Collectors
The Michigan specification, year by year
What the Michigan State Police asked for when it bought patrol cars, item by item, from the specifications printed in its test books and files. If you are looking at a car said to be an ex-Michigan State Police car, this is the list to check it against.
Read this first.
- This is Michigan’s own purchasing specification, Mich. 3905-0010 (the 1980 and 1981 mid-size specifications were 3905-0010a): what the Michigan State Police ordered, not what every police-package car had. For a car from another agency it is a guide to the period’s equipment, nothing more.
- A dash means the year’s page on this site does not record the item. It does not mean the specification left it out. Each year heading links to that page, which gives the full account and its source.
- The cars Michigan tested ran with a clean roof and no spotlights, as the 1990 and 1994 prefaces say, so the roof plate and spotlights describe the cars Michigan bought, not the test cars.
- The 1985 column is from a draft, and some of its items allow dealer installation.
The checklist
31 items across eleven test years. Each column is the test year, with the date of the specification beneath it. The item names stay in view while you scroll. It prints in landscape, with the year headings repeated on every page.
| Item | 1978Apr/Oct 1977 | 1980Sept 1979 | 1981Sept 1980 | 1982Sept 1981 | 1983Sept 1982 | 1984Sept 1983 | 1985draft, 1984 | 1987Sept 1986 | 1990Aug 1989 | 1992July 1991 | 1994July 1993 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The car | |||||||||||
| Body | Four-door V-8 sedan, 115.9–119.9 in wheelbase | Four-door V-8 sedan, 114.4–119.9 in wheelbase; a separate mid-size specification | — | Four-door sedan, 105.5 in minimum wheelbase | — | Four-door sedan: Impala, Diplomat, Crown Victoria or Gran Fury | Four-door sedan: Impala, Diplomat, Crown Victoria or Gran Fury | — | Four-door sedan: Caprice or Crown Victoria | Four-door sedan: Caprice or Crown Victoria | — |
| Engine | Maker’s option, if the car meets the performance requirements | Maker’s option, if the car meets the performance requirements | — | — | — | Maker’s option, if the car meets the performance requirements | Maker’s option, if the car meets the performance requirements | — | Maker’s option, if the car meets the performance requirements | — | Largest engine available in the model |
| Transmission | Three-speed automatic, heaviest duty | Three-speed automatic, heaviest duty, low-gear lockout | — | — | — | Three- or four-speed automatic, heaviest duty, low-gear lockout | Three- or four-speed automatic, low-gear lockout | — | Three- or four-speed automatic, low-gear lockout | — | — |
| Differential | Heavy-duty limited-slip | Heavy-duty limited-slip (full-size only) | Limited-slip | Limited-slip | Limited-slip | Limited-slip | Limited-slip | Limited-slip | Heavy-duty limited-slip | — | Heavy-duty limited-slip or electronic traction control |
| Brakes | Power front discs; four-wheel discs preferred | Front discs, rear drums; four-wheel discs preferred | — | — | — | Front discs, rear drums; four-wheel discs acceptable | — | — | Front discs, rear drums; four-wheel discs acceptable | Anti-lock brakes | — |
| Air bag | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Driver’s air bag | — |
| Electrical and cooling | |||||||||||
| Alternator | 80 A | 80 A, 45 A at idle | 80 A | 80 A, 45 A at idle | 80 A, 45 A at idle | 80 A, 45 A at idle | 80 A, 45 A at idle | 100 A minimum | 100 A, 45 A at idle | — | 130 A |
| Battery | — | 465 cold-cranking amps (mid-size 455) | 465 cold-cranking amps | 455 cold-cranking amps minimum | 455 cold-cranking amps | 455 cold-cranking amps | 455 cold-cranking amps | 500 cold-cranking amps | 650 cold-cranking amps | — | 730 cold-cranking amps minimum |
| Cooling | Silicone heater and radiator hoses | Maximum cooling, with coolant recovery | Largest available | Largest available | Maximum | Largest available | Anti-freeze to −20°F | Maximum; anti-freeze to −35°F | Anti-freeze to −35°F | — | — |
| Air conditioning | Factory, with a shut-off switch | Factory, built to survive high-speed driving | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Headlights | — | Quartz-halogen high beams (full-size) | — | — | — | Quartz-halogen | Quartz-halogen | — | Quartz-halogen | — | — |
| Police equipment | |||||||||||
| Roof plate | — | ⅛ × 10 in steel plate welded under the roof, drilled about 19 in back, three wires | ⅛ in plate, 10 in wide, welded under the roof, at least three wires down the corner post | ⅛ in plate, 10 in wide, welded, drilled about 19 in back, at least three wires | ⅛ in plate welded under the roof, drilled and wired | Steel plate at least ⅛ in thick | ⅛ in plate, to support the overhead emergency light | ⅛ in welded plate, drilled and pre-wired for the beacon | ⅛ in plate, to support the overhead emergency light | — | Steel plate under the roof for the light bar |
| Spotlights | Unity #225-6, aircraft landing lamps | Unity #225-6, 4537-2 aircraft landing lamps, each fused at 10 A | Unity #225-6, six-inch, landing lamps, left and right, individually fused | Unity #225-6, landing lamps, on the A-pillar or another approved mount, individually fused | Unity #225, landing lamps, both A-pillars, individually fused | Unity #225, both A-pillars | Unity #225, H7635 halogen lamps, fused at 10–20 A | Unity #225, H7635 halogen lamps | Unity #225, H7635 halogen lamps | — | Unity #225, both A-pillars |
| Speedometer | Accurate to 3%, 0–120 mph scale | Accurate to 3%, 2-mph steps to 120 | ±3 mph, 2-mph steps, to at least 120 | No speedometer clause (per the 1983 page) | ±3 mph, 2-mph steps, to at least 120 | ±3 mph, 2-mph steps, to at least 120 | ±3 mph, to 120; 1- or 2-mph steps (a hand edit on the copy held) | Certified ±3 mph, to at least 120 | ±3 mph, to at least 120 | — | ±3 mph, 0–140 mph scale minimum |
| Plate brackets | — | — | — | — | Front | — | — | Front and rear | — | — | — |
| Inside | |||||||||||
| Seats | Split bench, 60-40 preferred | Split bench, 60-40 preferred, 50-50 acceptable (mid-size: plain bench) | Heavy-duty split bench, 60-40 preferred, 50-50 acceptable | Heavy-duty split bench, 60-40 preferred | — | 60/40 split bench preferred | 60/40 split bench | — | Buckets, 45/45 or 40/40; six-way power driver’s seat | — | Buckets, 45/45 or 40/40, at least 10 in apart for the radio |
| Upholstery | Blue cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue heavy-duty cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue heavy-duty cloth; all-vinyl not acceptable | Blue heavy-duty cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable | — | Blue heavy-duty cloth or cloth and vinyl; all-vinyl not acceptable |
| Steering wheel | — | — | — | — | Tilt (new this year) | Tilt | Tilt | Tilt | Tilt | — | — |
| Floor | — | Heavy-duty rubber mats, front, rear and trunk | Rubber mats | Heavy rubber mats, front, rear and trunk | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Armrests | — | No ash trays | No ash trays, or ash trays made inoperable | No ash trays, or ash trays made inoperable | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gauges | — | Ammeter or voltmeter, water temperature, oil pressure | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dome light | — | Worked from the headlight switch; door-jamb switches disabled | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Wipers | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Intermittent | — | — | — |
| Locks, glass and releases | |||||||||||
| Locks and keys | — | Keyed alike; 5 keys per car, a different key for each car | — | Factory power locks; keyed alike, 4 keys, a different key for each car | Power locks (carried from the September 1981 specification, per the 1983 page) | Power locks | Power locks, a different key for each car | Power locks, keyed alike within each car | Power locks, keyed alike, a different key for each car | — | — |
| Glass | Tinted glass not acceptable | Tinted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mirrors | — | Remote outside mirrors on both doors | — | — | — | Remote left mirror | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hood and trunk | — | — | — | — | — | — | Inside hood release; electric remote trunk release (a hand edit on the copy held) | Inside hood release | — | — | — |
| Wheels, tires and paint | |||||||||||
| Tires | Goodyear Police Special Flexten radials, GR70-15B minimum | Goodyear rayon P225/70R15 police radials, Michigan specification 5260-S1 (mid-size P205/70R14) | Goodyear rayon police radials, to the state’s specification | Goodyear police radials, Michigan specification 5260-S1 | Goodyear rayon police radials | Goodyear Eagle GT/HR | Goodyear Eagle GT/HR | Goodyear Eagle GT/HR | Goodyear Eagle GT + 4 | — | — |
| Wheels | 15 × 6.5 in | At least 15 × 6.5 in (mid-size 14 × 5½) | — | — | — | — | 15 in, heavy-duty | 15 in, heavy-duty, black, with hub caps | 15 in, black | — | 15 in, black |
| Paint | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | Dulux 93-032 | — | Dulux 93-032 |
| Dealer advertising | — | — | — | — | — | — | None on the vehicle | None on the vehicle | None on the vehicle | — | None on the vehicle |
1980: Michigan issued two specifications that year, full-size and mid-size; the column gives the full-size one, with the mid-size differences in brackets. Years not shown: the year pages for those tests do not describe that year’s equipment specification. The final September 1984 specification for the 1985 test is described, in part, on the 1986 page; the 1985 column is from the earlier draft.
Before you buy
A matching list proves only that a car has the right parts, and parts can be added. For what can and cannot be proved on a surviving car, see how to identify a genuine police package car and the police package option codes guide.
Source. The specification sections of the year pages in the Michigan test archive, each transcribed from the test book or file named on that page. The specifications themselves are State of Michigan documents, Mich. 3905-0010, reprinted in the test books and files.