are police cruisers/interceptors (Caprice) a good or bad buy?

I had a ride in a brand new Caprice once. Really bad tire noise. Like it had no sound insulation at all.

Yeah, and no inside door handles in the back.

ok, but did you read the question. What the h* do door handles and tires have to do with anything?

I'll bet anything those 2 guys are Ford fans.

If it runs real good and hasen't been wrecked before and not rustd out, it might be a good buy. You can buy door handles and quieter tires.

How many Caprices you see running around? Hell, I don't think I've seen one for the past 5 years or so. To put it in perspective, when I rode in that new Caprice, I was owned an '88 Celebrity that was Caddy or Lincoln in comparison to the tin-can feeling of the Caprice. It was the equivalent to my '71 Nova. But not as fast.

I haven't had a Ford since I traded my '66 F-100 for a couple of drop-off boxes.

Can't say anything technical about a Caprice, I've only been in the back seat a couple of times.

I love my small block Chevy 283 V8. It's quick enough to land you in a Caprice back seat!

Police cars idle for long periods of time between frantic dashes while ignoring road hazards. Better figure the engine is worn out. Suspension and trans probably on their way out. However, at $500 it would still be a good deal even if it only lasts a few months. I would not go much over $750.

If it's a real 9C1 car you want to check the 8th digit of the VIN. They used 2 V8s with one being a slightly detuned version of the Corvettes LT1 350 (VIN P) and the other being the 265 L99 (VIN W) base engine.

Look it over VERY close. Most of the ones that stayed in service this long will have a LOT of miles of hard living. Many have been through a complete rebuild/repaint at least once. They generally saw better maintenance than civilian vehicles, but the miles do cause issues.

I had a '76 Caprice that was former "official". That's what I figured anyway,due to the equipped spotlight. Bought it in '82 for $800. It was a nice car, and only needed tuneups. Rusted out within 5 years.

A friend gave me his old '85 Chevy, ex-police car, back in 1992 or 3 when my Toyota blew up. Don't remember the Chevy model but it lasted for a year as a work car. Quart of oil per day, 70 psi compression, clean the plugs every few weeks. I ended up giving it away to some even poorer people.

Come on Vic! Chebbys don't rust out like that anymore yer know. LOL.

My old 82 G10 van got kind of rusty. Our family's 76-77 Malibu rusted some too. You could see daylight. Or moonlight if it the moon was full. Through the floor that is.

snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com: "the moon was full. Through the floor that is. "

Did you roll that sonofabitch? Cause that's the ONLEEE way to explain moonlight or daylight coming through the floor! LOLOLOL!

They are good cars. I had a 95 Caprice police package bought new and it went to auction when it had about 130K on it. The only problems it had in it's life were that the rear windows came loose from the track, some senor on the transmission needed replacement and that was about it. Cosmetically, the plastic used for the door panels was crap and the shop had to put large washers on the hold down screws by the pull handles because the screws pulled thru the cheap plastic. Expect the usual maintenance items, brakes, shocks, etc. I got as high as 25 mpg on highway trips but only 13 mpg in town

It was replaced with a 2005 Crown Vic police package. The Caprice had a stronger engine but the Crown vic had better seats. They each had their own "feel" to them, both handled well. I thought the CV looked better and the interior held up better.

Buying used you'll need to go by their current condition obviously. A City PD vehicle that's been beat to hell may not be a good choice. I lean toward highway patrol vehicles that were unmarked cars if I'm buying at auction.

I've driven caprices, 89, 90, 92, 95, 2003 and celebrities 87 and Crown Vics 05, 09 and I can't reconcile your comments. All the caprices were very solid quiet cars, no "tin car" feeling at all and easily as good or better "feeling" as the celebrity.

Well, it was a new '90 or '91. It was used by the Chevy dealership to ferry customers who had their car in for work. The road noise was terrible. I remember mentioning it to the driver as soon as we left the parking lot. Only one I've been in. Didn't notice if it had floor mats. I thought my '03 Impala was loud too, but putting in good floor mats and a hump console really quieted it down.

Maybe it was a stripped model with particularly noisy tires. Not disputing your experience, it just doesn't match mine is all. It does seem to me that there is quite a difference in how quiet cars are these days.. with the less expensive ones tending to be pretty noisy. I also think the trend to wider and wider tires with sticky compound is generating more tire noise.