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Unmarked Police car

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Calcarius
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Unmarked Police car

#348783

Postby Calcarius » October 18th, 2020, 9:42 pm

Moderator Message:
This isn't a DAK question in my view. Moved to Cars board (chas49)


Driving home from work on Friday night I saw in my rear view mirror the tell tale blue flashing lights of an unmarked police car approaching. I dutifully pulled over and to my surprise it was no the usual black BMW 4x4 type that I usually see but a black BMW Mini Countryman!

I drive a mini one and there's absolutely no way I can spring out of the door quickly to apprehend an assailant. OK, I'm a 50 year old 6ft male in a winter coat. But can a 5.8ft fit and healthy, muscly 25 year old with stab vest and utility belt do much better? I appreciate the firepower that can be held in a Countryman could be quite adequate should the officer be able to get there in time.

swill453
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#348787

Postby swill453 » October 18th, 2020, 10:14 pm

Is the Mini Countryman not one of those large chunky things, which should be done under the trades descriptions act for using the word "mini"?

Scott.

Mike4
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#348792

Postby Mike4 » October 18th, 2020, 10:38 pm

I was stopped in Guildford many years ago by a filthy dirty unmarked MkII Ford Escort with blue lights and the works concealed within it.

Their reason for stopping me was I didn't look like the sort of person they would expect to see driving a Sierra Cosworth. I wasn't sure what to make of that.

Gerry557
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#348830

Postby Gerry557 » October 19th, 2020, 8:32 am

Was it really an unmarked police car? or some scammer with illegal blue lights!

A few have been caught including a "fake" ambulance.

Personally, I only use my blue lights when Im late home for tea!

chas49
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#348833

Postby chas49 » October 19th, 2020, 8:39 am

Moderator Message:
This isn't a DAK question in my view. Moved to Cars board (chas49)

bungeejumper
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#348841

Postby bungeejumper » October 19th, 2020, 9:08 am

We seem to get a lot of "escort cars" around these rural parts - ordinary-looking Beemers and suchlike that can turn on the blue lights and (I presume) klaxons when they're on a mission. Used for bigwigs, royalty, senior army personnel, that sort of thing.

Although I did once come across one being used in a firearms training exercise. It was a bit of a heart-stopper to drive down the street and see a bunch of people running around with guns. And no evidence of uniformed police, except for a couple of observers who were watching from a distance. Just a beemer with flashing blues. Heck, they might at least have put up a few roadside warnings to tell the public that this wasn't a genuine heist or a kidnap?

BJ

Julian
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#350126

Postby Julian » October 23rd, 2020, 3:55 pm

At a company I was working for in the mid 1990s a new guy joined. He turned up on his first day with a flight suit that he hung on the back of his office door, said that he was a volunteer air ambulance pilot, and insisted to the HR department that his new company car needed to be equipped with blue flashing lights and a siren.

Many of us in the office became increasingly sure as the months went by that he was a fantasist. I can't remember any of the various things uncovered that made us think that so maybe he wasn't and I wouldn't have thought though that the very large multinational company that he and I were working for at the time would have simply agreed to add flashing lights and a siren to one of their company cars without doing at least some sort of due diligence first to ensure it was legal and that he met the preconditions but who knows. If his story was true, or even if it wasn't and he somehow got through a due-diligence check, that would open up the possibility of legal "blues & twos" on any arbitrary civilian car if they happened to be a volunteer in a time-sensitive life-saving role such as air ambulance crew.

The company car actually turned out to be a bit of a nightmare for this guy. HR did agree to his request but the added extras blew out his electrics on I think at least 3 occasions leaving him stranded.

- Julian

airbus330
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#350130

Postby airbus330 » October 23rd, 2020, 4:21 pm

when I lived in rural Aberdeenshire in the late 90's the local plods weapon of choice was the Subaru Impreza, just the cooking version not the rally car. Apparently they liked the permanent 4wd for snowy conditions!

Lanark
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#350163

Postby Lanark » October 23rd, 2020, 7:13 pm

swill453 wrote:Is the Mini Countryman not one of those large chunky things, which should be done under the trades descriptions act for using the word "mini"?

Scott.

The jacked up 4 door version of the countryman is actually the same size as a Range Rover.

give or take a couple of centimetres:
https://www.thecarconnection.com/car-co ... ryman_2020

Now the new Citroen Ami is a real mini if they ever bring it to this country.

vagrantbrain
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#350170

Postby vagrantbrain » October 23rd, 2020, 7:51 pm

Fire and ambulance officers will often have blue lights fitted to their vehicles for responding to OOO calls - possibly one of them?

I spent some time working at a government facility that had a truly surprising rage of official vehicles, some of them you would never suspect, which I think may have been the aim! Always a bit odd to see a beaten-up T-plate Mondeo screaming out the gates...

Dod101
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#350174

Postby Dod101 » October 23rd, 2020, 8:06 pm

Having a beaten up whatever is very sensible for an undercover police vehicle. On my country road the unmarked police car is a small BMW and actually anyone can see the lights, lit or not. One day of course I may be caught but I do try not to exceed the 60 mph limit with any car behind me.

Dod

didds
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Re: Unmarked Police car

#350724

Postby didds » October 26th, 2020, 12:04 pm

ISTR many decades ago in our town a small panda car with the "police" sign on the roof would at times be seen with a cover over it. whether that just meant PC Smnith had private use of it and had to cover it up then, or whether this is the "unmarked" version (while thus giving away what it was immediately of course) we never knew but the latter concept made us chortle (aged 13 or so!)

didds


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