Cop Tahoes
 

I need to let my '95 F-150 go after 201k miles due to rust.We bought it new in Clearwater Aug. '95 and just needs more money than i can justify. Has anyone had any luck,good or bad with buying used cop car Tahoes as a local driver/tower? Thanks in advance, John Kissel K242

Re: Cop Tahoes
 

I bought a used 08 that had been an ICE (Immigration)car used in Texas white with the green stripes removed--- lot of miles (over 105,000 )but
it ran good and overall was in good condition some stone chips a few minor dings etc. some small holes in the dash for police radio stuff, for a lot less than a typical used Tahoe would sell for locally--- only problem I had was it had POLICE PACKAGE stuff on it and if you needed to replace something "normal" Tahoe parts a lot of times would not be the same as the POLICE package parts---also my car had a somewhat "plain jane" interior(gray) and almost no chrome etc. on the exterior(white)-- basic heavy duty type of police interior no rips or tears on seats, rubber floor mats no carpeting--- Overall it was a good vehicle replaced brake pads right away when I got ,it tires in about a year and maybe a battery or fan belt later on. I drove it for 6 more years then sold it locally with about 189,000 miles . Towed a flat bed trailer with a car on it or a 19 foot boat occasionally but never for any distance over say 50-75 miles at a time. Would I buy another one maybe but it all depends on mileage and condition --Like when buying any car you have to see the car you cannot buy one sight unseen. FED 387

Re: Cop Tahoes
 

Keep in mind that some police departments purchase civilian Tahoes for use as police vehicles, so just because a Tahoe is an ex police vehicle, doesn't mean that it's necessarily the police version.

And just about all police vehicles see some pretty severe service. Idling for 8-20 hours a day, regular collision damage, abused transmissions, regular bent wheels, front suspensions knocked out of alignment, broken motor mounts, bent exhaust systems, warped brakes, sun-hazed plastic headlight lenses, tree sap and tree debris causing paint and rust issues, years of fast-food remnants under the seats, penicillin growing in the A/C system, and you don't even want to know about the haz-mat situation in the back.

I would never buy a used police car to drive on the street or to put my loved ones in. Under the right circumstances, I might buy one to use as a race car, but a significant amount of the preparation would involve rubber gloves, goggles, a face-mask, and a spray-bottle of bleach.