1977 C10 Police Truck

[Blue Ox]

While I think it's cool as a concept, it sounds like a good way to get acquainted with the real police in a hurry. Maybe use the word Patrol on the side instead but you'd still have to look into the legalities. I remember reading about a guy who had an old FHP Mustang that he would take to car shows and he had to wrap the light bar and cover all the logos and lettering on the car to drive it on the highway and the cops would still break his chops. Seems they don't like the idea of the unprivileged citizens horning in on their freebies.

 

[80BrownK10]

Shiiit I plan on doing this with a notch back mustang at some point.
Wanna make it look like an old ChP car.
If it were me, I’d do it.
Maybe be funny and change
POLICE into
PLOICE
There is an old study that says our brains can still read even if the middle letters are all jumbled.
We pertty mcuh laern to raed by looinkg at the frist and lsat ltteers.

Yes , and everyone brain still reads police and your car looks like a cop....still 100% look like a cop and impersonating an officer.

 

[Blue Ox]

Vinwiki has a while series of stories about imitation cop cars. I haven't watched any but this one, but I'll bet they're all similar.

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[SquareKing]

I will report back after I do some investigating…my C10 is a weekend cruiser to the shows and such…

love the notch fox body…the FL HP ones color scheme looks great except in a rear view mirror

 

[AyWoSch Motors]

I'd say, if your truck is black, and you painted the doors white, put a set of old gumball lights on the roof, put a gold badge on the door that says "department of Squarebody Preservation" or something like that, a "serve and protect" and a flag out on the back of the bed, I dont see the issue with that. As long as theres nothing that obviously says cop car about it, and you dont use the lights, I don't see why you'd get in trouble. Especially depending on what color your local Fuzz drives. If they're blue or white or something, and yours is black and white, itll be obvious that your not trying to copy them.
Then all you have to do is get a set of magnets made that says Police, for if and when you go to a car show and what to show off.
Plus, it is squarebody, its not like your painting a Crown Vic or an LTD, as far I know, they didnt use C10 as a cop truck, only blazers and suburbans.
Also movie car replicas get to do it, they only have to put a cover over the lights and sticker on the door.

 

[Raider L]

Louisiana doesn't allow anything that looks like a cop car except just black and white paint and even that is frowned on if it's like police. That's why years ago the cops changed their paint to just white, no black, and police dept. writing and other stuff akin to local cops, but white only. If someone did do a black and white you'd get stopped. And yeah, when they come up for auction everything is striped off of them here.

Now, many years ago we had a Wenkel cop car that was a drag racer, I can't remember what kind of car the engine was in. And it had black and white paint, all the lights, sirens, wig-wags, everything, but it was on a trailer and went only to cruise-ins and the drags. And it was a cop who raced the car to.

 

[Frankenchevy]

It’d be one thing if it was a late model explorer or challenger, but a 45 year old truck…I don’t think anyone will mistake you for an actual LEO. Just don’t put the words police, sheriff or law enforcement and make sure you don’t have the wrong color lights. If you have a period correct light on top, people will know what you’re trying to accomplish.

I’d check your local laws, but I’d think you’d be good to go.

 

[gotyourgoat]

channel your truck's inner cybertron.

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[SirRobyn0]

How do you make your truck look like a police car and not risk “impersonating an officer?”
Not sure how this is not a 100% bad idea unless it’s not ever driven on public roads.

And it makes you look like a creeper, impersonating LE.

Agree 100% with this. You can be arrested for impersonating a police officer. Though it varies from state to state the actual verbage, it's pretty much the same meaning, here is the verbage from WA

"(3) Red emergency lights are prohibited on any vehicle other than an authorized emergency vehicle, a law enforcement vehicle, an emergency tow truck as defined in WAC 204-21-020(8), school buses, and private carrier buses.
(4) Blue lights are prohibited on any vehicle other than a law enforcement vehicle as defined in WAC 204-21-020.
(5) Flashing white lights are prohibited on any vehicle other than authorized emergency vehicles, law enforcement vehicles, school buses, and emergency tow trucks as defined in WAC 204-21-020."

Pretty much leaves you with amber. Hence the reason you see amber light bars on volunteer owned firefighter vehicles, and private security.

My thoughts, if you do it and drive it on the road you gonna get pulled over and your vehicle impounded. Beyond that???

Maybe an alternate idea would be to do it up like a patrol truck, but run an amber light bar. The same? No. Legal yes. Those are my thoughts.

 

[SirRobyn0]

What I have been told is the police insignia on the door is the big one…the light bar isn’t a big deal as all kinds of security and / or escort vehicles ride with them….probably worth a call to Barnie up at the station and get their take….I see classic patrol car suite often at the FL shows.

your state has a much, much lengthier light law than wa. Here is an excerpt from Florida state law

316.2397 Certain lights prohibited; exceptions.—
(1) No person shall drive or move or cause to be moved any vehicle or equipment upon any highway within this state with any lamp or device thereon showing or displaying a red or blue light visible from directly in front thereof except for certain vehicles hereinafter provided.
(2) It is expressly prohibited for any vehicle or equipment, except police vehicles, to show or display blue lights. However, vehicles owned, operated, or leased by the Department of Corrections or any county correctional agency may show or display blue lights when responding to emergencies.

It goes on and on read the entire thing here: https://www.flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2011/316.2397

Likely those security and or escort vehicles are not using blue lights, they are just using red, as my takeaway from reading the entire thing is that red would likely be ok for a private security company, but in all those words I don't see where it specifically says.

For your state you might wanna have your attorney look it over see what he thinks.....

 

[Craig 85]

In California you can't drive a look alike police vehicle at all and it doesn't even have to have logos on it. I gave numerous citations for it over the years, one was a Pinto wagon. The Highway Patrol will repaint vehicles before they go to auction or at least paint the white doors black. The only ones that hit the streets still black and white are non-runners.

 

[RecklessWOT]

They don't ride around with BLUE ones on non LE vehicles.

I'm going to agree and say this is 100% bad idea unless it's a trailered show queen.

Look up the motorcycle funeral escort guy in Florida Jeremy something is his name. Although the wants to appear as a LE officer. Keeps getting arrested for it. Has deep purple lights that look blue almost. Just is a weirdo. Dressed like one as well right motorcycle cops and shirt as well.

Some states vary. When I moved to NH I was confused to see the cops had only blue lights on the roof. In CT Ambulances were red/white, fire trucks were straight red, and cops were red/blue with Staties having red/blue with a yellowish white one in the middle. Plain blue was actually legal for civilian use (as long as you weren't puling people over trying to impersonate), that's what volunteer fire/emt use on their personal vehicles (like when they get woken out of bed to a call and are rushing to the station to grab a real fire truck) as well as some other "don't technically have to pull over for them" types of vehicles.


But yeah trying to make your truck look like a cop car doesn't seem like a good idea to me. If you had an antique police vehicle and wanted to bring it to parades or shows or whatever that's cool, but pretty sure cops never drove lowered C10s anywhere in the history of police so it's not even historic, just someone trying to look like a cop. Doubt local LE would be too fond of you doing that. If anything cops might have driven lifted 4x4s to get down class VI roads in the back country or whatever, I know my town has a black and white humvee with lights and door badges for that reason specifically. Never really seen it move but hey if they need it they got it lol

 

[78C10BigTen]

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I have that one!

 

[TPISly-C10]

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look like mine!

 

[78C10BigTen]

look like mine!

I have that one too! Lmao