Ask a car guy which cop car of all time was the best, and the chances are solid that you’ll hear about one of the late 1960s-early 1970s Dodge or Plymouth Pursuit package cars equipped with the 440ci big-block engine. It’s a solid choice…14 seconds in the quarter and a top-end that was officially listed at 147 miles an hour…and that’s before you heard the stories from officers who swore that they would do better. But Chrysler Corporation had a longer history of selling cars to cops, one that dates back to the 1930s. Plymouths and Dodges were the most popular cars but DeSotos and even Chryslers were sold to police agencies.
For 1961, the California Highway Patrol decided that instead of the Dodge Dart, that they wanted the extra four inches of wheelbase that came with the Dodge Polara. Using a specific set list of desired components, the CHP Polaras were stout performers: a 383ci packing the camshaft from the dual-quad 413 powered the car, while a larger alternator powered the radio and electronics. The suspension was upgraded, a 1957 Plymouth steering wheel in whilte was fitted (white steering wheels were a CHP calling card for decades) and 12″ brakes yanked from the Chrysler parts bin were fitted. It wasn’t a pretty car…no early 1960s Mopar is…but it was certainly a capable car. The example that Jay Leno gets to check out, fresh from a recent restoration, is one of two known to be restored, and is finished to a high-quality degree. How many of you readers out there remember seeing one of these in your rear-view mirror?
Awesome car! I was in kindergarten in 1969 and the L.A. County Sheriff brought a black n’ white ’69 Fury to our school to do a demonstration. I’ve loved old cop cars ever since.
CHP’s love affair with Mopars goes way back. The first car they chose when they started doing fleet buys was the 1938 Imperial.
Epic. The new Charger cop car parked beside this would look like the ugly girl at grad standing next to the prom queen.