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Buying an ex police car

Mr Whippy - 3/4/17 at 12:09 PM

Hi

I'm about to buy a Volvo estate for the wife, hopefully a V70. There's a few on the usual places but I thought what about an ex police car as they may have a relatively high mileage but I'd have thought would have been serviced extremely well and much better than guy blogs bothers...

Anyone done this and could recommend a dealer or pitfalls to look out for?

I'm more than happy to travel nationwide to get a good car so that's not an issue

Thanks

nick205 - 3/4/17 at 12:16 PM

Not purchased one myself, but share your thoughts that yes maybe higher mileage, but servicing is likely to have been done properly. On the flip side they will have marks and holes where emergency service kit has been fitted - lights etc.

I'd be interested to hear if you find one and how it turns out.

SJ - 3/4/17 at 12:23 PM

It worked for the Blues Brothers

sdh2903 - 3/4/17 at 12:25 PM

I wouldn't bank on the old myth of top class maintenance. A lot of our local police cars use Halfords autocentres for servicing whom I wouldn't trust to service a skateboard. It will depend on each force and their need to cut cost as to where they're maintained.

gremlin1234 - 3/4/17 at 12:38 PM

this one any good for you?
http://www.expolicecar.co.uk/stockdetail.asp?id=273

[Edited on 3/4/17 by gremlin1234]

bonzoronnie - 3/4/17 at 12:38 PM

Back in the 70's & 80's
Two of my brothers bought a good few former police patrol cars, all were Fords from that era.

They were bought in preference to usual car dealer avenues.

Yes, they had various grommets, zips in the head lining & marks of the dashboards due to equipment removal.
That said, the usual cosmetic defects were more than reflected in the low prices.

Well maintained, they never had problems with any of them.

The upside was, back then the police had the budget to only keep them for 2-3 years.
Today I notice they keep them for a good deal longer.
Dare say, I guess they are still very well maintained.

Toprivetguns - 3/4/17 at 12:39 PM

A friend of mine works for the Hertfordshire constabulary and they spend huge amounts on servicing. However the parts are only as good as the person installing them.

Slimy38 - 3/4/17 at 12:54 PM

I looked into them, there's one guy up north who just takes ex police cars and bikes to sell. I toyed with the idea of buying a Honda that was still dressed in 'blood donor' livery... I bet that would be easy to get through traffic!

The ones that I was looking at were more 'superintendent' and other high ranking cars, basically the equivalent of a company car rather than a forces car. They were coming in very high spec, only three or four years old, but the trim hadn't been messed with (inside or out). They were pretty good prices too. The only issue was mega high miles, 20-30k per year.

In fact, I've just noticed Gremlin has posted the link that I was using.

coozer - 3/4/17 at 01:21 PM

Mate of mine bought one, ex armed response volvo...

Usual hole in headlining, big hole in the dash and a gun case behind the drivers seat.... all looked in good condition....

Then we looked underneath and the floor pan was battered flat off speeding over speed humps...

scootz - 3/4/17 at 01:53 PM

The only ex-police car I'd go for would be one of their ex-driver training ones. They get pampered!

Wouldn't touch one that's been 'operational' with a bargepole! They get hammered! Also worth bearing in mind that many manky p**-soaked mingers will have sullied those rear seats.

scootz - 3/4/17 at 01:53 PM

computid - 3/4/17 at 02:36 PM

Agree with the negative comments above.

I wouldn't touch an ex police car with a barge pole. Driven by multiple people at speed with absolutely no care or consideration given to the vehicle. Sure it will have had frequent oil changes and decent brake pads but it'll have had it's arse thrashed off and probably had a few scrapes if not worse in it's time. And as above, probably had some drunken scum bags puke/piss or worse on the back seat.

No thanks!

Mr Whippy - 3/4/17 at 03:28 PM

hmm all good points to say the least, food for thought

didn't consider bashing the underside etc, had a bluebird like that, I had to cut open the floor inside to sort both the rails...

thanks

Mr Whippy - 3/4/17 at 03:30 PM

quote:
Originally posted by gremlin1234
this one any good for you?
http://www.expolicecar.co.uk/stockdetail.asp?id=273

[Edited on 3/4/17 by gremlin1234]

yeah that's like I'm after, possibly with a tad less miles

nick205 - 3/4/17 at 04:25 PM

I had a 2011 V50 and honestly thought it was rather poor, especially inside. A V70, being bigger, may well be better though.

owelly - 3/4/17 at 04:34 PM

I had an ex-plod S70 and it was great! Someone had painted the roof with a cabbage dipped in Dulux and the interior had the usual holes but it was well serviced and had been looked after by a Volvo dealer who had all the service history on record.
I think it's fair to say that a good ex-service car will be a good one. An abused one will be a money pit.
I only sold mine after having to sit in the back of an unmarked Impreza and watch a video of myself doing 127mph......

Mr Whippy - 3/4/17 at 05:32 PM

quote:
Originally posted by nick205
I had a 2011 V50 and honestly thought it was rather poor, especially inside. A V70, being bigger, may well be better though.

I have a s60 which is the saloon version of the v70 which in turn are updated versions of the 850 cars, also owned those. Look under the skin and you see the linage. Their generally bomb proof and good for crazy mileages.

V50 is a totally different platform based on a shared ford/Mazda/Volvo chassis and is not remotely in the same class an wouldn't recommend them even though they are built better than the ford cars.

snapper - 3/4/17 at 06:01 PM

I have some insider info on this....
The high speed stuff is maintained well but no more than what you would expect from any fast car owner
Most plod cars are bought on contract and maintained on a service agreement by a private contractor, some contractors just sub out the maintainance to any old local garage.
Because of he severe budget pressures imposed on all public sector budgets Police cars are kept much longer than they ever were and therefore have had a long and tough life, a lot do short journeys over and over again 24 hrs a day 7 days a week
Me I wouldn't touch one with a barge pole

morcus - 3/4/17 at 06:09 PM

My hairdresser had a V70 for a while and you could still make out the word 'Police' on the bonnet where the bonnet faded to matt apart from where the stickers had been. He had it a decent amount of time (Though I've no idea how much driving he did).

mark chandler - 3/4/17 at 07:18 PM

V70 is a 300,000 mile diesel car, I sold my D5 geartronic with 160,000 miles no rattles anywhere, quite extraordinary although the ride was best described as wooly!

Turn the steering slowly, if it kicks back you have a potentially expensive problem.

It was vey fast, did not really slow down with the little car on trailer behind it, it was certainly capable of hitting it 135mph and returned 40mpg.

phelpsa - 3/4/17 at 07:41 PM

Don't bother with a police one, look for a high miler with lots of receipts. I bought a top spec 07 S60 D5 with 160k on the clock in October for Ł2k, I've done 15k in it on mostly back roads and it still drives like a new car! Still averages over 50mpg too. Went through its mot last week without so much as an advisory.

spiderman - 3/4/17 at 08:50 PM

My uncle used to drive cars through a local auction house for a bit of beer money, he said he had not driven a good ex police car yet and he did it for years.
Best way to look at it is get it cheap and don't be surprised if it has a few problems, the money saved will pay for the repairs.

benchmark51 - 3/4/17 at 09:14 PM

I bought a Transit minibus, it was registered as an ambulance and used to ferry patients about. Had seats and a wheelchair lift in it. It had over 200k on the clock but was in great condition. 2.3 duratec petrol/gas and never misses a beat. Uses no oil and is on the button everytime. Good upholstered interior and a high roof. Been through 3 MoT's no problems. Yep, I would buy a 'services' vehicle again.

gremlin1234 - 3/4/17 at 09:30 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Mr Whippy

quote:
Originally posted by gremlin1234
this one any good for you?
http://www.expolicecar.co.uk/stockdetail.asp?id=273

[Edited on 3/4/17 by gremlin1234]

yeah that's like I'm after, possibly with a tad less miles

note, the one I linked to, its worth looking at its mot history, it appears to have done 500 miles in the last 6 months without one,
(yea this could all be done on trade plates etc) but doesn't seem to be the best maintained car in the last couple of years.

from https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/
Check the MOT history of a vehicle
Registration number: PE60FNH

Vehicle make
VOLVO
Vehicle model
V70
Date first used
1 September 2010
Fuel type
Diesel
Colour
Grey

MOT history of this vehicle
Test date
16 March 2017
Expiry date
15 March 2018
Test Result
Pass
Odometer reading
146,753 miles
MOT test number
1196 8304 3997
Advisory notice item(s)

engine cover fitted
undertrays fitted
Test date
16 March 2017
Test Result
Fail
Odometer reading
146,753 miles
MOT test number
8699 8701 1490
Reason(s) for failure

Nearside Front Front position lamp(s) not working (1.1.A.3b)
Nearside Front Headlamp aim too low (1.8)
Advisory notice item(s)

engine cover fitted
undertrays fitted
Test date
1 September 2016
Test Result
Fail
Odometer reading
146,343 miles
MOT test number
4437 6675 9621
Reason(s) for failure

Offside Front Brake hose has insufficient room to move, resulting in fouling on any part hose incorrectly mounted (3.6.B.4a)
Offside Front Additional braking device damaged warning wire damaged (3.6.I.1)
Offside Front Additional braking device wiring not secure (3.6.I.5)
Offside Front Seat belt damaged sufficient to significantly weakened the webbing (5.2.2a)
Nearside Rear Shock absorber has a serious fluid leak (2.7.3)
Nearside Front Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm worn on inner tread band and inner sidewall of tyre (4.1.E.1)
Offside Front Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm worn on inner tread band and side wall of tyre (4.1.E.1)
Test date
11 August 2015
Expiry date
1 September 2016
Test Result
Pass
Odometer reading
136,559 miles
MOT test number
4770 6342 5242
Advisory notice item(s)

Steering system slightly rough (2.2.D.1)

Sam_68 - 3/4/17 at 10:25 PM

Just to add a further negative comment that from a quick skim of the thread I can't see has been mentioned before:

Police cars are usually to a fairly low spec for what is otherwise a high performance executive model. They don't tend to waste money on options, so it will be less attractive to most buyers when you want to shift it on.

CosKev3 - 4/4/17 at 07:15 AM

After watching the likes of police interceptors I don't think I would be looking at ex-police cars tbh!

They way they drive them over speed humps/kerbs/areas of grass etc a normal road cars parts were never designed to take that sort of abuse

swanny - 4/4/17 at 11:34 AM

a guy at work bought and ex police v70 with 100k on the clock. bought it unseen via the net for 3.5k 6 years ago.
in that time hes done another 110k with minimal problems. he maintains it at a local volvo specialist and though the interior is now knackered (the front seat has collapsed) mechanically its still ridiculously reliable. thats been a really good buy for him.

v8kid - 4/4/17 at 08:28 PM

Unlike most respondents I actually owned an ex police car rather than speculate about it. It was so reliable that I got really fed up with it after 4 years and gave it away with 200 k on the clock.
Not wee sodden or tatty just standard top spec apart from the extra wiring looms.
On the other hand it was a CR-V possibly the reliability had sod all to do with being an ex patrol car