Why aren’t police cars still black and white? - Page 1

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Why aren’t police cars still black and white? (Page 1 of 5)

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:22:39 PM EST

My son asked, I don't know

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:25:35 PM EST

[#1]

Something...something...tier 1 military tactical something or another...

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:27:06 PM EST

[#2]

Iirc once upon a time the fed tied highway funding to being a certain percentage white for uniformity and universal recognition.

It's cheaper to paint solid white and stripe than paint 2 colors.

Or it could be like the black and white cookie- it unites the races.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:27:21 PM EST

[#3]

Vast majority of the ones here (southern California) are black/white.

CHP has a bunch of all white SUVs but that is abt it for non standard cars.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:27:31 PM EST

[#4]

Because things aren't black & white. They're shades of gray. How many? 50?

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:29:05 PM EST

[#5]

Because you can buy fancy sticker a lot cheaper the a 2 color paint job.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:29:38 PM EST

[#6]

To make it harder to see and hide in a ditch from when you sneak out your bedroom window and go raise hell all night and eventually grow up and make run on sentences on Arfcom because you dont know any better.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:31:15 PM EST

[#7]

Because it used to be that people painted them black and white so to be easily identified to allow the civilians to find them when they needed help. You know. To serve and protect.

Now they just want to ticket you and abuse their power. Easier to do that when they can sneak up on you in a black squad with low profile lights.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:31:43 PM EST

[#8]

We buy black cars and then a white wrap is applied to certain parts as our cars are still fairly traditional black and white schemed.

Then what happens is we end up fighting with people against the cars and white wrap gets gouged like crazy so the car ends up looking like shit after a while haha

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:32:07 PM EST

[#9]

Quote History

Quoted:
Because it used to be that people painted them black and white so to be easily identified to allow the civilians to find them when they needed help. You know. To serve and protect.

Now they just want to ticket you and abuse their power. Easier to do that when they can sneak up on you in a black squad with low profile lights.

View Quote

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:32:33 PM EST

[#10]

I've been a little irritated with the "ghost" cars lately. They have a matte clear sicker that says "sheriff" or "police" on the side, and are normal civilian cars or SUVs.

The visual presence of police forces is a big deterrent for crime, and people in distress need the easy visual.

I guess you have to get that radar revenue though.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:34:01 PM EST

[#11]

Twenty years it was costing us an additional $500 per car to have the trunks and hoods painted red.
$500 per car goes a long way if re-directed to other budget stuff.
I imagine the cost would be even more now if we still had two color paint jobs.

Quoted:
Because it used to be that people painted them black and white so to be easily identified to allow the civilians to find them when they needed help. You know. To serve and protect.

Now they just want to ticket you and abuse their power. Easier to do that when they can sneak up on you in a black squad with low profile lights.

View Quote

I would not define ticketing you for an observed violation as "abuse of power".

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:34:03 PM EST

[#12]

I would think the rise of cheap vinyl door graphics meant that every po-dunk and one stop light police force could have their own "custom" car graphics now.

No need to order a "stock" black and white and have cousin Leroy's auto body and mini golf paint a big gold star on the doors, now they can have awesome swoops and stripes!

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:34:55 PM EST

[#13]

Why aren’t police cars still cars?

Forfeiture of drug money’s.

Yet we pay for the gas to feed a fleet of sawed off suburbans

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:35:01 PM EST

[#14]

Houston's just switched over to black and white in the last 6 years.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:35:25 PM EST

[#15]

Ours are still black and white

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:35:37 PM EST

[#16]

Money would be my guess.

They all used to be brown until the early 2000’s in this area.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:35:57 PM EST

[#17]

Our local department just went back to black and white. They look very traditional but the cars are modern

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:36:21 PM EST

[#18]

Mine were

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:36:28 PM EST

[#19]

Toledo gang enforcement/SED cars

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:36:30 PM EST

[#20]

Quote History

Quoted:
Because you can buy fancy sticker a lot cheaper the a 2 color paint job.

View Quote

This right here.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:36:54 PM EST

[#21]

Quote History

Quoted:
Why aren’t police cars still cars?

Forfeiture of drug money’s.

Yet we pay for the gas to feed a fleet of sawed off suburbans

View Quote

When was the last full sized rear wheel drive police car made by Detroit?
We carry a lot more gear than we did thirty years ago.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:37:06 PM EST

[#22]

Quote History

Quoted:
Why aren’t police cars still cars?

Forfeiture of drug money’s.

Yet we pay for the gas to feed a fleet of sawed off suburbans

View Quote

That has nothing to do with it.

More cargo capacity and better resale value do, however.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:38:06 PM EST

[#23]

Because CHiP's went off the air 30 + years ago.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:38:42 PM EST

[#24]

Quote History

Quoted:
I've been a little irritated with the "ghost" cars lately. They have a matte clear sicker that says "sheriff" or "police" on the side, and are normal civilian cars or SUVs.

The visual presence of police forces is a big deterrent for crime, and people in distress need the easy visual.

I guess you have to get that radar revenue though.

View Quote

Yeah, saw a new Tahoe the other day, nice white paint and those translucent stickers on it. Apparently running radar. I had to be right beside it to kinda-sorta see the stickers. C'mon guys, at least pretend.

I'm not a GD cop-basher...but...I would like to have my concern noted.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:40:13 PM EST

[#25]

Here it was an option to the state contract, but it raised the cost by about $500 a car.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:42:07 PM EST

[#26]

In the 90's, manufacturers of police package vehicles stopped offering cars in multi colors. It was a cost cutting measure. Some agencies held fast to tradition and opted to go the extra expense and have the multi color paint done after market. Other's simply changed their traditional looks and added stripping decals. These days, decals and wrapping have replaced the after market painting. Our largest local agency has never strayed from their black and white design. However, their cars come all black and they wrap the white.

Short answer is that solid colors are less expensive.

Edit;

I may be full of shit, but I did manage a PD fleet of over 50 vehicles for a few years in the early 2000's.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:42:33 PM EST

[#27]

Easier to created joinder.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:42:45 PM EST

[#28]

In my AO, I see many police cars that are "normal" cars, but they have light bars in the grill or on the dash.

Can't have the spotters yelling "5-0" when you roll by.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:43:42 PM EST

[#29]

Too bright for tier 1 ops

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:44:41 PM EST

[#30]

Quote History

Quoted:
I've been a little irritated with the "ghost" cars lately. They have a matte clear sicker that says "sheriff" or "police" on the side, and are normal civilian cars or SUVs.

The visual presence of police forces is a big deterrent for crime, and people in distress need the easy visual.

I guess you have to get that radar revenue though.

View Quote

In some states like Mississippi they have laws that regulate markings on state, county and local city vehicles. Lettering must be 3 inches minimum and in bold colors not matching the vehicle.

Some brain trust in small cities in MS started with ghost markings but none of their vehicles are able to do traffic stops legally.

Side note... Sheriffs cant even run radar in Mississippi unless the population is over a certain number, hence, the troopers arenthe only ones running radar in rural areas.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:45:37 PM EST

[#31]

They dont want to look like a penguin?

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:46:06 PM EST

[#32]

Classic California Highway Patrol Cars - Jay Leno's Garage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0pjW8Ss0WI

cool starry bra about California black and whites..

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:47:44 PM EST

[#33]

I ride in a CHP-similar paint scheme SUV. Black front, rear doors and deck lid. White front doors and roof, all painted. Plus, a door star. No "Call 911, or Cuty of XXXXville, nor mottos, none of that shit. We're the police and everybody knows it from looking at the paint scheme. It costs about $1000 more because the cars only come one color from the manufacturer.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:48:42 PM EST

[#34]

Sneakiness

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:48:44 PM EST

[#35]

Quote History

Quoted:

View Quote

There's a suburb I drive through sometimes that is a low crime area but they're ticket writing fiends. (Although I did talk my way out of a ticket with them two years ago).

Anyway they have a sort of blackish/grey police car with blackish/grey writing. You can barely tell it says police. It looks really sharp but I assume a car like that is intended for writing tickets.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:49:08 PM EST

[#36]

Every agency is independent. Fashion and fads along with tradition. I like b/w.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:49:29 PM EST

[#37]

My uncle was Washington State Patrol and at one point he had a pursuit Mustang... 5 speed manual and teeny, tiny walled off, plexiglass area for dirtbags in the back... we thought it was a soo cool..

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:49:51 PM EST

[#38]

Quote History

Quoted:
They dont want to look like a penguin?

View Quote

That can't be it

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:50:10 PM EST

[#39]

Austin cars are still black & white.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:50:35 PM EST

[#40]

Quote History

Quoted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0pjW8Ss0WI

cool starry bra about California black and whites..

View Quote

I saw that before. Good segment. The cigarette butts in the shotgun was a good story

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:50:40 PM EST

[#41]

The town I live in has black/white cars and even a black/white Ram pickup truck.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:51:26 PM EST

[#42]

Quote History

Quoted:
Because you can buy fancy sticker a lot cheaper the a 2 color paint job.

View Quote

This and solid color cars have better resale values than black/white patrol cars. The state DOT here even went to all white vehicles with stickers as the white sells better than the yellow they used to be.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:51:35 PM EST

[#43]

A lot of departments are going back to them.

Quite honestly I don't like them except on certain old school departments.

I also don't like the "swoosh" so many have done with their vinyl in the last 10 years.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:51:53 PM EST

[#44]

There's a few departments around me that are black and white. There's also a lot that are black on black that look awesome.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:52:02 PM EST

[#45]

In NC back in the 70's and 80's (and earlier) small PDs got used highway patrol
cars. Then they got traded in early, but you had to get whatever paint job they
were decommissioned in. They were solid colors and came in about 5 or 6 colors.
Budgets were tight for those departments.

Departments now use their own decal kits and/or paint schemes. Rare to see a
black and white anymore. In many cases the blue lights are now inside rather
than on top. The days of the bubble gum machine are gone.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:53:15 PM EST

[#46]

Wish they were. Our PD ran black with green decals on them forever. Whoever made that choice should have been fired. Those things were an eyesore.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:53:50 PM EST

[#47]

Quote History

Quoted:
I've been a little irritated with the "ghost" cars lately. They have a matte clear sicker that says "sheriff" or "police" on the side, and are normal civilian cars or SUVs.

The visual presence of police forces is a big deterrent for crime, and people in distress need the easy visual.

I guess you have to get that radar revenue though.

View Quote

In some areas it is mandatory for police vehicles to be marked. This is a way around that pesky little directive.

Posted: 12/12/2018 8:53:53 PM EST

[#48]

Quote History

Quoted:
I ride in a CHP-similar paint scheme SUV. Black front, rear doors and deck lid. White front doors and roof, all painted. Plus, a door star. No "Call 911, or Cuty of XXXXville, nor mottos, none of that shit. We're the police and everybody knows it from looking at the paint scheme. It costs about $1000 more because the cars only come one color from the manufacturer.

View Quote

That's what I'm saying!

There was a police dept on the St Lawrence in the 90s that had a huge silhouette of a sailing ship on the side. It was just the shapes, like triangles and squares, not a painting of a boat. It looked like a first grader drew it.

What self respecting policeman wants to roar up to a bar fight in that?