54 entities. Generated 2026-10-29.
Entities
Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor Thing
The Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor (CVPI, often called the P71) is the police version of the Panther-platform Crown Victoria sedan. Ford built the last one in August 2011 and replaced it with the Taurus-based Police Interceptor Sedan and the Explorer-based Police Interceptor Utility.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Crown_Victoria_Police_Interceptor
The Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor is the police-specification version of the full-size Ford Crown Victoria sedan: a rear-wheel-drive, body-on-frame (a separate steel frame carrying the body, as on a truck) four-door with a 4.6-liter V8. Officers, collectors and auction buyers know it as the CVPI, the Crown Vic or, after its Ford sales code, the P71. It rode on the Panther platform, the same body-on-frame architecture that underpinned the Mercury Grand Marquis and Lincoln Town Car. The verdict on this page is out of production , and it is not a
Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor — I Go Cars
Ford Police Interceptor Utility Thing
The Ford Police Interceptor Utility (PIU) is the pursuit-rated police version of the Ford Explorer, on sale since 2012 as one of the Crown Victoria's two successors. It remains in production, now in its second generation with standard all-wheel drive and a 3.3L hybrid as the standard powertrain.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Explorer#Police_Interceptor_Utility
The Ford Police Interceptor Utility, usually shortened to PIU, is the police version of the Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle, engineered and sold by Ford for law enforcement use. It is pursuit-rated, meaning Ford designates it for high-speed police driving; as Michigan State Police (MSP) points out, no outside body defines or awards that term, so it is a manufacturer designation rather than a certification. The verdict on this page is in production for police . Ford's police vehicle lineup lists the PIU, the 2025 model brought a mid-cycle update with
Ford Police Interceptor Utility — I Go Cars
Ford Police Interceptor Sedan Thing
The Ford Police Interceptor Sedan is the police version of the sixth-generation Ford Taurus, sold for model years 2013 through 2019 as one of the Crown Victoria's two successors. Ford ended production by March 2019 after agencies shifted overwhelmingly to its sister model, the Police Interceptor Utility.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Taurus_(sixth_generation)#Police_Interceptor_Sedan
The Ford Police Interceptor Sedan is the police-specification version of the sixth-generation Ford Taurus, a four-door sedan Ford sold to law enforcement agencies for model years 2013 through 2019. It was pursuit-rated, a manufacturer designation meaning Ford built and approved it for high-speed police driving. Ford unveiled it on March 12, 2010 as the replacement for the Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, and it went on sale in 2012 alongside the Explorer-based Police Interceptor Utility, both built at Chicago Assembly. The verdict on this page is out
Ford Police Interceptor Sedan — I Go Cars
Chevrolet Tahoe PPV Thing
The Chevrolet Tahoe PPV (Police Pursuit Vehicle) is the pursuit-rated police version of the full-size Chevrolet Tahoe, ordered under GM package code 9C1. It remains in production alongside the non-pursuit Tahoe SSV (Special Service Vehicle), and GM restricts sale of both to agencies and fleets.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Tahoe
The Chevrolet Tahoe PPV is the police pursuit version of the Chevrolet Tahoe, General Motors' full-size sport utility vehicle. PPV stands for Police Pursuit Vehicle; it is ordered as the 9C1 package on the Tahoe CC10706 (two-wheel drive) or CK10706 (four-wheel drive) model. GM's 2027 specification guide describes it as "designed for police work up to, and including high-speed emergency vehicle operations." The verdict on this page is in production for police . GM publishes 2027 specification guides for both duty Tahoes, the Michigan State Police (MSP)
Chevrolet Tahoe PPV — I Go Cars
Chevrolet Caprice PPV Thing
The Chevrolet Caprice PPV (Police Patrol Vehicle) was a rear-wheel-drive police sedan that General Motors imported from its Australian subsidiary Holden for the 2011 to 2017 model years. It was quicker and roomier than the Crown Victoria it was meant to replace, but slow adoption and the end of Australian car manufacturing closed its run in May 2017.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Caprice
The Chevrolet Caprice PPV is a full-size, rear-wheel-drive police sedan that General Motors sold to American law enforcement agencies for the 2011 through 2017 model years. PPV stands for Police Patrol Vehicle, GM's own name for the car when it was announced. It was not an American design. The Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle was a rebadged Holden WM/WN Caprice, built by GM's Australian subsidiary Holden and shipped to the United States as what Wikipedia's Chevrolet Caprice article calls a "captive import from Australia" (a vehicle built abroad by a
Chevrolet Caprice PPV — I Go Cars
Chevrolet Impala 9C1 Thing
The Chevrolet Impala 9C1 is the police-package version of the Impala sedan, identified by GM's 9C1 code. From 2000 to 2016 it used front-wheel drive and V6 engines only, ending with the fleet-only Impala Limited built at Oshawa, Ontario. It is out of production; the 2016 model year was the last.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_9C1
The Chevrolet Impala 9C1 is the police-package Impala: a four-door, front-wheel-drive sedan that General Motors built for patrol work and sold to law enforcement agencies, not to the public. The 9C1 designation belongs to a wider GM program known as the Chevrolet 9C1 police package, which has appeared on many Chevrolets over five decades. On the Impala, it covered three generations of V6 sedans from 2000 through the 2016 model year. The verdict on this page is Out of production . In November 2013, GM said it would keep building the fleet-only Impala
Chevrolet Impala 9C1 — I Go Cars
Dodge Charger Pursuit Thing
The Dodge Charger Pursuit is the police version of the Dodge Charger sedan, sold to law enforcement from 2006 until Brampton Assembly ended Charger production in December 2023. It offered a V6 or a 5.7L HEMI V8 with rear-wheel or all-wheel drive. A 2027 Charger PPV prototype was shown in August 2026, but Dodge has published no specifications for it.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_Charger_(2006)
The Dodge Charger Pursuit is the police-package version of the Dodge Charger, a full-size four-door sedan built for patrol and pursuit work and sold to law enforcement agencies from 2006 to 2023. It was called the Charger "Police Package" through 2010 and renamed Charger Pursuit with the 2011 redesign. Over its run it offered a V6 or a 5.7L HEMI V8, with rear-wheel drive (RWD, power sent to the rear wheels only) or, in later years, all-wheel drive (AWD, power sent to all four wheels). The verdict on this page is Out of production . WardsAuto reported
Dodge Charger Pursuit — I Go Cars
Dodge Durango Pursuit Thing
The Dodge Durango Pursuit is the police version of the Dodge Durango SUV, announced as a 2018 model and refreshed for 2021. Every configuration is all-wheel drive, with a 3.6L Pentastar V6 or a 5.7L HEMI V8. It remains in production for police for model year 2026, though 5.7L units have a documented oil-cooler problem.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_Durango
The Dodge Durango Pursuit is the police version of the Dodge Durango SUV, built by Stellantis (whose earlier police releases were issued under the FCA name) for patrol, pursuit and specialty work such as K-9 units. Every Durango Pursuit AWD configuration sends power to all four wheels; there is no rear-drive version. Buyers choose between the 3.6L Pentastar V6 and the 5.7L HEMI V8. The verdict on this page is In production for police . The evidence is current and specific. A 2026 Durango Pursuit 3.6L AWD appears on Washington State's Department of
Dodge Durango Pursuit — I Go Cars
Ford F-150 Police Responder Thing
The Ford F-150 Police Responder is a police-package version of the F-150 pickup, built on the FX4 off-road model with a 3.5L EcoBoost V6, 10-speed automatic and 4WD. Ford introduced it in 2017 as the first pursuit-rated pickup, and Michigan State Police has tested it every model year since 2018. It remains in production for police.
The Ford F-150 Police Responder is a police-package F-150 pickup: a four-door, four-wheel-drive truck based on the FX4 off-road model, fitted with a 3.5L EcoBoost twin-turbocharged V6 and a 10-speed SelectShift automatic, and sold to law enforcement agencies under Ford sales code W1P (the order code that identifies the police truck in Ford's fleet system). It is not a civilian F-150 with lights added. It is a factory police vehicle that Ford markets as pursuit-rated, meaning certified by the manufacturer for high-speed police driving. The verdict on
Ford F-150 Police Responder — I Go Cars
Ford Mustang SSP Thing
The Ford Mustang SSP (Special Service Package) was the police option Ford offered on the Fox-platform Mustang from 1982 to 1993, first built for the California Highway Patrol. It used the production 5.0L V-8 with police-duty cooling, electrical and structural additions. Production ended when the SN-95 Mustang arrived for 1994.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Mustang_SSP
The Ford Mustang SSP was a police-specification Mustang. SSP stands for Special Service Package, the factory option code Ford offered on the Fox-platform Mustang (the Mustang generation built on Ford's Fox chassis, often called the Fox-body) from the 1982 model year through 1993, in two-door coupe and hatchback body styles. It was not a separate model line. It was a regular-production Mustang 5.0 ordered with an option package that added police-duty equipment. The verdict on this page is out of production . According to Special Service Mustang.net, an
Ford Mustang SSP — I Go Cars
Ford Mustang Mach-E Police Thing
Police agencies use the Ford Mustang Mach-E, an electric crossover, but Ford sells it to them as a Special Service Vehicle for duties that do not require pursuit capability, not as a pursuit-rated car. There is no factory Mach-E police package; agencies upfit it themselves. It was the quickest vehicle to 60 mph in Michigan State Police testing for the 2026 model year.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Mustang_Mach-E
A Mach-E police car is a Ford Mustang Mach-E, Ford's battery-electric crossover SUV, bought by a law enforcement agency and upfitted (fitted with the lights, radios, computers and wiring an agency adds after delivery) for police work. It is not a Police Interceptor. Ford's police vehicles page lists the Mustang Mach-E GT under Special Service Vehicles, a category Ford describes as vehicles "to handle specialized departmental needs that don't require pursuit capability." Ford's pursuit-capable lineup on the same page is the Police Interceptor Utility and
Ford Mustang Mach-E Police — I Go Cars
Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV Thing
The Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV is GM's battery-electric Police Pursuit Vehicle, built on the dual-motor Blazer EV SS and offered since model year 2024. It remains in GM's police lineup for 2027, though its range figures differ across GM's own documents.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Blazer_EV
The Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV is the police version of the battery-electric Chevrolet Blazer EV, built by General Motors on the dual-motor, all-wheel-drive Blazer EV SS and sold only to public-safety agencies. PPV stands for Police Pursuit Vehicle, GM's term for a model engineered and certified by the manufacturer for police work up to and including high-speed driving. In plain terms, it is a factory-built electric patrol SUV, not a civilian EV that an agency has converted. It is in production for police . GM Fleet's police lineup, checked in October
Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV — I Go Cars
Chevrolet Silverado PPV Thing
The Chevrolet Silverado PPV is the pursuit-rated, 9C1-package version of the Silverado 1500, offered since model year 2023. It is separate from the non-pursuit Silverado 1500 SSV, and GM offers no heavy-duty police Silverado.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Silverado
The Chevrolet Silverado PPV is the pursuit-rated police version of the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 pickup: a four-wheel-drive crew cab with a short bed and a 5.3-liter V8, sold by General Motors only to public-safety agencies. PPV stands for Police Pursuit Vehicle. Pursuit-rated means certified by the manufacturer for police work up to and including high-speed driving, which GM's documents call "high-speed emergency vehicle operations" (pursuits and emergency responses at speed). It is in production for police . GM Fleet's police lineup, checked in October
Chevrolet Silverado PPV — I Go Cars
Harley-Davidson Police Motorcycles Thing
Harley-Davidson police motorcycles are the duty versions of its touring and adventure bikes, supplied to agencies since at least 1908 by the company's account. The 2027 police lineup is the Police Road Glide and Police Pan America, while older Electra Glides and Road Kings remain in service.
sameAs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police_motorcycle
Harley-Davidson police motorcycles are the duty versions of Harley-Davidson touring and adventure models, built with duty equipment and sold to law enforcement agencies for traffic enforcement, escort and patrol work. They are one make of police motorcycle, the general term for a motorcycle equipped for law enforcement, and Harley-Davidson's law-enforcement page carries the tagline "Answering the call since 1908." They are in production for police . That page, checked in October 2026, lists two current models: the 2027 Police Road Glide and the 2027
Harley-Davidson police motorcycles — I Go Cars
Current police vehicles Taxonomy
Current police vehicles covered by I Go Cars.
Eight police vehicles on I Go Cars remain available to agencies as new vehicles: seven sport utility vehicles, pickups and crossovers, plus Harley-Davidson's police motorcycles. Not one of them is a sedan. Seven carry the verdict In production for police, and one, the Ford Mustang Mach-E, carries Special service only, because Ford sells it for police duties that do not require pursuit capability rather than as a pursuit-rated vehicle. The current fleet is a utility fleet The clearest single picture of the current market is the list of patrol vehicles
Current Police Vehicles — I Go Cars
Retired police vehicles Taxonomy
Retired police vehicles covered by I Go Cars.
Six police vehicles on I Go Cars are out of production, and five of them are sedans. Together they span four decades of American patrol cars: the Ford Mustang SSP, built from 1982 through 1993; the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, the last of which left the line in August 2011; the Chevrolet Impala 9C1, whose final model year was 2016; the Chevrolet Caprice PPV, last built on May 19, 2017; the Ford Police Interceptor Sedan, which ended by March 2019; and the Dodge Charger Pursuit, which ended with Charger production at Brampton Assembly in
Retired Police Vehicles — I Go Cars
Police vehicles explained Concept
How a police vehicle differs from its civilian twin, what pursuit-rated means, how agencies test, buy and replace patrol cars, and why the fleet changed.
A police car, in the broad sense used here, is any vehicle a law enforcement agency operates for police work: a marked patrol car, an unmarked investigations unit, a pickup, an SUV or a motorcycle. Most frontline police vehicles in the United States begin as a civilian model and are changed in two distinct stages, and nearly every question about police vehicles traces back to one of those stages. The first stage is the police package : engineering changes the manufacturer builds in at the factory. The Michigan State Police (MSP), whose testing the
Police vehicles explained — I Go Cars
Buying government vehicles: where they are sold and under what rules Concept
Where government vehicles are sold: GSA Fleet, GSA Auctions, state and city surplus, police and impound sales, and seized-vehicle sales, and how each differs.
A government vehicle, in the sense buyers use the term, is any car, truck or van sold to the public by a federal, state or local government body. That covers vehicles the government owned and used, such as GSA leasing-fleet cars, state highway trucks and retired police cruisers, and vehicles it merely took custody of, such as impounded cars and property forfeited in criminal or civil cases. The single most useful question about any vehicle in this market is who owned it before the sale. Ownership history determines the seller, the legal process behind
Buying government vehicles: where they are sold and under what rules — I Go Cars
Traffic enforcement: radar, lidar, cameras and the law Concept
How police measure speed with radar, lidar and cameras, how accurate each is under NHTSA specs, and what the law says about detectors, jammers and cameras.
Traffic enforcement is the work police and local governments do to detect and penalize violations of traffic law. On the road, most of it comes down to one measurement: how fast a vehicle is going. This section of I Go Cars explains how that measurement is taken with radar, lidar and cameras, how accurate each method is according to the federal documents that govern it, and what the law says about the devices drivers use to detect or defeat it. The reason speed dominates is in the federal crash data. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety
Traffic enforcement: radar, lidar, cameras and the law — I Go Cars
Police speed-measurement equipment Concept
The equipment police use to measure speed, who approves it after NHTSA retired the radar CPL in 2025, how it is calibrated, and who makes it.
Speed-measurement equipment is any instrument an officer relies on to establish a vehicle's speed, and it covers far more than the radar gun. The 2008 Speed Enforcement Program Guidelines published jointly by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), document DOT HS 810 915, name radar as "the most common method of speed enforcement in the United States," and then describe five other methods in active use. Radar transmits a microwave beam and reads the Doppler shift (the change in frequency
Police speed-measurement equipment — I Go Cars
What is a Police Interceptor? Concept
A Police Interceptor is Ford's trademarked name for its police-package vehicles, not a generic term for any police car. What it covers and how it differs.
A Police Interceptor is a Ford police-package vehicle (a vehicle the manufacturer builds with duty-specific engine, cooling, electrical, brake and interior content). The phrase is not a generic label for any patrol car: Ford's 2023 Police and Special Service Vehicles Guide lists "Police Interceptor" and "Police Responder" among the marks that are trademarks of Ford Motor Company. That single fact corrects the most common belief about the term. Other manufacturers sell law-enforcement vehicles under their own names. Chevrolet uses PPV, which the Michigan
What is a Police Interceptor? — I Go Cars
Pursuit-rated vs special service vehicles Concept
What pursuit-rated means, who applies the label, and how a special service vehicle (SSV) differs. No outside body certifies pursuit ratings; makers do.
A pursuit-rated vehicle is a police-package vehicle that its manufacturer designates for high-speed police driving, while a special service vehicle (SSV) is a police-specific configuration the manufacturer builds for non-pursuit duty such as command, prisoner transport, towing and specialty operations. No outside body certifies the pursuit label. The Michigan State Police (MSP), whose annual vehicle tests it describes as "an internationally recognized resource for law enforcement agencies," states that there is "no sanctioning body, or specific
Pursuit-rated vs special service vehicles — I Go Cars
How police vehicles are tested Concept
How the Michigan State Police and LA County Sheriff test police vehicles: acceleration, braking, road-course laps, ergonomics, and what results do not mean.
Police vehicle testing in the United States means two annual agency programs: the Michigan State Police (MSP) Police Vehicle Evaluation Program and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) Law Enforcement Vehicle Test and Evaluation Program. Each agency runs the new model year's police vehicles through acceleration, top speed, braking and road-course tests, scores them on ergonomics and equipment installation, and publishes the results in a test book that any agency can use when choosing vehicles. Neither program certifies anything. MSP states
How police vehicles are tested — I Go Cars
What a police car costs, and why upfitting drives it Concept
Why police car cost depends on the upfit as much as the vehicle, using dated audit and council figures from Seattle, Novi, Des Moines and other agencies.
There is no single price for a police car: the cost depends on the agency, the model year, the contract it buys through and, above all, the upfit. In one audited example, the Seattle Police Department paid about $86,836 for each 2020 Ford Police Interceptor Utility, of which $38,482 (about 44%) was the base vehicle and $48,354 (about 56%) was upfitting and additional manufacturer options, according to the Seattle Office of City Auditor's January 2022 audit. Upfitting means the lights, partition, consoles, radios, computers and wiring an agency adds
What a police car costs, and why upfitting drives it — I Go Cars
Police fleet replacement cycles Concept
When police agencies replace patrol cars: mileage and age thresholds, idle hours, take-home programs and resale value, drawn from audits and agency policies.
A police fleet replacement cycle is the mileage, age or condition point at which a law enforcement agency retires a patrol vehicle and buys its successor. There is no national figure. Each agency sets its own policy, and the published examples range widely: Newport Beach, California schedules police patrol and traffic vehicles for replacement at 75,000 miles or four years; Novi, Michigan replaces patrol units projected to exceed 100,000 miles under a union contract requirement; and the Washington State Patrol (WSP) retired its pursuit vehicles at an
Police fleet replacement cycles — I Go Cars
Police vehicle safety Concept
Police officer crash and struck-by deaths, seat belt use, and the Crown Victoria fire and Explorer exhaust investigations, from NIOSH and NHTSA records.
Police vehicle safety is the study and prevention of deaths and injuries to law enforcement officers in and around their vehicles: crashes while driving, crashes on motorcycles, and officers struck by passing traffic while outside the car. It also covers how the vehicles themselves are engineered and equipped, because a patrol car is both a workplace and a piece of protective equipment. The scale is larger than most readers expect. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, the federal research agency for workplace safety) reports
Police vehicle safety — I Go Cars
Unmarked police cars explained Concept
What unmarked, ghost and undercover police cars are, which vehicles agencies use, and what Ohio, California and Georgia statutes say about traffic stops.
An unmarked police car is a police car, meaning a vehicle operated by a law enforcement agency for police work, that lacks exterior markings and easily visible or roof-mounted emergency lights. In Wikipedia's wording, "An unmarked car is a police car that lacks markings and easily visible or roof-mounted emergency lights." It still carries police equipment, often with emergency lights embedded in the grille, windows or interior, or mounted so they retract out of sight. Three related terms are often confused, and the differences matter: Unmarked car : a
Unmarked police cars explained — I Go Cars
Electric police vehicles Concept
Electric and hybrid police vehicles: the Blazer EV PPV, Mustang Mach-E and hybrid Police Interceptor Utility, and how they perform in MSP and LASD tests.
An electric police vehicle is a police car whose powertrain (the engine, motors, battery and transmission that move it) draws some or all of its power from a battery. Two kinds are in police service. A battery-electric vehicle (BEV) runs entirely on a rechargeable battery and must be plugged in. A full hybrid combines a gasoline engine with an electric motor and a battery that charges itself while driving; it is never plugged in. The distinction matters because the two are at very different stages. Hybrids are already the default: the 3.3L full hybrid
Electric police vehicles — I Go Cars
How GSA auctions work for vehicles Concept
How the General Services Administration sells federal vehicles: GSA Auctions vs GSA Fleet, eligibility, bidding, deadlines, SF 97 titles and default damages.
The General Services Administration (GSA), the federal agency that manages buildings, purchasing and vehicle fleets for much of the U.S. government, sells used vehicles to the public through two separate channels. People search for "GSA auctions" as if they were one program. They are not, and the difference governs the fees, the deadlines and the paperwork a buyer faces. GSA Auctions sells surplus federal personal property (movable property, as opposed to land and buildings) that no other agency, state or eligible nonprofit claimed through donation.
How GSA auctions work for vehicles — I Go Cars
Police auctions: what is actually sold Concept
What a police auction sells: retired patrol cars, unclaimed impounds and forfeited vehicles, each with its own law, seller, paperwork and buyer risk.
A police auction is a public sale of vehicles and other property that a law enforcement agency owns or holds and is legally entitled to dispose of. The phrase covers four legally distinct streams that often appear in the same sale catalog: Retired fleet vehicles : patrol cars and other units the agency owns and has replaced, sold as government surplus (property an agency no longer needs). Impounded and abandoned vehicles : private cars towed at police direction or found abandoned, which the owner never reclaimed. Seized and forfeited vehicles : private
Police auctions: what is actually sold — I Go Cars
How police impound auctions work Concept
How police impound auctions work: owner notice and claim periods, tow-lien sales in Texas, California and Florida, the paperwork buyers get, and real results.
A police impound auction sells private vehicles that their owners did not reclaim after a police-directed tow or after the vehicle was found abandoned. Vehicle impoundment, the legal process of taking a vehicle into custody and holding it until fees are paid or the law allows its disposal, ends in one of two ways: the owner or lienholder (the lender with a recorded claim on the vehicle) pays and collects it, or the vehicle is sold. These are not former police cars. Retired patrol units leave through government surplus and fleet channels. An impound
How police impound auctions work — I Go Cars
Seized and forfeited vehicle auctions Concept
Who sells seized and forfeited vehicles (U.S. Marshals, Treasury, IRS), how many reach sale, what buyers receive, and why $100 seized car lists are a scam.
Federal seized vehicles are sold by three agencies. The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) sells vehicles and other property forfeited through the Department of Justice (DOJ) and other federal agencies. The U.S. Department of the Treasury sells vehicles forfeited under laws enforced by Treasury and the Department of Homeland Security. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) sells property it seizes for unpaid taxes. The owning agency may run the auction itself or hire an auction company, and sales are held online, in person or by mail-in bid. All of this rests on
Seized and forfeited vehicle auctions — I Go Cars
Repossessed cars: how lenders sell them and who can buy Concept
How repossessed cars are sold under UCC Article 9: lender notice rules, dealer-only auctions, credit union bid sales and the title a good-faith buyer gets.
Repossession is the process by which a creditor takes back property pledged as security for a loan after the borrower defaults. A repossessed car is therefore collateral (property a borrower pledges to secure a debt) that a bank, finance company or credit union has recovered and now intends to sell. The seller is a private lender, and the sale is governed by commercial law rather than by any government disposal program. That distinction matters because buyers routinely lump three different markets together. Repossessed cars are private collateral sold
Repossessed cars: how lenders sell them and who can buy — I Go Cars
How state and local government surplus auctions work Concept
How state and local governments sell surplus vehicles: who may buy, how bidding and fixed prices work, sale prices, and payment, pickup and title rules.
A government surplus auction is a public sale of surplus property , meaning equipment and vehicles a government no longer needs, run by or for a state, county or city. For vehicles, the seller is usually a state surplus agency (the office that disposes of property for the rest of state government), a fleet management office, or a municipal general services department, and the sale typically runs on a third-party online auction platform under the government's own terms. The vehicles are ordinary fleet units: sedans, pickups, vans, maintenance trucks and,
How state and local government surplus auctions work — I Go Cars
Buying a used police car: what to check before the sale Concept
A buyer checklist for retired police cars: idle hours, upfit holes and wiring, police-only parts, recalls, records, inspection limits, title and paint rules.
A used police car is a police-package vehicle, built by the manufacturer for law enforcement duty, that an agency has retired from its fleet and sold. Examples include Ford's Police Interceptor Utility and Chevrolet's Tahoe PPV (police pursuit vehicle, GM's designation for its pursuit-rated police package). These are not civilian models with stickers added. They have different suspensions, brakes, electrical systems and instruments, and they reach a private owner only one way. GM's police specification guides state that GM “restricts the sale of police
Buying a used police car: what to check before the sale — I Go Cars
Police car titles and decommissioning Concept
What decommissioning removes from a police car before sale, which title document each sale channel provides (SF 97, state title, receipt) and marking laws.
Decommissioning is the process by which a law enforcement agency removes the equipment, markings, wiring and police-only settings from a vehicle before it leaves service and is sold or transferred. The title side of the same transaction is the ownership document the buyer receives, and that document depends entirely on which channel sold the vehicle: a federal sale, a state or city surplus sale, an impound sale or a forfeiture sale. The two subjects belong together because both determine whether a retired police car can be legally registered and driven
Police car titles and decommissioning — I Go Cars
Buying a used Crown Victoria Police Interceptor (P71) Concept
A buyer's guide to the retired Crown Vic P71: P71 and P7B VIN codes, model-year changes, police recalls by campaign number and what decommissioning leaves.
The Crown Victoria Police Interceptor (CVPI, often called the P71 after its Ford code) was never sold new to the public. Every example now offered by a private seller left a government fleet first. Ford stopped accepting orders in April 2011, built the final Police Interceptor in August 2011 for the Kansas Highway Patrol, and ended Crown Victoria production on Sept. 15, 2011, at St. Thomas Assembly in Ontario. Ford replaced it with two vehicles, the Taurus-based Police Interceptor Sedan and the Explorer-based Police Interceptor Utility. The newest CVPI
Buying a used Crown Victoria Police Interceptor (P71) — I Go Cars
Buying a used Ford Explorer Police Interceptor Utility Concept
Buying a retired Ford Explorer Police Interceptor Utility: K8A VIN codes, model years, recalls such as 24V-598, and which Ford programs transfer to you.
The Ford Police Interceptor Utility (PIU) is the Explorer-based police vehicle Ford put on sale in 2012, alongside the Taurus-based sedan, as the successors to the Crown Victoria. The first generation covers model years 2013 through 2019. The second, built on the sixth-generation Explorer, began with MY2020 and was updated for 2025. Ford still builds it at Chicago Assembly, so retired units range from early 3.7L trucks to recent hybrids. Agencies retire them young by the calendar and old by use. Washington State Patrol replaced its PIUs at an average of
Buying a used Ford Explorer Police Interceptor Utility — I Go Cars
Buying a used Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan Concept
Buying a retired Ford Taurus Police Interceptor (2013-2019): P2M and P2L VIN codes, the 2013 configurations, police recalls and the Special Service trap.
The Ford Police Interceptor Sedan is the Taurus-based police car Ford sold for model years 2013 through 2019. It went on sale in 2012 with the Explorer-based Police Interceptor Utility, the two together replacing the Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, and production ended by March 2019 when Ford dropped the Taurus line. By 2017 the Utility accounted for 80% of Ford's Police Interceptor sales, so the sedan is the less common of the two in surplus sales. Every retired example is now at least seven model years old, and the car has been out of production
Buying a used Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan — I Go Cars
Military surplus vehicles: how DoD vehicles reach the public Concept
How military surplus vehicles are sold: DLA Disposition Services and its contractor, DEMIL codes, end-use certificates, Humvee titling, SF 97 vs DD 1348-1A.
The federal government sells used vehicles through two separate systems. Civilian-agency vehicles, meaning the sedans, SUVs and pickups that carry 17-digit VINs and federal safety labels, are sold through GSA (the General Services Administration). Military vehicles, meaning the tactical trucks, trailers, generators and HMMWVs (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles, commonly called Humvees) that the Defense Department calls rolling stock, are disposed of by the Defense Logistics Agency's DLA Disposition Services and sold to the public through a DLA
Military surplus vehicles: how DoD vehicles reach the public — I Go Cars
Radar detector laws by state Concept
Radar detectors are legal in passenger cars in 49 states; Virginia and D.C. ban them. Federal law bars them in CMVs. Full 51-row table with statutes.
A radar detector is a receiver that alerts a driver to the radio signals police use to measure vehicle speed; that is the definition the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) uses in its own rules. In a private passenger vehicle, a radar detector is legal in 49 of the 50 states. Two U.S. jurisdictions prohibit radar detectors in every vehicle: Virginia, under Va. Code § 46.2-1079, and Washington, D.C., under 18 DCMR § 736. Two further limits apply in every state. Federal motor carrier rules bar radar detectors in commercial motor vehicles (CMVs)
Radar detector laws by state — I Go Cars
Radar detectors in commercial vehicles Concept
Radar detectors are banned in commercial vehicles of 10,001 lb or more under 49 CFR 392.71. Who is covered, federal penalties, CSA impact, NY and IL rules.
A commercial motor vehicle (CMV), for federal motor carrier safety purposes, is a vehicle used in interstate commerce with a gross vehicle weight rating, gross combination weight rating or actual weight of 10,001 lb or more, along with certain passenger-carrying and hazardous-materials vehicles. Radar detectors are banned in every CMV nationwide. The ban is 49 CFR 392.71, a rule of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), and it applies in all 50 states, including the 49 where a radar detector is legal in a private car. The rule has
Radar detectors in commercial vehicles — I Go Cars
Laser jammer laws by state Concept
Laser jammers are banned by statute in 11 states; radar jammers are illegal nationwide (FCC). Citations, penalties and the 38 states with none found.
A laser jammer is a device that senses the infrared light pulses of a police lidar speed gun (lidar measures speed by timing laser pulses reflected off a vehicle) and transmits light of its own to interfere with the reading. A radar jammer does the same job against microwave police radar. The two are treated very differently in U.S. law, and that difference is the whole subject of this page. Radar jammers are illegal under federal law in every state, because the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) prohibits the marketing, sale and operation of
Laser jammer laws by state — I Go Cars
How police radar works Concept
How a police radar speed gun measures speed: the Doppler shift, stationary and moving modes, beam width, NHTSA accuracy specs, tuning forks and errors.
A police radar unit, known formally as a radar speed gun , measures how fast a vehicle is moving by transmitting a microwave beam and measuring how the frequency of the reflected signal has changed. That change is the Doppler shift. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the federal agency that writes the model training curriculum for speed-measuring devices, defines the principle in its training glossary: "When there is relative motion between two objects, one of which is transmitting wave energy," the frequency received differs
How police radar works — I Go Cars
Police radar bands: X, K and Ka Concept
X, K and Ka band police radar frequencies as NHTSA defines them, why K-band alerts often come from blind-spot radar, and what instant-on radar means.
Police radar bands are the three microwave frequency ranges in which traffic radar is designed to operate: X band (10.500 to 10.550 GHz), K band (24.050 to 24.250 GHz) and Ka band (33.4 to 36.0 GHz). Ka band, the widest of the three, is the one used by most radar models on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) 2022 Conforming Product List. A frequency band is a defined range of radio frequencies; a gigahertz (GHz) is one billion cycles per second. The definitions come from NHTSA's Down-the-Road Radar Module specification (DOT HS
Police radar bands: X, K and Ka — I Go Cars
Radar vs lidar for police speed measurement Concept
Police radar vs lidar: Doppler microwaves vs timed infrared pulses, beam width, moving vs stationary use, weather, accuracy specs and detector warning time.
Police lidar is a speed-measuring device that fires hundreds of infrared laser pulses per second at one vehicle and calculates its speed from how quickly the distance to it changes. Police radar transmits a wide microwave beam and calculates speed from the Doppler shift (the change in frequency of the reflected signal caused by motion). Both are used for traffic enforcement; they differ in beam width, where they can be used and how much warning a driver gets. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) trains officers on both under its
Radar vs lidar for police speed measurement — I Go Cars
Cosine error in police radar and lidar Concept
What cosine error (the cosine effect) is in police radar and lidar, why stationary readings always read low, and when moving radar can read high.
Cosine error, which NHTSA calls the cosine effect, is the difference between how fast a vehicle is actually traveling and the figure a radar or lidar device measures when the device is not directly in the vehicle's path. The device sees only the part of the vehicle's motion that is straight toward or away from it, so the displayed reading equals the true value multiplied by the cosine of the angle between the vehicle's direction of travel and the device's line of sight. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) defines it in its
Cosine error in police radar and lidar — I Go Cars
Speed cameras: types, evidence and state law Concept
How speed cameras work: fixed, mobile and point-to-point types, the crash evidence, federal FHWA/NHTSA guidance and which states permit or prohibit them.
A speed camera is an automated system that measures a vehicle's speed and photographs vehicles traveling above a set threshold, so that a citation can be issued to the registered owner without an officer stopping the car. It is one type of traffic enforcement camera , the broader category that also includes red-light cameras. Federal agencies now use the term speed safety cameras (SSC); the older term is automated speed enforcement (ASE). The main federal operations document is the Speed Safety Camera Program Planning and Operations Guide, published in
Speed cameras: types, evidence and state law — I Go Cars
Kustom Signals Concept
Kustom Signals of Lenexa, Kansas: its 1965 founding, MPD ownership since 2014, Eagle, Raptor, Falcon and Talon radar, ProLaser lidar and its CPL listings.
Kustom Signals, Inc. is a manufacturer of police traffic radar, lidar, in-car and body-worn video, and speed display signs, headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas. The company dates its founding to 1965. Since November 4, 2014 it has been a wholly owned subsidiary of MPD, Inc., a holding company in Owensboro, Kentucky, which also owns MPH Industries. Its current radar and lidar models appear on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conforming product list (CPL), the federal list of speed-measuring devices that had been eligible for
Kustom Signals — I Go Cars
Decatur Electronics Concept
Decatur Electronics, founded 1955 in Decatur, Illinois and now in Escondido, California: its history, owners, Genesis, G3 and Scout radar and CPL listings.
Decatur Electronics is a manufacturer of police traffic radar, speed signs and trailers, and non-police radar for sports and water-flow measurement. It was founded in 1955 in Decatur, Illinois, and is now headquartered in Escondido, California. Since December 2022 it has operated as Decatur Electronics, LLC, after its managing partners bought the business from D&K Engineering, Inc. of San Diego. Its radar models appear on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conforming product list (CPL), the federal list of speed-measuring
Decatur Electronics — I Go Cars
MPH Industries Concept
MPH Industries of Owensboro, Kentucky: founded 1976, owned by employee-owned MPD since 1988, maker of BEE III, Python III and Sure Shot, and its CPL listings.
MPH Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer of police traffic radar, lidar, speed signs and speed trailers, headquartered in Owensboro, Kentucky. It was founded in 1976 and has been owned since 1988 by MPD, Inc., an Owensboro holding company that is 100 percent employee-owned. MPD also owns Kustom Signals, which makes MPH and Kustom sister companies. MPH's radar and lidar models appear on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conforming product list (CPL), the federal list of speed-measuring devices eligible for purchase with federal
MPH Industries — I Go Cars
Stalker Radar (Applied Concepts, Inc.) Concept
Stalker Radar is the trade name of Applied Concepts, Inc. of Richardson, Texas, founded 1975: its history, DSR, Dual SL and Stalker II radar, lidar and CPL.
Stalker Radar is the trade name of Applied Concepts, Inc. (ACI), a manufacturer of police traffic radar, lidar, lidar-based photo enforcement and original-equipment speed sensors, headquartered in Richardson, Texas. The company was founded in 1975. Federal and state records list it under its legal name: the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conforming product list (CPL) shows "Applied Concepts," and a New York State price list shows "APPLIED CONCEPTS, INC (dba STALKER RADAR)." Its radar and lidar models appear on the CPL, the
Stalker Radar (Applied Concepts, Inc.) — I Go Cars
Laser Technology, Inc. (LTI) Concept
Laser Technology, Inc. of Centennial, Colorado: its history, the 20/20 Marksman, TruSpeed and TruCAM lidar, CPL listings and court rulings on its devices.
Laser Technology, Inc. (LTI, also called Laser Tech) is a manufacturer of lidar speed-measurement devices for police and of laser rangefinders for survey and mapping, headquartered in Centennial, Colorado. Lidar (light detection and ranging) measures a vehicle's speed by timing pulses of infrared laser light. Among the companies whose speed devices appear on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conforming product list (CPL), LTI is lidar-only: it has no radar on the list. Its 20/20 Marksman, introduced in 1991, and its later
Laser Technology, Inc. (LTI) — I Go Cars
Radar speed signs: what they do and what the evidence shows Concept
Radar speed signs do not issue tickets. What driver feedback signs measure, what FHWA, TTI and Morgan State studies found, and the MUTCD rules for them.
Radar speed signs do not issue tickets. The Iowa Department of Transportation states that its signs "do not store data and do not conduct radar enforcement or result in automated speed violation tickets/citations." Clackamas County, Oregon, says its signs "do not issue citations, take photographs, or collect license plate or personal information." A radar speed sign, also called a driver feedback sign or dynamic speed display sign, is a traffic-calming device: it measures the speed of an approaching vehicle and shows that speed to the driver, nothing
Radar speed signs: what they do and what the evidence shows — I Go Cars