "this guy" you got up close and personal with one of these elusive Newport cop rigs in WV back in the day huh?

 

[commando1]

Looks like cop was on I-64 (or thereabouts) near Goff Mountain Rd in Cross Lanes WV, so that's 125 miles from Bland Va (don't see a Bland WV).

View attachment 128210

In any event, if not "this guy" you got up close and personal with one of these elusive Newport cop rigs in WV back in the day huh?

View attachment 128200

Looks like that was their favorite spot.

 

[rapidtrans]

Looks like cop was on I-64 (or thereabouts) near Goff Mountain Rd in Cross Lanes WV, so that's 125 miles from Bland Va (don't see a Bland WV).

View attachment 128210

In any event, if not "this guy" you got up close and personal with one of these elusive Newport cop rigs in WV back in the day huh?

View attachment 128200

Oh yeah. "Follow me to the Justice of the Peace office." A screened-in front porch to pay fine in cash. Got mad when i asked for a receipt! Bland was that small.
The kicker was i had just been passed by a clapped-out pick-up. Ya think he saw the Michigan plates, new car and saw $$$$?

 

[LocuMob]

he kicker was i had just been passed by a clapped-out pick-up. Ya think he saw the Michigan plates, new car and saw $$$$?

I was a kid in the back seat our Mercury Colony Park when my dad got pulled over exiting the on ramp, full with 3 kids and a dog in a kennel plus luggage. Said we were going 67 before we even merged. Dad argued with logic but it fell on deaf ears. Forgot the state but yep, follow the cop to pay the BS fine. Outta state plates = $$$.

I was told by an officer that I was doing X mph, and he wasn't even on the road when he claimed I was speeding, I met him at an intersection 3/4 mile away! One helluva radar they got these days!

Now back to Formal Chrysler cop cars!

 

[300rag]

...Ya think he saw the Michigan plates, new car and saw $$$$?

Texas State Patrol does that now. They sit and watch for out of state plates, and then go after them because it's more likely for you to pay the fine than come back at a later date to fight it in court.

 

[commando1]

You know guys. Because of this damn thread, if I ever come across a gen-yoo-wine 74-77 Newport cop car, I'm going to have to buy the freaking thing.

 

[rapidtrans]

For years Michigan cars were referred to as "blue tags" by the Popo all up and down I-75.
Only two tickets in the 40 yrs. i've been driving to Fl. ain't to bad. And those were questionable stops.

 

[amazinblue82]

You know guys. Because of this damn thread, if I ever come across a gen-yoo-wine 74-77 Newport cop car, I'm going to have to buy the freaking thing.

not if i beat cha to it -- so keep me outta the loop. im after a fusie and a formal

 

[300rag]

not if i beat cha to it -- so keep me outta the loop. im after a fusie and a formal

Don't get distracted from the bus

 

[amazinblue82]

For years Michigan cars were referred to as "blue tags" by the Popo all up and down I-75.
Only two tickets in the 40 yrs. i've been driving to Fl. ain't to bad. And those were questionable stops.

two moving violations my whole life. we still had the Bi Centennial plates then

April 1978, in college, Ann Arbor, was caught rolling through a stop sign at East University and State Street. It was deserved but it wasnt in MY car. It was dark .. dunno what he was driving. Contested ticket tho but MISSED a court date due to final exams. went home for summer and went to work in an auto factory. pulled over two months later on I-75 by Michigan statie who just didnt like my face (his reason was he thought i needed a front end alignment, yeah just what I thought too ). arrested (expunged later) for a bench warrant .. because I didnt pay ticket there was a bench warrant out for me.

June 1979, I-75 South, pre dawn, near Piqua Ohio, doing 70 in a 55 mph zone. He had me (Ohio Statie was pacing me for at least 3 miles before that). Followed him into Piqua, paid somebody (cant remember if a judge ..) official $60, and on my way. He had a B-Body Fury/Monaco

Not one moving violation since.

 

[amazinblue82]

Don't get distracted from the bus

yeah, youre right.

but i have vowed to make an exception for a Newport pursuit fusie and/or formal. if i am lucky, there aint none left so its all moot

 

[polara71]

Texas State Patrol does that now. They sit and watch for out of state plates, and then go after them because it's more likely for you to pay the fine than come back at a later date to fight it in court.

I got a speeding ticket when I was in Missouri . I sent them a check for the amount of the fine and a letter saying I was not guilty. They sent me back a letter saying to come fight it in court, or write a letter declaring my guilt or I'd have a warrant issued. I did neither, one year later they sent me back my $181.00 .

 

[rapidtrans]

My other ticket was on I-75 northbound just south of Knoxville Jan. 2nd or 3rd 1998. Michigan had just won the Rose Bowl for an undefeated season and the National Championship. Tennessee was to play Nebraska that night.
I was the third car a left lane draft but got pull out by a Tennessee cop for speeding. Michigan "blue tags" strike again. Sat in an orange haze that night at Hooters in Knoxville and watched Tennessee and coach Fulmer get smoked by Nebraska. Took the sting out of the ticket right then. It was worth sharing the title with Nebraska imo!

 

[CBODY67]

Y'all have forgotten about ONE thing specific to a genuine police car! The "Certified Speedometer". ONLY available in production on police cars, BUT available through Mopar Parts, if still available. I got one for my '80 Newport while I still could (actually, I got two and put one in the car). Looks better than the stock 85mph item.

The certified speedometer is supposed to have a better clockspring that is less sensitive to temperature than the civilian speedometer has. The speedos came with "cards" which showed the speedometers accurate + and - 1mph from indicated, down to 32 degrees F, or something like that. This way, too, they could do "speed match" or "reverse clocks" clocks on violators and it would be admissible evidence.

Other than the noted power steering cooler on A38s, the main difference in the "police" steering gearbox would be the stiffness of the internal torsion bar.

In #37, those would not be bucket seats, but a 50-50 split bench seat. That car has a RimBlow steering wheel too!

Be aware that some police departments did not purchase A38 cars, but might get a normal car and put the radios and lights on it. Or they'd buy a year or two old car and do that, if money was tight for them.

You might check out the Mopar Police Cars book, volume 2. Some interesting stuff in there! Seems like the author's name was Sandow? There's also articles at Allpar.com on Mopar Squads, which are pretty interesting as the author's father was a Chrysler/Plymouth dealer/distributor in the '50s and later.

It seemed to me that the A21 HDTrailer Package basic equipment was very close to what the A38 cars had, without the police-specific things like wiring harnesses and such.

There are a couple of Mopar enthusiast websites which have Chrysler parts books for download. There was a special section on "Police and Taxi" parts. That might shed some light on the Chrysler squad issue?

Might not apply to this gen of Mopar, but on the '79-81 cars, I found several in a local salvage yard years ago. They had plain bucket seats, no console, an add-on overhead "porch light" for doing paperwork after dark, a "hat retainer" in the roof (as many used for their cowboy hats in normal vehicles), and twin ashtrays in the dash. AND, those particular '79s had true dual exhausts on their 360 4bbls! Hence, different front floorpan sections for cat conv clearance.

CBODY67

CBODY67

 

[Onemanop]

1978 Newport that oftten comes up as "proof" .. but as seller notes, its a tribute car.

Seller of Classic Cars - 1978 Chrysler Newport (Black/Blue)

View attachment 127030 View attachment 127031 View attachment 127032 View attachment 127033 View attachment 127034

No oil cooler lines that I would associate with "K" code unit. This for me would raise doubts as to authenticity (of this particular car)
(Oops- just noted the "tribute", qualification. My bad. -nice looking unit otherwise.)

 

[amazinblue82]

Y'all have forgotten about ONE thing specific to a genuine police car! The "Certified Speedometer". ONLY available in production on police cars, BUT available through Mopar Parts, if still available. I got one for my '80 Newport while I still could (actually, I got two and put one in the car). Looks better than the stock 85mph item.

The certified speedometer is supposed to have a better clockspring that is less sensitive to temperature than the civilian speedometer has. The speedos came with "cards" which showed the speedometers accurate + and - 1mph from indicated, down to 32 degrees F, or something like that. This way, too, they could do "speed match" or "reverse clocks" clocks on violators and it would be admissible evidence.

Other than the noted power steering cooler on A38s, the main difference in the "police" steering gearbox would be the stiffness of the internal torsion bar.


In #37, those would not be bucket seats, but a 50-50 split bench seat. That car has a RimBlow steering wheel too!

Be aware that some police departments did not purchase A38 cars, but might get a normal car and put the radios and lights on it. Or they'd buy a year or two old car and do that, if money was tight for them.

You might check out the Mopar Police Cars book, volume 2. Some interesting stuff in there! Seems like the author's name was Sandow? There's also articles at Allpar.com on Mopar Squads, which are pretty interesting as the author's father was a Chrysler/Plymouth dealer/distributor in the '50s and later.

It seemed to me that the A21 HDTrailer Package basic equipment was very close to what the A38 cars had, without the police-specific things like wiring harnesses and such.

There are a couple of Mopar enthusiast websites which have Chrysler parts books for download. There was a special section on "Police and Taxi" parts. That might shed some light on the Chrysler squad issue?

Might not apply to this gen of Mopar, but on the '79-81 cars, I found several in a local salvage yard years ago. They had plain bucket seats, no console, an add-on overhead "porch light" for doing paperwork after dark, a "hat retainer" in the roof (as many used for their cowboy hats in normal vehicles), and twin ashtrays in the dash. AND, those particular '79s had true dual exhausts on their 360 4bbls! Hence, different front floorpan sections for cat conv clearance.

CBODY67

CBODY67

thanks CBODY67 for that great contribution to this thread. I didn't catch up with your post in time to thank you the regular way with the icon button.

 

[CBODY67]

So much, it seemed to me at one time, of the HD Trailer package seemed to also be in the A38 package, equipment-wise, that the two were more closely linked than suspected. In each, though, there can be "signature items" specific to both or each, which can ONLY be discovered in the parts book listings. I discovered these "incognito" items when looking through the Chevy parts books (at work) for items related to Gen I and II Z/28 models (of which many were cloned as until the IROC-Z cars, "Z/28", "SS", and "RS" were option packages not detailed in the VIN. I found a few items specific to Gen I and II Z/28 models that were generally not known about, but were there in authenticating "a real one" as such. Similar with genuine B-body HEMI cars, too. And probably the A38 cars, too.

Might be the diameter of the rear sway bar, the number of leaves in the rear leaf springs, codes on steering "chucks", and factory wiring for police-related add-ons. Things which many might replicate but not accurately reproduce in all respects. Might even be a specific tire pressure /tire size decal, as in the case of the Gen I Z/28s.

When Chrysler was still producing "Non-Catalyst" engines (NOT specifically the normal LeanBurn engines), there was a "silver star" (or possibly gold in colr) stick-on on the driver's door shell stating the car was a factory "Non-Catalyst" car. The 318 2bbl, 360 HO, and 400 HO were the normal ones . . . maybe the 440HO, too . . . but all what might be termed "fleet car" engines. In those earlier years, many federal lands had concerns with catalytic convertered vehicles setting fires in the grasslands, so those vehicle were banned from those areas, in those earlier times.

On the HO motors, they were true dual converter, dual exhaust vehicles as the 318s were single exhaust vehicles. There were also "environmental shields" hanging from the exhaust converters and similar heat shields attached to the underbody floor pans.

By the time we got to the "R" cars, the genuine police cars still had the true dual exhaust systems. This also meant a specific front floor area (front seat trans hump and footwell stamping) to clear the lh converter, with appropriate heat shielding, too! The particular floor pan stamping also allows for a console shifter, ala possibly "Cordoba/Charger SE"? The 1979 Gran Furys I found in the salvage yard had the carpet/rubber mat/heat insulation gone so this was very evident!

On the Chrysler Cordoba 300, it came with the 360HO V-8, factory true dual exhausts, and NO power seat option. I always thought that was curious, until I found a '79 St. Regis (former fire chief's car and "police spec") at Mopar Nationals one year. The driver's seat seat track is pretty narrow, diminished side-to-side dimension, as it is on the manual seat cars. On the factory dual exhaust cars, the clearance hump for the lh converter requires the seat tracks be even closer together. This requires an aluminum strap, about 1/2" X 2" or so to connect the seat track's new location to the bottom of the seat structure. NO room for ANY power mechanism under there!

On some cars, there was also a coolant temperature sensor which controlled a "TIC Valve", or "thermostatic ignition control" thermo-vacuum switch. When the engine got hot enough, it would switch the distributor vacuum advance from "ported vacuum" to "manifold vacuum" to speed up the engine speed to help diminish over-heat situations during periods of idling. Increased idle speed = faster cooling fan speed. An incognito and "analog" way of doing that. Our '72 Newport came under a "recall campaign" for this, although not a police-spec car, plus some front grille area rubber shielding, to diminish "recycling underhood air" through the grille area, increasing a/c Freon pressures, and blowing those related hoses. I later noticed some of these thermovacuum switches on the local police cars (at the local dealership for service).

In conclusion, these would be things that might not be normally looked-for in authenticating a police-spec vehicle. Things that might not be known about by those who might not know they were there. Little things that can make a difference.

CBODY67

 

[commando1]

I look at the speedometer. Certified? Done.

 

[Mr C]

The certified speedo is an interesting discussion point for the Chrysler Formal. I think that may be a red herring as a means of easily identifying one.
I have only seen 120 mph speedos (74 only) and then 100 mph (75-78) sspeedos. Never a 140 like the P & D pursuits/ patrols got. I don't think they made a 140 mph Formal Chrysler cluster (they are different).
Has anyone seen one? Even in the brochures?

I have not.

 

[NewportRbod]

They existed. The documentation, at least, is more readily available vs. the Fusie Chrysler-branded squads.

The 1976 Chrysler Police car promotional fleet advertising (along with the A body Darts and Valiants) calls them out specifically, on 124-in wheelbases no less.

The Newps were A38 "police package" cars, "Special Chrysler Newports Pursuits", second VIN digit NOT a "K", with 120 mph (NOT 140) speedos.

Never seen a Newp squad in person - ever., anywhere. Back then, or at anytime since. Darn things are as elusive as "BigFoot" .. lotta claims they've been seen, but nobody can prove it

Found these videos of the same ONE .. a 1975 Newport (nothing I see 'proves' its a real A38 car) thats overseas somewhere now (Russia I think). Alleged to be a former Orange County California Sheriffs car, as well as a 1975 model hereas some sources say they were built in 1976 only (can't be right since WV Staties had 'em in 1974).

Anybody know anything about THIS Orange County car? Anybody ever own Formal Newport squad and can post details here (pics, buildsheet, fender tag) if you will?

Anybody know of where one is (any year Formal Newport Squad, 1974-1978 MY)? PM me if so please, so I don't have to try to outrun commando1 to it .. he's Floridian and they are fast ya know )