Time for the final update from the Police Car Exhibition, and I'm saving the biggest and best 'till last. The Japanese have a huge share of the cop car market, and while in the '60s it was pretty easy to laugh at the Japanese, no-one's gonna be laughing when a GT-R is bearing down on you like a bat outta hell!
Mazda only has the one product, the 2002 RX-7 Spirit R Type A, and although this is the finest of the RX-7s, not many departments have bought the rotary wondercars.
Mitsubishi has had better luck, as there is a big market for rally-based super sedans. These cars are agile, grippy and great for cities, where the lack of top speed doesn't really matter. Mitsubishi has responded with the Lancer Evolution IX and X GSR, and it's no surprise that these cars are popular in the cities.
Nissan has a massive share of the police car market, more than any manufacturer. Their success started in 2001, when they offered a special edition Skyline GT-R with performance enhancements and a full set of lights. Intended for use as a pace car, the Skyline instead found immense popularity as one of the backbones of the GTPD, and Nissan have gone from strength to strength. If you have served at any point since 2010 when the Anti Street Racer Taskforce was set up, chances are at least one of your cars will have been a Nissan, and they offer many products. In the early '90s, many departments bought the 300ZX for its speed and handling, and Nissan has continued support for the Fairlady. Also on offer is the Skyline 350GT Sedan, and while it lacks the power for pursuit work, it is marketed as a patrol car, therefore exempting it from performance requirements as seen for Highway Patrol cars. Nissan's popular range of Skyline GT-Rs are here as well, the R32 and R33 being showcased. These cars are perfect for pursuit work, with speed, handling, acceleration and grip being in plentiful supply. The Fairlady range is in another section of the massive Nissan exhibition display, the 350Z and 370Z boasting great handling and grip. The Skyline GT-R R34 is one of the most popular police cars, and responds well to tuning, reportedly one tuning company got 780HP from an R34. The R35 GT-R is another popular choice, offering power, handling, grip and weight in one package. The SpecV is lighter for more hardcore performance, while the 2012 model GT-R brings more power and attention to detail to the table. Hold tight when tuning: companies have got as much as 900HP from the new GT-Rs. One thing's for sure, Nissan won't be going away from the law enforcement market any time soon.
Subaru is a very convincing competitor to Mitsubishi for the rally-based pursuit car market. The 2005 Impreza WRX STI is one of the more popular choices, while the 2007 Impreza STI Hatchback and 2010 Impreza STI Sedan are also on offer. Being so similar to the Lancer Evolutions, many departments struggle to choose between the two, both offerings featuring all wheel drive, 280-300HP and standard and excellent grip.
Toyota doesn't have much of a presence in this market, the Prius and 86 lacking the performance for pursuit work. Its Lexus subsidiary however, sells the IS F as an alternative to the M3 and C63. The IS F has a practical 4 door sedan body, a powerful 5.0 V8 engine and an 8 speed automatic transmission with plenty of ratios for any situation and smooth, seamless shifts that mean you can keep accelerating. Honestly, I'm surprised that departments haven't really taken the IS F on board.
Well, that's all from this show. It's been fun to write about the new police cars on the market, and I can't wait 'till next year. It's gonna be fun finding out what the manufacturers will have on display next time...
Right then Swara, if you're interested, simply drop me an order with what car you'd like and what you want to use it for. I'll make it and send it to you as soon as I can.
Thank you!
. I'm not sure what would be the best 
ing...not sure about the rims!
