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Tom, a number of the cop cars didn't have AC. More bare bones fleet
vehicles. Can't see a Houston cop sitting in a no AC cop car today as it is 100
degrees outside with humidity so thick you can cut with knife. But I have owned
2 LAPD police cars, authentic ones, and neither had AC.
Side note here! Down in Corpus Christi, there were a LOT of cars American
Motors sold to the military down there: Corpus Christi Naval Air Station;
Beeville Naval Air Station & Kingsville Naval Air Station....all of those
bases within roughly 50-70 mile radius. The officers usually got Ambassador,
Rebel & Matadors with air condition. The cars were painted a sand tan, or
dark oilive green, although some were a saturn blue (69) color too. If not
office, the 'regular folks' that is privates and anything less than office, got
six banger stripped out cars. I mean 69 Ambassador or 70 Rebel, 232/AT, no
radio, no AC, 'maybe' power steering, regular drum brakes, just as base as one
can get.
I can tell you that you probably had more control going around a curve at
30mph on a metal wheeled skateboard with your brother on your back than going
around same curve at 30mph in a Matador 6 Navy car.
Had a ton of chances to buy those after they were decommissioned down
there, never did....I wished I had though, as most of them still in good shape,
especially officers cars, but they usually went to gov auctions, then car lots.
Ironically about 5 years ago I was down in CC visiting family and there was a
old, retired, 76 Matador fleet vehicle from Texas' Mental Health & Mental
Retardation unit (MHMR) white wagon, blue interior, 304/AT still had the
lettering on side, the used car lot wanted $650 for it.
Back to police cars....in I believe Car Craft in 1972, a 72 stock 401
Javelin ran a 14.7 1/4 mile and a stock 72 Matador 4 door police car ran a 14.8
1/4 mile. Not bad. The Los Aangeles Police department bought 500 or so 1972
fleet Matadors from AMC....*after* extensive testing other police cars including
Ford, Chevrolet and Chryslers,,,they chose AMC because (LAPD quote) the Matadors
outhandled and outperformed all the other cars.
I'm not sure they would stand up to the rigors of modern LA police chases
one sees on tv or youtube however, but each fleet vehicle in whatever county,
precinct, has to be judged individually. Some were indeed used for state trooper
highway business, while others ferried cops around city duty. I have a bag of
NOS keys here from the Los Angeles Police Department also: GSD Fleet Serice, Los
Angeles, California, 90012, Los Angeles City Hall Phone 485-5494.....all same
cut, about 50 in the bag. Not worth anything except showing to AMCers I guess.
Here in Houston in 1970-71 Houston Police used Gremlins for downtown
parking detail for instance. No high speed stuff for the Gremmies. Of course we
also use live horses downtown Houston in 2011 also. Most of the fleet cars
(police ones) ended up rolling over in 1970s movies like Cannonball Run, Police
Academy, Dukes of Hazzard and other stuff that needed a authentic looking 1970s
cop car though. At the bottom of this older file on my site there are some AMC
police car photos also:
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