1968 Biscayne 427 Arizona Highway Patrol Car. Duncan, BC

Canadian Poncho · A Poncho Legend!

1968 Biscayne 427 Arizona Highway Patrol Car. Duncan, BC

Prefectca · Poncho Master!

Interesting that it has a powerglide shift indicator but the seller states it is a turbo 400.

gparis7 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I'd love to have this car but I can't take on any more projects.

I remember seeing these cars around as RCMP units when they were new.

I was just a kid then but I always knew what I was looking at and wished I could have found one when I got older.

Oh well, it's not to be.

gparis7 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Agree - Interesting that it has the 140 MPH speedo with a Powerglide shift quadrant. I know you could get a 396 PG in those years but I did not think that trans could be matched with a 385 HP 427. The ad says the car has a T400, which is more logical. Maybe the speedo was changed at some point.

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

Prefectca wrote:
Interesting that it has a powerglide shift indicator but the seller states it is a turbo 400.

High powered Police Cars often had First gear block out just to save the engine from overzealous manually shifting pursuits. Perhaps this shift indicator is installed in that vein, L really is L 2.

Found on another forum:

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07-19-07 10:56 AM - Post#1212037
In response to lange74

Just a quick note, my stepdad was service manager at a large Chevy dealer in the 1960's. They sold and serviced a Police Chief's 1967 patrol car. It was a Caprice Sport Sedan. It had 427/385 h.p./T-400 with low gear block out, a/c, pw, etc... It was black with black vinyl top, 140 calibrated speedo, tach and gauges. It had blue cloth bucket seats with vinyl covers over the rear. I took the vinyl covers off for him when I was working there as a lot boy that summer (1967). I remember thinking it was wierd being a 4 door hardtop and having buckets with no console and column shift with only P R N D L2 on the indicator. It had rear a sway bar so I assume something like F-41 suspension, but I don't really know.

-- Edited by 73SC on Saturday 4th of September 2021 10:16:59 PM

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Interesting Ray, this is the first I've heard of the low gear blockout.

-- Edited by MC on Monday 6th of September 2021 12:20:58 AM

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

It was common on fleet cars too right into the 80's. The transmission started out in first and you could punch it to downshift, you just couldn't manually place it in first and hold it there.

I found that other post after I made my initial post so this is something I first learned when working in a municipality beginning in 1976.

-- Edited by 73SC on Saturday 4th of September 2021 11:08:45 PM

jmont64 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

That is one of Dave's cars. He is a member on here. I sold him a 68 Pontiac convertible a few years ago. Also checked out a vehicle for him here in the valley. Really, really good guy. He thins the herd every once in a while.

4SPEED427 · A Poncho Legend!

MC wrote:
first I've heard of the low gear blockout.

When I started at the Chevy dealership in late 1985 we were doing some service work on an 86 Caprice. The tech working on it is a bit of a car nut. He called me over to show me the lockout on the shift linkage. It was a tab bolted on to keep the cable from doing it's full travel (preventing just low gear from being operated manually).

HK1837 · Addicted!

Interesting that it got a 2.56 rear end. This was the economy rear axle with L36 and M40 except when C60 was fitted. With C60 and L36, M40 the economy rear axle was 2.73 with STD being 3.07 and performance 3.31.

4SPEED427 · A Poncho Legend!

Yes, I'd be willing to bet that top speed would be just as good or even better with 2.73 gears. That thing is a brick, and I'd bet the 427 runs out of power pushing that wall of air.

Prefectca · Poncho Master!

In the seventies I serviced OPP police cruisers. They were 1975 Bel Airs with a 454 and a turbo 400 with 2:56 gears. They were gutless slugs in town but were probably great cruisers on the highway. For some reason I seem to think that these police cars had a two barrel carb. It doesnt make sense that they were two barrels but thats what I remember.

Paul

Mike Ward MB · Addicted!

My brother and I got our hands on a former RCMP highway car, a 71 Biscayne with the 365hp 454, turbo 400, 140 mph speedo, zipper openings in the roof liner over the driver and passenger and rear gears so low we couldnt break the tires loose from a standstill. But put the pedal to the floor at 60 and you were pushed back into the seat all the way to 140, which seemed to happen in no time. Never tried to shift it manually so I dont know whether it had the lockout. It was just too much fun to drive and let it shift itself. We had lots of fun with that thing until it spun a bearing. We were told that the weights had been removed from the frame and siren and lights removed.

A friend I went to school with got on as a cop in Winnipeg. He talked about a car he and his partner were chasing and it was heading out of town. They couldnt catch the guy so they called ahead to the RCMP detachment they were approaching for assistance. He said they passed the RCMP highway car sitting on the shoulder. They were going as fast as their gutless city unit could go and in what seemed like no time at all the RCMP passed them like they were standing still and caught the guy they were after. Having owned and driven one of those cars, I would never try to outrun one. My car could reach that speed but not for long!

LT1Caddy · Poncho Master!

73SC wrote:
It was common on fleet cars too right into the 80's. The transmission started out in first and you could punch it to downshift, you just couldn't manually place it in first and hold it there.
I found that other post after I made my initial post so this is something I first learned when working in a municipality beginning in 1976.

Ray.. I don't know if you remember when MTP had pursuit cars. They had two Hemi cars, the "Y" car did the Don valley and the "X" car did the Gardiner. I knew cops then, no high speed training, if you were in the Traffic division you took your turn driving. They had the 1st gear locked out, the cops would be parked on the side of the road and stuff it in to gear and most times pull it ALL the way down in to 1st.
Hence after a few blow ups, no manual 1st gear

-- Edited by 73SC on Saturday 4th of September 2021 11:08:45 PM

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

LT1Caddy wrote:

Ray.. I don't know if you remember when MTP had pursuit cars. They had two Hemi cars, the "Y" car did the Don valley and the "X" car did the Gardiner. I knew cops then, no high speed training, if you were in the Traffic division you took your turn driving. They had the 1st gear locked out, the cops would be parked on the side of the road and stuff it in to gear and most times pull it ALL the way down in to 1st.

Hence after a few blow ups, no manual 1st gear

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I actually saw one with the hood up when I was a kid, ,it was an amazing sight. The police officer driving it brought it around to show his father and there on Coxwell Avenue we were riding our bikes and came across the show and tell, what a beast.

-- Edited by 73SC on Saturday 4th of September 2021 11:08:45 PM

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

What were the Hemis in? Belvederes? Road Runners?

Would love to see a pic of those!

LT1Caddy · Poncho Master!

MC wrote:
What were the Hemis in? Belvederes? Road Runners?
Would love to see a pic of those!

They were in the "full size" four door Dodge/Plymouth at the time. Belvedere sounds right...... They only had the 2 cars, but they looked the same as the 318 engine car except they sat 3-4" lower. I used to see the 2 cars all the time, I would intentionally get in front of them so I could look back in the mirror to see the outline/stance of the Hemi car. You had to look "hard" to be able to tell the difference from the 318 car.

I had a pretty fast 65 GTO at the time and I had my share of tickets. I was running across the Gardiner one night when I passed the unmarked car coming on at Jarvis street. I got boxed in at Bay street, but then there was lots of room after that, he pulls up behind me a throws on the lights about a 100 yards back. My car would easy outrun the 318, he had a run on me and I thought it was the Hemi car so I pulled over and it was the 318 painted the same colour, not the regular Traffic car.... I was PO'd.

In those days you COULD outrun..... The radio is too fast now ....LOL

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

MC wrote:
What were the Hemis in? Belvederes? Road Runners?
Would love to see a pic of those!

I recall them as 69 or 70 Plymouth Furys.

LT1Caddy · Poncho Master!

I would have to see a picture of the grille to be sure Ray

LT1Caddy · Poncho Master!

I Goodled it Ray....69 Plymouth Fury, dark brown. I had a winter "beater", 73 Plymouth Fury, so I didn't have to drive the GTO

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

Dual snorkle air cleaner and chromed valve covers and not to detract from the story they could have been 440 Super Commandos. Beasts nonetheless.

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Thanks guys, I always love stories of old cop cars. From spending a lifetime in the Mopar world, consensus was that there were never any second gen (1966 - 1971) Street Hemis in full size (C-bodied) cars, so it would be more easy to believe that they were 440 Super Commando (Plymouth) or 440 Magnum (Dodge) engines in them. Which isn't to say that a Police force with creative budgeting and a skilful service crew couldn't have put Hemis in on their own. Hemis were their own species though, and tended to be a little more finicky to keep in tune, but paid off greatly when running right, especially as the rpms increased. All Street Hemis had 2 4-barrel carbs on them as well, so they would be thirsty when operated by cops who weren't paying for the gas (lol).

Realistically, for fleet service, my bet would be on 440s. FWIW, I've heard/read many opinions by police officers back in the day who said the Mopar police package was their favourite for high speed chases... though I hesitate to say this on a GM forum... confuse

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

MC wrote:
Thanks guys, I always love stories of old cop cars. From spending a lifetime in the Mopar world, consensus was that there were never any second gen (1966 - 1971) Street Hemis in full size (C-bodied) cars, so it would be more easy to believe that they were 440 Super Commando (Plymouth) or 440 Magnum (Dodge) engines in them. Which isn't to say that a Police force with creative budgeting and a skilful service crew couldn't have put Hemis in on their own. Hemis were their own species though, and tended to be a little more finicky to keep in tune, but paid off greatly when running right, especially as the rpms increased. All Street Hemis had 2 4-barrel carbs on them as well, so they would be thirsty when operated by cops who weren't paying for the gas (lol).
Realistically, for fleet service, my bet would be on 440s. FWIW, I've heard/read many opinions by police officers back in the day who said the Mopar police package was their favourite for high speed chases... though I hesitate to say this on a GM forum...

I've often heard that 440s were better engines than 426 Hemis.

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Pontiacanada wrote:
I've often heard that 440s were better engines than 426 Hemis.

I've heard that too, and I think it's true for street applications. For racing the Hemis had so much more potential that could be pulled out of them. One thing to remember is that the only reason Chrysler adapted the Hemi for production vehicles was to make it legal to use in NASCAR. They introduced it in NASCAR in 1964 and it dominated. If I'm remembering this right, Ford and GM protested and NASCAR banned the Hemi because it wasn't sold to the public in regular production vehicles (I think there were minimum production numbers that had to be me - I'd have to check on that as I'm typing this from memory). Chrysler boycotted 1965 (which is why Richard Petty took to drag racing a Hemi Barracuda that year) but put the Hemi in street cars for 1966, which made them legal for NASCAR again.

The 440 is a tamer engine but still had plenty of torque and was better suited for daily use on the street than the Hemi (or so I've heard because I've never owned a Hemi - too much for my wallet...).

Anyhow, enough talk about Mopars. This Biscayne patrol is super cool and I hope that somebody buys it and gives it a proper restoration. The buy-in seems a little steep, but if you take into account the rarity of the car and the fact that it has the police-specific parts and original rebuilt engine with it, the price seems much more reasonable. Especially in today's market.

-- Edited by MC on Tuesday 7th of September 2021 08:34:01 AM

65Camino · Uber Guru

Interesting turn this thread took. While I like the Chevy police car Id never want to own it. Must have been a rough jarring ride with the roads we have now.

But hearing the story about the Plymouth cop cars is neat. Never heard of them. Knew about the Camaro police cars we had back in the eighties.