Cop Car?

Left for work at around 5:40 as usual, hopped on a 3 lane 65mph three miles away. Set the cruise on 73 in the middle lane and settled in.

Guy comes in from no where, hovers in my blind spot (people are idiots ya know) and finally eases past me.

Hmmmm. No Daytime Running Lights.

As he goes by I notice the trunk badge is covered in black, the two small chrome identifiers on the left and right are covered also, I see a bit of tape peeling off.

Then I notice the four black boxes bolted to the trunk, smaller than the usual plate reader I'm used to.

It was a dark brown Kia four door, mid to big size. He never left the hammer lane, I never came off cruise, but we swapped positions four to five times in 20 miles.

Hop off the three lane to a two lane 65mph and he got jammed in behind a truck, I didn't help by getting overlap on him and keeping him pinned.

Didn't see him again.

Questions:

Cops use imports?

If he's a poseur, would he go to the expense of buying plate readers?

If that was some kind of volunteer fireman wannabe, can he be arrested for impersonating?

Kia Kop Kar?

Enquiring minds want to know....

Any seized car can be used as a cop car.

Otherwise, I got nothing

Repo man.

In reply to conesare2seconds:

Probably this. As the price comes down they are becoming popular with some repo guys and scofflaw towing. Punch in the plates you want and troll along. when you get a hit boot it and call for the truck. in NYC if you owe over a certain amount in parking tickets a company contracted to the city would haul away your car and using the camera car is more inconspicuous than having a bunch of wreckers roaming the neighborhood.

aussiesmg wrote: Any seized car can be used as a cop car. Otherwise, I got nothing

PA has this policy, but I don't know about NY. In PA it is not uncommon for a trooper to use a PennDOT pickup or dump truck to pull your ass over.

conesare2seconds wrote: Repo man.

The life of a repo man is always intense.

Sounds like repo man or even a guy who always wanted to be a cop but never made it. I think in most states the guy has to actual pull someone over and make them think he is a cop in order to satisfy the statutory requirement for impersonating a police officer.

Although most DUI and drug seizure vehicles probably get auctioned off, some wind up in police fleets for active patrol duty.

Wally wrote: In reply to conesare2seconds: Probably this. As the price comes down they are becoming popular with some repo guys and scofflaw towing. Punch in the plates you want and troll along. when you get a hit boot it and call for the truck. in NYC if you owe over a certain amount in parking tickets a company contracted to the city would haul away your car and using the camera car is more inconspicuous than having a bunch of wreckers roaming the neighborhood.

Wally, can you give me more information on this? Or direct me to where I can find that information?

914Driver wrote: If that was some kind of volunteer fireman wannabe, can he be arrested for impersonating? Kia Kop Kar?

Kia Kop Kar? If so, they aren't trying to be sneaky. I just had a narc squad up by me the other day. If not for the chopper circling and my ability to zoom very far in with my cameras I wouldn't have noticed.
I HAVE seen Crown Vics with the scanners unoccupied on a busy street in a rough neighborhood. I wouldn't be surprised to see the city want to use them on a cheaper car.

Impersonating? In my state you must actively attempt to convince someone you are LEO to be charged with impersonating. All emergency vehicles in MO must have a forward facing red flashing light visible at 500 ft and a siren on. If they are not on, you can't really say their trying to appear to be an emergency worker. I have yellows and wight lights in both my trucks that look like police lights an have never been asked about them. When they are on, it is obvious they aren't red.
One of my old LTs decided it was a smart idea to scare of drug dealers with Red/Blue in the back of his P71. He was stopped once and basically told to never turn them on when on a public street. It is different state-to-state, but I use this as my rule of thumb. If the lights aren't on, I'm not concerned.

mtn wrote:

Wally wrote: In reply to conesare2seconds: Probably this. As the price comes down they are becoming popular with some repo guys and scofflaw towing. Punch in the plates you want and troll along. when you get a hit boot it and call for the truck. in NYC if you owe over a certain amount in parking tickets a company contracted to the city would haul away your car and using the camera car is more inconspicuous than having a bunch of wreckers roaming the neighborhood.

Wally, can you give me more information on this? Or direct me to where I can find that information?

Want to get creeped out?

I think cops can use anything they want. When I was very first here in the country we got pulled over in Vail Colorado by a cop in a brand new Saab, it wasn't the only Saab cop car I saw out there.

yeah, when I was in school there was a subaru outback cop car around JMU.

Adrian_Thompson wrote: I think cops can use anything they want.

There is no law stating cops have to use certain cars. I've seen cop cars with speed stripes, beat up unmarked Silverados, new marked Silverados, Impalas with one flashing light, Pontiac Grand Am, saw a Monte Carlo unmarked the other day. Many departments around here will allow officers to use personal vehicles. There is a well known speed trap down the highway that uses two unmarked Chargers with speed stripes.

I vote bird dog car for repo services. I wondered if there was money to be made just slapping that equipment on a Geo Metro and trolling the town. Just spend the day wheeling through parking lots scanning plates. No towing or confronting people, just dropping the digital dime on them.

In reply to slefain:

According to the video I posted, they can make enough money just trolling cars and sending the info to the contracted companies. Knowing what some of the companies are charging, there should be plenty of cash to pass on to the trolling party.

On my ambulance tow vehicle I removed all of the EMS stickers but left the red Christmas lights on it. I've never had any problems with LEO's. I've talked with many both state and local and all have said "just don't run them on the street". While towing the racecar one time I got passed by an inservice ambulance. Both guys in the cab were laughing their ass off and waving as they went by.

nickel_dime wrote: On my ambulance tow vehicle I removed all of the EMS stickers but left the red Christmas lights on it. I've never had any problems with LEO's. I've talked with many both state and local and all have said "just don't run them on the street". While towing the racecar one time I got passed by an inservice ambulance. Both guys in the cab were laughing their ass off and waving as they went by.

You passed me in traffic one time in Atlanta on I-75. 510 on the trailer, hunched over the steering wheel chomping a cigar. I thought it was hilarious as well.

In Illinois, operational reds and blues will get you a fat ticket, even if they aren't on. They cannot be working in any way. Even if the housings are gutted, you'll get hassled.

Appleseed wrote: In Illinois, operational reds and blues will get you a fat ticket, even if they aren't on. They cannot be working in any way. Even if the housings are gutted, you'll get hassled.

True story. I believe you may be able to cover them, though. I know that's what the MO guys did when going to IL.

The local sheriff's dept had a Daewoo nubria unmarked car a about 10 years ago, haven't seen that in a while.

I've also seen ICE, Border Patrol and DHS unmarked in anything from a Ford Escapes, Malibus, impalas, and Explorers. With varying degrees of markings.

N Sperlo wrote:

Appleseed wrote: In Illinois, operational reds and blues will get you a fat ticket, even if they aren't on. They cannot be working in any way. Even if the housings are gutted, you'll get hassled.

True story. I believe you may be able to cover them, though. I know that's what the MO guys did when going to IL.

True. They must be covered at all times on public roads.

Just driving home through "some really seedy neighborhood in St Louis where there is a stop sign on every block" and came upon an old ambulance with all the lights still there, but it was full marked... as a sales department vehicle.

Cops around here might use anything. The marked stuff is the usual P71s, Impalas, bicycles, and Segways. The unmarked stuff may be anything. They have a warehouse full of vehicles. But, the best I have heard of was the boxes for a Refrigerator, a Stove, and a Dishwasher.