What does this mean? Before we go too far, read my guide on Used Police Cars here on eBay for lots of good information before you buy any used police or government vehicle. There are other guides on vehicles too and it may be worth your while to peruse them as well.

I know you might not have the opportunity to inspect the vehicle before bidding or buying it, but ask some questions to assure you're getting what you think you're getting. In my opinion, there is nothing worse than a worn out police car, since they are heavy duty vehicles, and when they reach the point of being really "beaters", the cost/benefit ratio falls off badly. At that point the repair and maintenance costs far exceed the value of the vehicle. 

First, a car purchased by a municipality or public entity doesn't necessarily have to see police service. Many cities will purchase fleets of police interceptors and some of them will truly go to the fire department, or even the water department supervisor, public works, etc. Not too many of the vehicles end up this way but some can, and do. I've had a vehicle from a water district that was a full police interceptor package, yet had never seen a day of police patrol use. I was fortunate to be able to document the ownership of that vehicle to the water district from day one, but in many cases that is not possible. 

However, here's the caveat..... Police interceptor vehicles that have holes in the headliners near the windshield usually had interior lightbars, meaning they were used in some sort of law enforcement operations or fire department use. Another reason for those holes in the forward headliner is the mounting of video equipment, which would also mean a law enforcement used vehicle. Any interceptor class vehicle that has holes in the interior floors has had a console or partition cage or similar equipment installed. Look for the position of the holes. Floor at rear of front seats and inside B pillar trim usually is cage mounting. They simply do not put cages in non-law enforcement vehicles. Then again, it could be a K-9 transport unit and that's another whole story that you probably don't want to get into unless you are specifically looking for a used K-9 unit. Look at the rear deck and in the trunk at the underside of the rear deck for holes from equipment. The metal rear deck pan will always have factory made holes, but additional holes may be cut for wiring harnesses for lights and other wiring as well as specialized seating, etc. Check the grille area for additional holes for lights and siren. Loose wiring is a good sign that items usual to emergency vehicles were removed. Plus, if wiring is improperly terminated, you could have problems with the electrical system down the road!  Check under the dash for loose and, again, improperly terminated wiring.

Front push bar holes are a sure sign a vehicle was a patrol vehicle. Undercover and detective vehicles aren't loaded up with tell-tale pushbars and roof lights or they wouldn't be undercover cars. Vehicles with metal pieces sticking out the front may require either the installation of another push bar or the removal of the metal pieces, as some states have regulations on bumpers. Again, do your homework and determine whether this is something you can live with if the vehicle has had a pushbar. You should also be aware that ballistic door panels were not available as a factory option on the Ford Crown Victoria until 2006, so any panels installed were after-market. That alone should tell you the vehicle was a patrol unit, likely in a pretty heavy crime area.

Check the roof and trunk for filled antenna holes, and the roof for filled lightbar wiring holes. Check the A pillars next to the windshield for filled spotlight holes. Interior trim is easily replaced if spotlights are removed, but filling the holes is a bit tougher. A filled spotlight or antenna or lightbar hole does not make a bad vehicle, but you want to know it was there. Again, knowing what you're buying before laying out the cash is lots better than knowing what you bought after the sale!

Semantics is the art of using different words that mean the same, but might conjure up different meanings to different people. For example, telling you a car was only driven on weekends might sound like a great deal, unless you knew it was driven only in the Saturday and Sunday demolition derby! I know that sounds silly, but see what a difference words alone can make? Same with police and government vehicles. A car driven a thousand miles each weekend to transport prisoners to a federal facility might not be a great deal, simply because it's a "federal" vehicle. The same vehicle might then sit for 5 days between uses and then get ramrodded for two days on a trip out and back. Again, usage and maintenance are the keys to a good deal. The Crown Vic police interceptor is a real workhorse, but lack of care and maintenance will shorten the life of the best manufactured vehicle.

Don't be fooled into thinking a GSA or FBI or federal government vehicle used in law enforcement is going to be so gently used, because many sit in lots available to any driver and are, in fact, driven by anyone who can get the keys on any given day. The quality of a vehicle rests in the drivers ability to handle the vehicle gently, maintenance scheduling. predictive as well as preventive maintenance, and the environmental factors the vehicle is exposed to. Salt from winter roads and certain localities add to the rust potential for vehicles, no matter how well the newer vehicles are rust protected at the factory. I've noted 1999-2002 vehicles in certain areas with front and rear quarter panel rust bubbles, simply due to the heavy salt corrosion action.

Some vehicles being sold have the plastic engine cover or shield missing. Why? Mechanics don't just toss these during routine maintenance, so if you see a newer CVPI with the engine shield missing, ask where it is. Possibly an accident repair where lots goes missing or a car that saw lots of repairs and the mechanic got real tired replacing it. I am aware that in some cases the throttle has been adversely affected by the cover and they are, in fact, removed and not replaced due to this condition. Either way, you have a right to know why it's missing before you make the decision to buy. 

Paint problems, overspray and repaint on body parts can't be explained away by simply stating these were "touch-ups." Touch ups are paint sticks and not full on sprays of body panels, so the vehicle was in an accident. The exception would be a repair by a dealer on delivery due to a scratch or dent during the delivery process, but that would be a dealer covered item and done right. You'd never know it was done, normally, unless you checked with the dealer or had access to the fleet site.

Also, these vehicles do not go a million miles without problems. No vehicle goes a million miles with no problems. Even a big rig, designed to long haul with a diesel that will run non-stop coast-to-coast will not run a million miles trouble free. Don't fall for the hype that people throw out there, when it's clear they don't know what they're talking about. If people feed you lines that are so inflated about performance and longevity of any vehicle, you would do well questioning how much truth is in their statements about the rest of the vehicle as well! Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is!

I've personally sent messages to some sellers who have misleading, or completely wrong, statements in their auctions, in an effort to assure the information the buyer sees is correct. In some cases, the seller really doesn't know the facts, and they quickly correct the wrong statements or misleading wording. Those, in my opinion, are the good sellers. On the other hand, there are the sellers that won't correct the erroneous and misleading information, and that leads me to believe they know it's wrong, but are still willing to perpetrate fraud on the buyer of the vehicle. That's a shame.

Incidentally. for those who believe you will be getting the straight story from the eBay Auto Check Report on the past life of a vehicle, think again! Here's an excerpt from one of their statements on a police vehicle that was owned by the California Highway Patrol from day one, and is being sold as such by a very honest and high quality eBay seller. It just goes to show that the car check can be totally wrong. The vehicle is being sold as an ex-police car, the serial number is a P71 vehicle, yet the Auto Check says there is "No Government Use Record reported to AutoCheck and No Police Use Record Reported to AutoCheck and No Fleet Record Reported to AutoCheck." Kind of makes you wonder what validity there is to the entire report, doesn't it. You already know nobody reports accidents to them or CarFax for government or police vehicles, so this is just less information you can use to make that good decision.

Several last thoughts: Some sellers on eBay, or anywhere else for that matter, who advertise police vehicles as "one owner" and somehow think that should give any buyer a good impression that the vehicle is better? Let's see, the typical police vehicle could be driven by one or a hundred different officers. It could idle for thousands of hours, putting engine wear way above the actual speedometer mileage. (The very latest models have engine hour meters, but that's only on the last two model years) The "one owner" could beat the heck out of the car and whether that one owner is Seattle, Detroit or an upscale luxury area, you can bet the car gets plenty of use. Sellers like to tell you the cars are used in really nice areas, but the car that is used in police work doesn't really care where it's abused. It does make a difference where the vehicle is operated, meaning the weather, as far as salt damage, rust, rot and suspension damage from road conditions. In that regard, you're lots better off with a car from Florida or California than New York or Ohio. 

Also, those who tell you the car was a "chief's car" or other such jargon. In my career, I've known small towns with one or two officers, and one of the officers, or the only officer, was the chief. In one jurisdiction I know all too well, the chief wrecked almost every car we had, and those he didn't total, he damaged. So being driven by the chief or anyone else doesn't mean a thing if the chief drives poorly. In fact, many officers who have moved far up the line seem to lose the ability to drive under EVOC conditions, and as a result are involved in some pretty nasty wrecks. I believe it's simply because they are not used to driving under those conditions on a daily basis; also some jurisdictions don't require them to  requalify regularly, as they are not expected to be running code on a regular basis.    

Again, do yourself a big favor and read my guides on Used Police Cars and Used Government & Police Vehicles before you plunk down your hard earned cash on a used police vehicle. There are a number of very reputable sellers on eBay with some great cars available, and some that might be less than reputable too. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to make the right choice to assure you'll enjoy the great experience of the perfect police cruiser!