When I was a kid, I always looked forward to a visit from my German relatives. It’s not just that they were gregarious people, it’s also that they would bring gifts. In particular, they’d bring toys that depicted European police cars and chocolate. The chocolate didn’t last long, but I cherished the police cars.
In particular, I remember an E31 850 CSi coupe done up in Polezei green. Did the Bundespolizei ever actually use an E31 as a police car? Probably not, though they did employ various BMWs, including a lot of E39s and E39 wagons.
Police departments sometimes do get one-off police cars for ceremonial duty or, even, some larger batches for highway patrol work. My all-time favorite civil service car is almost certainly the SSP Fox Body Mustang LX in Texas Department of Public Safety livery. A few of those existed when I was a kid and I’d just about snap my neck off turning to get a look at one. I’m not sure the eight-year-old version of me had a great sense that the Czech brand Škoda existed, but I’m sure I’d have loved those wagons then as well.
When I was last in Prague, I managed to get an Octavia vRS sedan out of Škoda for a road trip around Central and Eastern Europe. That car, which was basically a Golf GTI/Jetta GLI under the skin, was everything I’d hoped it would be. Even better, the Czech Republic was unsurprisingly full of Škoda police cars and wagons.
I mention all of this because Škoda cars and SUVs are quite popular in Britain for use by the civil service. The latest police vehicle is the upgraded Octavia vRS (hatch) and vRS Estate (wagon). Both the hatchback vRS and the wagon version have the sharp revised front-end on the civilian version.
Underhood, power has been boosted to 265 metric horsepower from the Volkswagen-sourced 2.0-liter inline-four. These are front-wheel-drive models and power is put down via a seven-speed DSG gearbox. The biggest upgrade here might be the Vorderachsquersperre differential, or VAQ. This is an electrohydraulic diff, as Pistonheads explains:
It acts like an electronically controlled locking differential but is actually entirely independent of the diff cage and, rather, distributes torque across the front axle using a Haldex style electronically controlled clutch system
That sounds way better than the e-diff found on the outgoing version of this car. In addition to the power boost and trick differential, the car sits 15 mm lower than a regular Octavia. This specific model is good for a 0-62 mph run in 6.5 seconds (or 6.4 seconds with the hatch). Given what most Brits drive, that should be plenty fast enough for the bobbies.
Depending on how they’re outfitted, the wagons get a sweet cargo organizer for the rear:
The Metropolitan Police Force isn’t the only user of Škoda wagons. The Italians love them:
The units used by the Polizia here are the older version.
Here’s what a Czech highway patrol wagon looks like, in case you’re blasting down the E55 to Tabor.
The Lithuanian police also use Škoda wagons, though this is the larger Superb.
If you’re ever in Armenia, Škoda is quite popular there as well.
I was once traveling to France with a ton of film gear and we had to get a passport for it (called a carnet) so we wouldn’t get hit with any taxes. My buddy’s cameras, lenses, lights, and everything else arrived on our flight. What didn’t make his connection was a small collapsible cart he used to move it all. We went to French customs, better known as the Douane, and my friend tried to explain he was missing an item listed on the carnet. The customs officer was at first concerned, but when we finally explained what it was, he just laughed and asked us to pretend like we didn’t say that and just leave as fast as possible.
Škoda has been doing this almost since the beginning. Check out this Felicia Combi LX from 1996. The Policie used more than 5,500 of these wagons for police duty.
Do you want one more? Of course you do. Czech out this police wagon from New Zealand:
If you have to get arrested, and I’m not suggesting you’d want to, but if you have to get arrested in Europe I’d hold out for a Škoda estate. It’s gotta be way better than being shoved in the back of a Vauxhall.
Notice how each of these vehicles is brightly marked for easy identification. A shame some US departments are getting away with totally ghosted graphics.
I wonder if it’s partially a macho thing, too, especially with police culture in the US.
A department near where I live literally has murdered out police cars—matte black with black lettering. It screams “I’m tough” or “I want to look cool.”
In contrast, hi-viz says community minded, accessible, and here for safety.
Maybe someone not from the US can comment: what are your feelings when you see a police vehicle in your country?
The Carabinieri in Italy used to use the Alfa Romeo 159 that looked impressive. Being near the alps in Turin I also saw numerous police Fiat Panda 4wds and Subaru Foresters used in the more mountainous areas.
Having been in scotland a few years ago, they had plenty of neat wagons roaming around, some were bmw, some volvo, some Peugeot, easy to see which would be nice if we made our road pirates so bright and colorful to see.
Weirdest one was a mitsubishi miev that id gander was for parking duty.
The Dutch Police had thesehttps://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/img_7-scaled-1.jpg
The skota and Volvo euro cop cars are neat looking. I’m not so big on the euro GM or French. I think the itilaians used fiats at one point kinda weird looking. There are a few police departments in the US that have used Volvo at various times but not with the crazy euro markings.
Coolness varies, the British used to use Volvo 850 T5 wagons and still use Subaru WRX cop cars. Based on MHZ Choice shows, the French drive Ford Focus wagons and Dacia Dusters
UK Police used V70 and V90 wagons after the 850 ceased production. https://www.motoringresearch.com/features/volvo-v90-police-car-driven/
I want to start a European retired police car rental service called Skoda Octavia Spenser, for Hire
Sorry, that was way too much setup for such an obscure compound pun. But I’m going with it.
“…toys that depicted European police cars and chocolate.”
I definitely ready that second part as “police chocolate” because my brain replaces modifiers in strange ways.
No apologies needed – I still love that show; it holds up really well. But to be autopian about it, Hawk’s succession of BMW 635s (+ a Ferrari 308 in the pilot!) and Spenser’s not-hip-at-the-time vintage Mustang were pretty sweet.
Not an E31:
https://www.motortrend.com/news/ac-schnitzer-bmw-8-series-tuner-car-polizei/
Not German police:
https://9gag.com/gag/aMERvZW
Do they still use colors? ‘Cuz American departments have forgotten what colors are. Plain black Exploder PIs with slightly glossier black lettering. Total stealth, you can’t tell if it’s a civilian model or a bubble gum machine until you’re right up close to it.
Why deter people from speeding when you can sneak up on them and impose a hefty fine?
Exactly! How else is Middle of Bumfuck Nowhere, Texas supposed to line the mayor’s pockets?
Yeah, most countries still have well-marked police cars because they’re not trying to sneak around people to give out tickets as a form of revenue generation like in the US.
We have plenty of unmarked police cars in New Zealand. It used to be easy – is that a base model Commodore with an antenna? Yup cop. Now its, “Is that a Skoda Octavia or a Superb? Shit is a Superb, did it have two little antennas on its roof? No ? Good. Phew”
So much – you see an Explorer in your mirror you jump! Are those hidden lights next to the rearview? It’s like seeing a Crown Vic behind you 30 years ago!.
At night sometimes, a low profile light bar can sure look like roof rails with the cross plank.
Sometimes when I see one of those Exploders behind me on a 2 lane road, and then realize it’s not a cop, I keep right at the speed limit for a while, just to give its driver the time needed to contemplate their poor life choices