# Ford Crown Vics with spotlight & civilian plates **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 1, 2013, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161 "2013-05-01T00:38:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/21 "2013-05-01T17:53:06Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > The potential for police impersonation is small, but the usefulness of a spotlight for taxi drivers or people who live in areas that are not well-lit is great. Besides, anyone who wants or needs a spotlight can just buy one and put it in the pre-existing hole. Why not just leave the light in? > > ETA: Someone told me of seeing a Crown Vic with a license plate that read NOTACOP. Yeah, a wannabe cop used to rent a townhome near my Kansas City apartment. A Crown Victoria with a dull paint job, black wheels, spotlight, antennas and a license plate that read NOT50. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/22 "2013-05-01T18:00:13Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > My question is, why isn’t the spotlight removed before the car is sold to civilians? It’s a bigger potential market if you include illegal poachers. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/23 "2013-05-01T18:02:02Z")
Most of our unmarked police cars are Crown Vics. They have civilian plates. The marked patrol cars have municipal plates. ---
**Author:** ![SpeedwayRyan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@SpeedwayRyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpeedwayRyan)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/24 "2013-05-01T18:15:53Z")
I made the “cop cars have cop plates” mistake once. Told my wife to “go ahead and pass that Crown Vic, because it has regular plates…it’s not a cop.” She ended up with a ticket. I like Police Interceptor Crown Vics, myself. They are cheap, big and comfy, and relatively powerful cars. I wouldn’t want to look like a wannabe cop, but I can certainly see why people buy them. It’s the people who go out of their way to make them look MORE like cop cars that are really questionable. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/25 "2013-05-01T18:19:47Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Because there are people who want to drive cars that look like cop cars. I see them all the time here (Indianapolis). They occupy the left lane, tailgate a lot, and generally rely on other drivers getting out of way in fear of being pulled over. They’ll often attach large antennas, decals and other things to add to the illusion. They’re wasting their time and money. For one thing, real police don’t take too kindly to those sorts of shenanigans. Secondly, I drive a late-model Crown Vic, it’s silver, it has no spotlights, antennas, decals, or tinted windows, and still has wheel covers and the original silver bar grille. I don’t drive aggressively, but still I find that most drivers move out of the way if I am coming through. I’d like to think it’s primarily courtesy, but it’s probably mostly paranoia. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/26 "2015-01-13T03:36:32Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > ETA: Someone told me of seeing a Crown Vic with a license plate that read NOTACOP. Last month I saw a metallic blue Crown Vic with the license plate NOTACOP parked in our small (maybe two dozen spaces) parking area. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/27 "2015-01-13T03:54:49Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Because there are people who want to drive cars that look like cop cars. I see them all the time here (Indianapolis). They occupy the left lane, tailgate a lot, and generally rely on other drivers getting out of way in fear of being pulled over. They’ll often attach large antennas, decals and other things to add to the illusion. Wouldn’t that backfire? I have always wondered if cops get annoyed at everyone in front of them suddenly dropping down to the posted speed limit instead of moving over. And it’s not like they will all move over; there will always be some folks who would just slow down in the left lane. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/28 "2015-01-13T04:22:37Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Because there are people who want to drive cars that look like cop cars. I see them all the time here (Indianapolis). They occupy the left lane, tailgate a lot, and generally rely on other drivers getting out of way in fear of being pulled over. They’ll often attach large antennas, decals and other things to add to the illusion. Encountered one of these here with multiple antennas and shit and the driver making like they were patrolling one of the local boulevards. Cop wannabe, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/29 "2015-01-13T04:26:17Z")
> [@minor7flat5](#): > > Wouldn’t that backfire? I have always wondered if cops get annoyed at everyone in front of them suddenly dropping down to the posted speed limit instead of moving over. I’ve heard of one instance of a state trooper getting very exasperated at this. Eventually, he got on his loudspeaker to announce that he was out of his jurisdiction and for everyone to calm down. I think it was a PA trooper taking a shortcut through NJ. ---
**Author:** ![typoink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@typoink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typoink)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/30 "2015-01-13T04:27:49Z")
> [@minor7flat5](#): > > Wouldn’t that backfire? I have always wondered if cops get annoyed at everyone in front of them suddenly dropping down to the posted speed limit instead of moving over. And it’s not like they will all move over; there will always be some folks who would just slow down in the left lane. My ex had a white buick that could easily be mistaken for a Crown Vic looking in a rearview. That was her experience – LOTS of time spend going 55 behind people on one-lane country highways. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/31 "2015-01-13T19:46:25Z")
Weren’t spotlights on civilian cars common in the 40’s and 50’s? I see them at car shows sometimes. They didn’t look like police or government vehicles, although I could be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/32 "2015-01-13T20:15:04Z")
Spotlights were a popular option, AFAIK. Popular enough that some companies still make them with halogen bulbs. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2015, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/33 "2015-01-13T20:15:11Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Weren’t spotlights on civilian cars common in the 40’s and 50’s? I see them at car shows sometimes. They didn’t look like police or government vehicles, although I could be wrong. Yes, I think they were. I remember seeing them in the J.C. Whitney catalogue in the '70s. Dad had one with a suction mount on his Hilux sometimes. I used to see them a lot on taxis (frequently/usually ex-patrol cars), and I can see how they’d be useful finding addresses and such. With GPS and better street lighting, spotlights are less useful nowadays. I’d like to hear when they really went out of fashion. I’m guessing it was when people were paying more attention to fuel efficiency and a poor economy, than to accessories for their cars. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/34 "2015-01-14T03:25:57Z")
Newly decommissioned Cop Vics are all the rage here in S. GA. Apparently, all the departments are upgrading to Dodge Chargers. Anyway, about the spotlights- removing one will leave a big hole in the A-pillar. 'Tis better, therefore, to leave the light alone. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/35 "2015-01-14T04:26:44Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > The potential for police impersonation is small, but the usefulness of a spotlight for taxi drivers or people who live in areas that are not well-lit is great. Besides, anyone who wants or needs a spotlight can just buy one and put it in the pre-existing hole. Why not just leave the light in? > > ETA: Someone told me of seeing a Crown Vic with a license plate that read NOTACOP. > > . I would be overjoyed to learn that this car had a license plate frame that read _“I have to tell you if I’m a cop.”_ ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/36 "2015-01-14T04:34:23Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Last month I saw a metallic blue Crown Vic with the license plate NOTACOP parked in our small (maybe two dozen spaces) parking area. I guess that guy back in 2013 was telling you the truth, yeah? What did the license place frame say? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/37 "2015-01-14T07:02:10Z")
Goddamn I hate Crown Vics. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/38 "2015-01-14T21:37:50Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Goddamn I hate Crown Vics. Why is that? I always found them to be a solid if unremarkable largish sedan. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/39 "2015-01-14T22:18:36Z")
> [@SpeedwayRyan](#): > > I made the “cop cars have cop plates” mistake once. Told my wife to “go ahead and pass that Crown Vic, because it has regular plates…it’s not a cop.” > > She ended up with a ticket. > > … With a user name like yours, she should have know better. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![txswimdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@txswimdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/txswimdad)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161/40 "2015-01-14T22:40:20Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > And it MUST be done as it is a capital offense for a civilian to posses a spotlight on a vehicle!!! It’s almost unbelievable the things you can be sentenced to death for in this country. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ford-crown-vics-with-spotlight-civilian-plates/657161.md?page=3)