CHP and MOPAR ride again?

[uoplax13]

yep....It's great to drive down the road looking like a target. Especially when you are a civilian.:confused:

And have you taken a good look at the typical person driving a retired police vehicle?

No kidding...I got stuck behind two wierdos on 80 in an old black and white this weekend. You could still see the "police" outline on the rear of the car, and it had spotlights, bumpers, etc.... messed up traffic for a good couple miles....they were a couple of real cool looking dudes though.

[billyredline]

I was reading an older Car and Driver magazine and saw that Dodge is coming out with the Dodge Charger for law enforcement offices. It looks awesome; it would look even better with the CHP decals on the sides. Do any of you contributing officers that comment on this forum know if the CHP is going to get them anytime soon? They look pretty nice; it makes me think back of that poster of that CHP Lamborghini pulling over that deuce roadster and that beautiful blond girl in that CHP uniform writing the guy a ticket, I remember as a little kid living outside of California seeing that poster and wanting to join the CHP.

http://thumbs.vidiac.com/e0a63327-58b0-4e7a-bb72-d1e9c9bf66a9.jpg (http://videos.streetfire.net/video/e0a63327-58b0-4e7a-bb72-d1e9c9bf66a9.htm)Click here to see Video (http://videos.streetfire.net/video/e0a63327-58b0-4e7a-bb72-d1e9c9bf66a9.htm)

http://thumbs.vidiac.com/1ca4d2e8-5efd-4eff-80d4-0392328fa48a.jpg (http://videos.streetfire.net/video/1ca4d2e8-5efd-4eff-80d4-0392328fa48a.htm)Click here to see Video (http://videos.streetfire.net/video/1ca4d2e8-5efd-4eff-80d4-0392328fa48a.htm)

[Sportbiker]

ok so i am not a contributing officer on this forum...BUT my buddy is a CHP officer. He owns a charger and stated that chp was to sign a contract with dodge for the relese of these vehicles in 06 but the suspension couldnt handle the load so dodge was to reformat the car and re release it to chp with a new contract in 07....

could anyone confirm??

[SB 405]

The Dodge vs. Ford contract has been talked about more than a few times here.

[Sportbiker]

The Dodge vs. Ford contract has been talked about more than a few times here.

well he's right. With a few seconds of searching I got one

http://www.chpforums.com/Default.aspx?g=posts&t=503

[MW]

The City of Sam Ramon already has two. One for the Chief and one for a Detective Sgt. Uhhhh........... how about for the road dogs?

[dw]

ok so i am not a contributing officer on this forum...BUT my buddy is a CHP officer. He owns a charger and stated that chp was to sign a contract with dodge for the relese of these vehicles in 06 but the suspension couldnt handle the load so dodge was to reformat the car and re release it to chp with a new contract in 07....

could anyone confirm??

Not true.

Do I have any "inside" information? No. But we use a bid process and there is no way to speculate as to who will win the bid before said vehicle has even been produced. There may be those who would like Dodge to win the contract, but only Miss Cleo can say who will actually win.

There seems to be a lot of talk among non-officers here along the lines of "I wish the CHP used xxx vehicle, it has the best performance and handling." You guys have to remember that there are far more factors to consider than performance and handling when spending eight hours in a vehicle as we do. If those were the only consideration, we all would have driven Camaros for the last few years. Hell, I'd love an M5 patrol vehicle, but cost is another consideration. As is comfort. We occasionally need room to take one or more fine citizens to the hooskow... And a few hundred pounds of gear in the trunk usually puts a dent in the performance and handling of any vehicle.

There's a little more to it...

[Tom]

I heard we were all getting Ferrari's!

[CHPGuy]

The Charger was DQed because, among other things, the poor visability through the rear window. That little tid-bit of information is straight from the Academy.

[Your Mentor]

The Charger's transmission, further failed to meet standards. I second dw's statement regarding the statements of some non-chp members. Just because a vehicle looks cool and has impressive 'perfomance' and 'handling' on paper, which is where most of your information is coming from, those paper numbers NEVER translate into a usable patrol vehicle. There are simply too many factors to name. Understand, however, that a stock Charger will never push a fully loaded school bus out of a traffic lane, carry a trunk load of gear, flares, full spare, the officers own gear (which sometmes weighs more than the vehicle's gear), have a heavy metal cage installed, have its aerodynamics disturbed by a light bar, or have to accommodate an officer wearing safety equipment (which makes a huge difference in interior ergonomics). We do not patrol flat roads with superelevated curves. The newest vehicles don't really have any of this taken into account. The Ford CVPI has been around so long and refined specifically toward police work. It's going to be a very tough contract to steal. And, we've been in a CONTRACT with Ford until the end of fiscal year 2007. So any talk of a contract with another manufacturer before that time is just pure bunk. Finally, testing vehicles is so common on the CHP, every year, but have rarely resulted in going to a new car. For example: since I've been on we've tested the LT1 Camaro, Toyota Camry, and Volvo. Just to name a few. None of which were picked up. The current Camaro, with the exception of the Academy EVOC staff, has been relegated for commercial enforcement only. I'm glad. It's not a practical patrol vehicle. Unless you are petite, it's hard to sit in it with a full duty gear without feeling like you're in a coffin.

Beat officers do a very specific job. We don't drive around all day trying to look cool. That's NOT what this job is about folks. So if you are interested in this profession for that reason, please don't pursue this career. We are looking for pragmatic individuals who are looking to help others, and work hard to keep people alive on the highway.

[snowdog]

I was at Officers Forum a few weeks ago and this was addressed when Commissioner Joe came in. He said they were very impressed with the performance, the visibility issue was no different from the Crown Vics, but the primary problem was Dodge's refusal to provide a 75 mph crash test. They provided the 35 mph test and it held up ok but the Department will not purchase a car that does not meet all of the standards. Made a whole lot of sense to me, Safety First!

[Your Mentor]

Thanks snowdog for adding some current information. Safety always makes sense. Particularly when you view photos of a mangled patrol cars. Did the commish have any words regarding where we're going after the 07' contract expires?

[RAT Power]

Having recently crashed a Crown Vic at about 120 MPH into a sound wall, I would say it's still a good car. I owe my life to that car. That and God was definately pointing to my side of the field that day. I basically walked away from the crash. Not everyone has been so fortunate, but in my instance, the passenger compartment stayed intact. I would like to see how any other vehicle being considered could hold up before they take me out of the Crown Vic.

[billyredline]

After I wrote this topic I expected the usual members to comment and having this sites nestor your mentor set the record straight, but I do remember back a while ago getting the technical service bulletins from Ford at the auto shop that I work at about the old crown vics for cabbies and police catching on fire. I also recall those cars having pretty bad rear impact troubles. I recall too a couple years back getting newer CHP crown vics at the auto shop that I work having bad stress fractures in the rear ends because the frames could not handle all the weight and stress of daily CHP work so we had to reinforce the frames for you guys.
I am not a Dodge salesman; I just saw what the Charger had under the hood and its features like the only police car with a stability control system (I know you guys can drive), and a "good safety restraint system". I was just wondering if it passed the test for the CHP. I have test driven CHP crown vics after working on them and I have been in a couple more for ride alongs and on rides with CHP officers who are my friends; and with newer cars now a days and all the ways to improve the performance and traction of a persons vehicles, maybe it is time to get a vehicle that is more up to date performance wise (no insult to the crown vic). Also I think about the backs of the crown vics now and I have heard quite a number of complaints from CHP about its lack of room for people, not criminals but people, one CHP friend of mine always seems get the ?large? ones that need to sit in the back and he just tells me how uncomfortable it is for them. I know also safety is first; it is first for the majority of people when it comes to cars, and I have read some information about its safety rating and that other police offices are picking them up. I was just interested to know if I would see on speeding through the freeways anytime soon.

Oh and your mentor I thought that the CHP had a couple of the Volvo CHP cars?

[WannaBeaChippie]

The Charger's transmission, further failed to meet standards. I second dw's statement regarding the statements of some non-chp members. Just because a vehicle looks cool and has impressive 'perfomance' and 'handling' on paper, which is where most of your information is coming from, those paper numbers NEVER translate into a usable patrol vehicle. There are simply too many factors to name. Understand, however, that a stock Charger will never push a fully loaded school bus out of a traffic lane, carry a trunk load of gear, flares, full spare, the officers own gear (which sometmes weighs more than the vehicle's gear), have a heavy metal cage installed, have its aerodynamics disturbed by a light bar, or have to accommodate an officer wearing safety equipment (which makes a huge difference in interior ergonomics). We do not patrol flat roads with superelevated curves. The newest vehicles don't really have any of this taken into account. The Ford CVPI has been around so long and refined specifically toward police work. It's going to be a very tough contract to steal. And, we've been in a CONTRACT with Ford until the end of fiscal year 2007. So any talk of a contract with another manufacturer before that time is just pure bunk. Finally, testing vehicles is so common on the CHP, every year, but have rarely resulted in going to a new car. For example: since I've been on we've tested the LT1 Camaro, Toyota Camry, and Volvo. Just to name a few. None of which were picked up. The current Camaro, with the exception of the Academy EVOC staff, has been relegated for commercial enforcement only. I'm glad. It's not a practical patrol vehicle. Unless you are petite, it's hard to sit in it with a full duty gear without feeling like you're in a coffin.

Beat officers do a very specific job. We don't drive around all day trying to look cool. That's NOT what this job is about folks. So if you are interested in this profession for that reason, please don't pursue this career. We are looking for pragmatic individuals who are looking to help others, and work hard to keep people alive on the highway.:shock: They can push a fully loaded bus? That's amazing...regarding all the vehicles specific's do you learn about the vehicles during EVOC at the academy?


It sounds like vehicle dynamics play a huge factor in the way the vehicle moves...I was just wondering if a small level of general physics actually comes into play at the academy?

Regarding the camaro, I've seen the inside of it, the Fairfield office has one, it's tiny nobody can ride shotgun in it unless you put the CLET system away. If you are over 5'10" riding in it is impossible for long periods....
I also have a question about the suburbans, and SUV's I've seen a couple in San Francisco, are those mainly used for special protection for Politicians?

[Your Mentor]

We tested the Volvo back in the late 90's. Again, it was a test vehicle which means they weren't picked up on a contract and put out to the field in fleet numbers. When a vehicle is tested, the department buys anywhere between ten or twenty vehicles and then assigns them to a mix of areas for evaluation. Most of the test vehicles are run out and auctioned off. The department usually keeps one. Incidentally, the Volvo, which was a nice vehicle to drive, sounded like a sewing machine.

As mentioned, this topic has been posted numerous times.

[zen_out]

Having recently crashed a Crown Vic at about 120 MPH into a sound wall, I would say it's still a good car. I owe my life to that car. That and God was definately pointing to my side of the field that day. I basically walked away from the crash. Not everyone has been so fortunate, but in my instance, the passenger compartment stayed intact. I would like to see how any other vehicle being considered could hold up before they take me out of the Crown Vic.

120mph?!? Holy smokes ... are you an officer?

[SB 405]

A quick check of Rat's profile will answer that question for ya zen.

[zen_out]

A quick check of Rat's profile will answer that question for ya zen.

I saw that he had 'CHP' listed as his occupation, but it didn't say he was a verified officer. My guess is that he wrecked while draggin' ...

By the way, rat, the car in your avatar looks mighty familiar.

[Car Cop]

Yeah, he must have been some idiot "draggin'". I wonder where he got the CHP car...

Hope you're feeling better, J.B...See you in a few weeks. B&H, my treat.
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g22/todthib/Branik24.jpg
And like I said, if you're gonna wreck a patrol car...do it right.

[SB 405]

Hey we can fix that....my Dad has an awsome set of tools.:lol:

[zen_out]

That's why I asked if he was an officer. I heard about that crash on the news. Glad to hear that he is recovering. :biggrin:

Btw, draggin' was not meant to be disrespectful. He listed drag racing as a hobby, so I was just taking a wild guess.

[E433035]

:shock: They can push a fully loaded bus? That's amazing...
Never underestimate the power of a Vic. Campbell PD used one of theirs once to push my fully loaded 24' rental truck out of an intersection when that beast died on me. Damn nice pushbar that one had! :cool:

[dw]

Hey we can fix that....my Dad has an awsome set of tools.:lol:

What can I say, SB? You think like a Chippie!

[Tom]

My dads a television repairman...hes got an ULTIMATE set of tools!

[WannaBeaChippie]

He lived through that? Well, obviously, but dang.:shock:

[billyredline]

That was a nice slick top one too, hope the officers okay. What to you guys think? The engine is still good minus some ATF ? Also just a small little camber and toe issue with the front end too. Add some wax on her and she is good to go ;)

[chico.medic]

How did that happen? Miss the exit?

[zen_out]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/09/10/MNG80L345A10.DTL&type=printable

[snowdog]

Thanks snowdog for adding some current information. Safety always makes sense. Particularly when you view photos of a mangled patrol cars. Did the commish have any words regarding where we're going after the 07' contract expires?

Nothing specific, but the impression I got was we will have the Crown Vics around for a while.

[David]

Having recently crashed a Crown Vic at about 120 MPH into a sound wall, I would say it's still a good car. I owe my life to that car. That and God was definately pointing to my side of the field that day. I basically walked away from the crash. Not everyone has been so fortunate, but in my instance, the passenger compartment stayed intact. I would like to see how any other vehicle being considered could hold up before they take me out of the Crown Vic. Wow, it's pretty impressive that you're alive and well. :cool:

I own a ex-CHP 2000 Ford CVPI. I love it. No, it's not the fastest or sportiest thing out there, but it's tough, reliable, has lots of room, and it offers good crash protection.

I know a fair amount of people who own Crown Vics as their personal vehicle or are LEOs and drive them on patrol who have been in serious accidents and walked away with only minor injuries.

[billyredline]

Those retired CV's are also great because any road you drive on cars get out of your way like your Moses parting the red sea.

[SB 405]

Question....When a person purchases a retired police vehicle is the person required to provide proof of insurance?

[zen_out]

Question....When a person purchases a retired police vehicle is the person required to provide proof of insurance?

I had to show proof.

[David]

Those retired CV's are also great because any road you drive on cars get out of your way like your Moses parting the red sea. Yeah, something like that. :lol: Mine is just plain white. No spotlights, no pushbar, no antenas, nothing like that, but it still looks pretty cop-ish.

[Darth Choke]

yep....It's great to drive down the road looking like a target. Especially when you are a civilian.:confused:

[dw]

yep....It's great to drive down the road looking like a target. Especially when you are a civilian.:confused:

I bet the chicks really dig it, though!

[zen_out]

yep....It's great to drive down the road looking like a target. Especially when you are a civilian.:confused:

I bet the chicks really dig it, though!

lol ...

[SB 405]

yep....It's great to drive down the road looking like a target. Especially when you are a civilian.:confused:

And have you taken a good look at the typical person driving a retired police vehicle?

[billyredline]

the retired CV's that I have seen have all cost around three grand depending on the options. From what I have observed with my students that drive them as cabs is that all the places that sell them all ask for proof on insurance because the CV's that are placed in retirement to be sold have all had some good times on the road to say the least, and the liablilty of selling them is huge so they want to make sure the person is insured. A new student of mine just bought one for 3 fully loaded; push bumper, both spot lights, plastic seats in the back, and bullet proof sides.

[David]

yep....It's great to drive down the road looking like a target. Especially when you are a civilian.:confused:

I bet the chicks really dig it, though! Uh, no. :lol:

IMHO, making automotive choices based on what "the chikcs dig" is a recipe for disaster. ;)

[SparkSVT]

Im curious to hear what CHP officers felt about the Mustang when it was in service with CHP.

[Mac]

Im curious to hear what CHP officers felt about the Mustang when it was in service with CHP.
Lots of fun to drive, unless it was raining. Sucked to get in and out of. No room inside for anything. A third arm would have been very helpful during pursuits when trying to shift, steer and use the radio at the same time.

[PeckerHead]

My favorite vehicle was that Mustang. Of course like Mac said, it was a little small inside. Lousy brakes (you had to anticipate a stop ten minutes before you made it.) They didn't like to idle on hot days. I thought one day about how many times in a shift I would actually shift that transmission. Lets see, if you were stopped somewhere and decided to chase someone down...first thru fifth, then down shift a couple of gears to stop, write the ticket then first thru fifth again to your next spot to observe traffic then down shift a couple of gears to stop... multiply that by ten to twenty stops a day, plus add in coffee with the beat partner once or twice a shift plus going home for lunch, then going 10-19 to talk to the Sarge about your latest citizens complaint... well I don't have that many fingers and toes, but you get the picture. And then there was that stepping out onto your left foot and lifting yourself up and out of that tiny cockpit, and then basically doing the same thing to get back in, it's a wonder we all didn't have an over sized left thigh. Oh, and if you were paired up and arrested a drunk, that back seat was pretty small, especially if your 10-15 was a big guy and you tried to stuff your six foot, four inch frame in the back seat behind him! But seriously that car was a blast to drive. And man they could take a beating (unlike the Camaro which was faster and drove like it was on rails, but kept breaking auto transmissions!) Man, you knew you were in trouble with the Sarge when he told you to drive the Dodge Diplomat for the day! That was enough to make a grown man cry, leaving the Mustang in the garage. Those were the days, but then to hear the old timers talk about the 426 and 440 Dodges! Man, If only I could have ....

[billyredline]

I think those old Dodges were the absolute coolest CHP cars I think ever.

[GoFasterDammit]

I'm a Ford technician and I can vouch for the toughness of the CV. I work on CHP CV's and with regular maintance they hold up extremely well. When I work on older CV's around 90,000 miles and look at the repair history they usually have on average maybe 1 or 2 transmission replacements, 2 or 3 rear axles, and maybe a differential rebuild. Thats pretty good considering those are 90,000 hard miles. It will be hard for another manufacturer to compete with the CV. The vehicle cost, maintance costs, warranty, crash test ratings and reliability are too good to pass up.

[chico.medic]

Having recently crashed a Crown Vic at about 120 MPH into a sound wall, I would say it's still a good car. I owe my life to that car. That and God was definately pointing to my side of the field that day. I basically walked away from the crash. Not everyone has been so fortunate, but in my instance, the passenger compartment stayed intact. I would like to see how any other vehicle being considered could hold up before they take me out of the Crown Vic.

I realize this is kind of an old topic, but I think ANY vehicle with a push bumper solidly mounted to the frame is not going to give into a whole lot of passenger space intrusion. I think, if anything, that could be a safety concern. We all know about the 3 collisions that occur during a crash. 1) Vehicle vs. Something. 2) You vs. Inside of vehicle, or safety belt.
3) Internal Organs Vs. The inside of your body.

Adding a push bar pretty much eliminates your crumple zones and increases the kinetic energy applied to your internal organs during a crash increasing the potential for injury. I think you just got lucky all around. Weather it was a CVPI, A Dodge Charger, or a Ford pinto............

[icrys20]

The push bumpers are not solidly mounted to frame. If you step on them they move... a lot. Also if you push a vehicle with the top portion of the push bumpers, you will crack the grill and the push bumpers will be bent inward. I think they do this to allow crumple zones to do their thing.

[Badkharma]

Hell, I'd love an M5 patrol vehicle, but cost is another consideration. As is comfort. We occasionally need room to take one or more fine citizens to the hooskow... And a few hundred pounds of gear in the trunk usually puts a dent in the performance and handling of any vehicle.

There's a little more to it...

Hell yes, an M5 would be sweet! :smile: If trunk space is an issue, we can always spring for the S65 AMG. :D

[RAT Power]

Having recently crashed a Crown Vic at about 120 MPH into a sound wall, I would say it's still a good car. I owe my life to that car. That and God was definately pointing to my side of the field that day. I basically walked away from the crash. Not everyone has been so fortunate, but in my instance, the passenger compartment stayed intact. I would like to see how any other vehicle being considered could hold up before they take me out of the Crown Vic.

I realize this is kind of an old topic, but I think ANY vehicle with a push bumper solidly mounted to the frame is not going to give into a whole lot of passenger space intrusion. I think, if anything, that could be a safety concern. We all know about the 3 collisions that occur during a crash. 1) Vehicle vs. Something. 2) You vs. Inside of vehicle, or safety belt.
3) Internal Organs Vs. The inside of your body.

Adding a push bar pretty much eliminates your crumple zones and increases the kinetic energy applied to your internal organs during a crash increasing the potential for injury. I think you just got lucky all around. Weather it was a CVPI, A Dodge Charger, or a Ford pinto............

I have no doubt I am a lucky. But I think you should see the car in person before you make a generalization regarding the survivability of cars. There is not one salvageable part on the car. Would you rather be driving a new Volvo or a '65 Bug and be involved in a traffic collision? Anyhow, I never said which part of the car hit the sound wall first. The car probably rolled a few times as well. All I'm saying is that with the speeds we reach everyday on this job, I would like to see how any other vehicle being considered by this department would withstand a high speed collision. By the way, the back lot of the office is full of cars with just the push bumper bent.