Michigan test archive

1983 Michigan State Police Patrol Vehicle Test

Fifteen cars, a propane-fueled Canadian Plymouth, the Mustang’s 132-mph debut — and a book dedicated to a driver.

The 1983 book opens with a dedication. On 9 September 1982, during the annual practice session held before the test, Lt. Miller J. Richter suffered a fatal heart attack. Richter had helped build the evaluation program from its start in 1976 and drove as a test driver — his name is in the lap tables of the earlier books, from the 1978 book on, and the 1979 test schedules name him as the driver for every brake test. The acceleration runs were made nine days later, and the book that came out of it carries his name on the first page.

A year after Michigan tested a Mustang and declined to print the numbers, the numbers arrived — and they were worth the wait. The Ford Mustang 302 H.O. with a four-speed manual reached 60 mph in 8.32 seconds, crossed the quarter mile at 86.25 mph, hit 100 in 22.71 seconds — needing only four tenths of a mile — and topped out at 132.0 mph. The next-quickest US-market car in this test was seventeen seconds behind it to 100; the Canadian Impala, fourteen. It also had the fastest lap average of the test, 1:28.31.

Fifteen cars ran in all: five competing against the Michigan specification, a fuel-injected LTD and a Plymouth Reliant among the cars not scored, four small-engine cars, and three Canadian-market cars with different emissions packages, including a Plymouth Caravelle running its 318 on propane. The straight-line tests ran at Chrysler’s proving grounds on 18 September 1982, between 50 and 62 °F in winds of 4 to 14 mph; the dynamics laps on the 1.635-mile Michigan International Speedway road course, now scored as the average of the 12 fastest of 16 laps.

For the second year running, the bids were still sealed when the book went to print, so the book prints category scores and totals but no award.

The 1983 qualification bar. To stay in the bid, a car had to reach 60 mph in 14.5 seconds or less, 80 mph in 26.0, and 100 mph in 48.5. The brake sequence followed: four controlled stops from 90 mph, an impending-skid stop from 60, and a full four-wheel-lock panic stop, which the book records as observational information only. The next specification, of September 1983 for the 1984 test, tightened the times to 13.5, 24.0 and 45.0 seconds, with 110 mph within 3 miles.

The five competing cars — full evaluation

Source: Michigan State Police, 1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing. Acceleration and quarter-mile figures are four-run averages; dynamics is the average of the 12 fastest of 16 timed laps, four drivers, four laps each.
Car	Engine	0–60 (s)	¼-mile (s @ mph)	0–100 (s)	Top speed (mph)	Miles to 100 mph	Dynamics (s)
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S	351 H.O.-VV	12.22	18.83 @ 75.25	39.81	117.9	0.77	90.59
Plymouth Gran Fury	318-4V	12.38	19.10 @ 76.5	39.68	120.0	0.76	92.64
Dodge Diplomat	318-4V	12.81	19.30 @ 75.5	40.46	118.8	0.77	93.54
Chevrolet Malibu	305-4V	11.71	18.78 @ 75.0	40.73	116.3	0.79	92.13
Chevrolet Impala	350-4V	11.67	18.55 @ 73.5	42.51	115.0	0.84	92.21

Gold row: highest total weighted score (see the scoring table below). The Gran Fury’s 120.0 mph was the highest sedan top speed in this test; the Crown Victoria S, with dual exhaust, had the fastest dynamics average of the five scored cars, 90.59 seconds. On this book’s averaging, the 12 fastest of 16 laps, that is two tenths behind the 1981 Malibu 350’s 90.37, an average of all twelve of its laps; on all 16 laps the Crown Victoria S averages 91.09. The two-door Mustang lapped quicker, in 1:28.31.

See the original pages: Tables 3 and 2 in the 1983 book

Scan of Table 3 from the 1983 Michigan State Police test book: acceleration times, top speeds and quarter-mile figures for 15 cars — Table 3, “Summary of acceleration and top speed testing”. It holds every car on this page: the five competing cars, the seven tested but not competing, and the three Canadian cars. Michigan State Police, *1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing*, PDF page 12 of the scan (printed page 9). Open full size.

Scan of Table 2 from the 1983 Michigan State Police test book: four laps by each of four drivers for eight cars, with the overall averages — Table 2, “Preliminary handling evaluation (vehicle dynamics testing)”. Shaded laps are the ones the book left out of each car’s average. Michigan State Police, *1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing*, PDF page 8 of the scan (printed page 5). Open full size.

Tested but not competing

Source: Michigan State Police, 1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing. The preface says the Mustang, Fairmont 140 and Reliant were tested for acceleration, top speed, braking and vehicle dynamics, and the Impala 229, Diplomat 225, LTD 302-CFI and Fairmont 200 “only for acceleration” (they also ran top speed). The Technology Assessment Program Information Center gave Michigan “a small contract to help defray the additional cost of testing four and six cylinder engine vehicles”.
Car	Engine	0–60 (s)	¼-mile (s @ mph)	0–90 (s)	0–100 (s)	Top speed (mph)	Dynamics (s)
Ford Mustang	302 H.O.-4V, 4-speed	8.32	16.68 @ 86.25	18.16	22.71	132.0	88.31
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S	302-CFI	13.94	19.93 @ 71.25	36.76	69.01	104.4	—
Plymouth Reliant	2.6L-2V	15.49	19.70 @ 68.0	49.43	—	102.8	94.58
Chevrolet Impala (6-cyl)	229-2V	17.40	21.50 @ 67.0	51.57	—	104.3	—
Ford Fairmont Futura (6-cyl)	200-1V	17.68	21.93 @ 66.25	58.49	—	97.7	—
Dodge Diplomat (6-cyl)	225-1V	18.75	22.03 @ 63.5	74.32	—	96.5	—
Ford Fairmont Futura (4-cyl)	140-1V	18.40	21.83 @ 65.0	83.57	—	95.8	97.68

The fuel-injected LTD, the only injected car of the field, missed the 0–80 requirement by a third of a second and the 0–100 requirement by more than twenty seconds (69.01 against 48.5). A year later the 1984 book’s mid-size LTD, a 302 H.O. with central fuel injection, beat every scored car to 60, 80 and 100 mph; the 302-CFI Crown Victoria was again outside the bar. The Mustang, which the preface counts among its “15 police package cars”, was not one of the five cars run against the specification and was not scored; its 151.3-foot Phase I stop from 60 mph was the shortest of the test.

The Canadian cars

Source: Michigan State Police, 1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing. Canadian-market cars were tested for acceleration and top speed because their emissions packages differ from the US versions; their brakes are identical, so brake testing would have been redundant. EPA data for Canadian vehicles was not available.
Car	Engine	0–60 (s)	¼-mile (s @ mph)	0–100 (s)	Top speed (mph)	Miles to 100 mph
Chevrolet Impala (Canadian)	350-4V	11.03	18.30 @ 76.5	36.65	107.1†	0.71
Chevrolet Malibu (Canadian)	305-4V	11.59	18.35 @ 75.75	42.74	112.5	0.85
Plymouth Caravelle (Canadian)	318, propane fuel	12.14	18.95 @ 74.25	42.45	113.6	0.84

† The book’s own note: the Canadian Impala reached 107.1 mph, after which its speed steadily decreased due to mechanical difficulties. Before that, it reached 100 mph in 36.65 seconds, the quickest sedan time of the test and nearly six seconds ahead of the US Impala with the same displacement. The book attributes no cause; besides their emissions packages, the two Impalas differed in rated horsepower (155 and 165), transmission (the US car’s 700R4 four-speed, the Canadian car’s three-speed 350C) and test weight (3,993 and 3,839 lb). The propane-fueled 318 Caravelle reached 60 mph sooner than three of the five US competitors.

Complete acceleration data — every 10-mph increment

US eight-cylinder cars. Four-run averages in seconds, from the book’s Table 3.
0 to…	Impala 350	Malibu 305	Diplomat 318	LTD CV-S 351	LTD CV-S 302	Mustang 302	Gran Fury 318
20 mph	2.51	2.64	3.08	2.88	2.80	2.33	3.16
30 mph	4.09	4.27	5.09	4.79	4.72	3.40	5.13
40 mph	6.09	6.23	7.15	6.74	7.14	4.69	7.05
50 mph	8.69	8.59	9.53	9.14	10.14	6.42	9.27
60 mph	11.67	11.71	12.81	12.22	13.94	8.32	12.38
70 mph	16.08	15.70	16.71	16.26	19.06	10.70	16.26
80 mph	22.09	21.70	22.09	21.35	26.34	14.23	21.05
90 mph	30.14	29.90	30.13	28.94	36.76	18.16	29.19
100 mph	42.51	40.73	40.46	39.81	69.01	22.71	39.68

Canadian cars.
0 to…	Impala 350 (Cdn)	Malibu 305 (Cdn)	Caravelle 318 propane
20 mph	2.54	2.55	2.63
30 mph	4.08	4.17	4.21
40 mph	5.91	6.08	6.12
50 mph	8.30	8.57	8.93
60 mph	11.03	11.59	12.14
70 mph	14.75	15.38	16.26
80 mph	20.04	20.91	22.11
90 mph	26.79	29.09	29.31
100 mph	36.65	42.74	42.45

Small-engine cars, timed to 90 mph. Times over one minute shown as m:ss.
0 to…	Reliant 2.6L	Impala 229	Fairmont 200	Diplomat 225	Fairmont 140
20 mph	3.25	3.81	3.65	3.56	3.60
30 mph	5.31	6.38	6.21	5.89	6.21
40 mph	7.68	9.17	9.12	9.07	9.17
50 mph	11.14	12.60	12.76	13.26	12.98
60 mph	15.49	17.40	17.68	18.75	18.40
70 mph	21.21	23.51	24.39	27.70	26.89
80 mph	32.00	34.75	35.74	41.77	41.95
90 mph	49.43	51.57	58.49	1:14.32	1:23.57

The book’s quarter-mile lesson this year: the US Gran Fury and the Canadian Impala both crossed the quarter at exactly 76.50 mph — but the Canadian car got there eight tenths of a second sooner, because cars do not accelerate at a uniform rate.

Brakes, fuel economy, ergonomics

Source: Michigan State Police, 1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing. Each 60–0 stop is an impending-skid stop made immediately after four controlled 90–0 heat-up stops; Phase II repeats the sequence after a four-minute cool-down. All eight brake-tested cars passed the four-wheel-lock panic stop within their own lane. Ergonomics was scored for the five competing cars only.
Car	60–0 Phase I (ft)	60–0 Phase II (ft)	Avg decel (ft/s²)	EPA city (mpg)	Ergonomics (pts)
Ford Mustang 302	151.3	163.4	24.97	17*	—
Plymouth Gran Fury 318	158.1	157.4	24.92	14.0	196.31
Chevrolet Malibu 305	159.0	159.7	24.50	17.8	185.11
Dodge Diplomat 318	166.0	155.5	24.26	14.0	196.31
Ford Fairmont Futura 140	160.2	165.5	24.22	20.9	—
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S 351	163.7	164.0	23.99	14.0	202.93
Plymouth Reliant 2.6L	164.9	163.7	23.96	23.6	—
Chevrolet Impala 350	167.6	169.8	23.22	14.8	188.43
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S 302-CFI	—	—	—	16.6	—
Chevrolet Impala (6-cyl)	—	—	—	18.6	—
Dodge Diplomat (6-cyl)	—	—	—	18.7	—
Ford Fairmont Futura (6-cyl)	—	—	—	18.6	—

* “Figures supplied by Ford Motor Corporation”, printed as a whole number. The Diplomat and Gran Fury ergonomics totals are identical as printed; Table 1 gives the two cars the same length, wheelbase and height. The Crown Victoria S had the best ergonomics score of the five cars rated. Table 4 prints the Impala’s and Malibu’s average rates as 23.222 and 24.503; the scoring table (Table 7) prints 23.23 and 24.51. The last four rows are the cars tested only for acceleration, which were not braked; their EPA city figures are from Table 6.

See the original page: Table 4 in the 1983 book

Scan of Table 4 from the 1983 Michigan State Police test book: Phase I and Phase II stopping distances and deceleration rates for eight cars — Table 4, “Summary of brake testing”. Michigan State Police, *1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing*, PDF page 14 of the scan (printed page 11). Open full size.

Hardware: horsepower, axle ratios, test weights

From the book’s Table 1, with the Canadian cars from Appendix B. Test weight is the “Weight-Test” line; the book does not say what it includes. The book prints no hardware sheet for the Caravelle.
Car	HP (SAE net)	Axle ratio	Test weight (lb)	Transmission
Ford Mustang 302	175	3.08	2,970	4-speed manual w/ overdrive
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S 351 H.O.-VV	165	2.73	4,059	4-sp auto w/ overdrive (AOD)
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S 302-CFI	130	3.08	3,892	4-sp auto w/ overdrive (AOD)
Dodge Diplomat 318	165	2.94	3,887	3-sp auto (A727)
Plymouth Gran Fury 318	165	2.94	3,881	3-sp auto (A727)
Chevrolet Impala 350	155	3.08	3,993	4-sp auto w/ overdrive (700R4)
Chevrolet Malibu 305	145	2.73	3,516	3-sp auto (350C)
Chevrolet Impala (Canadian)	165	3.08	3,839	3-sp auto (350C)
Chevrolet Malibu (Canadian)	145	2.73	3,443	3-sp auto (350C)
Chevrolet Impala (6-cyl)	110	2.73	3,713	3-sp auto (250C)
Dodge Diplomat (6-cyl)	90	2.94	3,688	3-sp auto (A904)
Ford Fairmont Futura (6-cyl)	92	2.73	2,872	3-sp auto (PEN-C)
Ford Fairmont Futura 140	90	3.08	2,979	3-sp auto (C3)
Plymouth Reliant 2.6L	93	3.02	2,659	3-sp auto (A470)

The LTD kept the AOD overdrive automatic it had in 1981 and 1982, and the US Impala now had the 700R4 four-speed overdrive automatic. The US Impala was rated at 155 horsepower against the Canadian car’s 165 — and the Canadian was six tenths quicker to 60 and nearly six seconds quicker to 100.

The scoring — the Crown Victoria’s year

The weighting held at 25% dynamics, 25% fuel economy, 15% acceleration (0–100 time), 15% top speed, 10% brakes, and 10% ergonomics, for the last time in the books held here: the 1984 book moves to 30 for dynamics, 20 each for acceleration and top speed, and 10 each for brakes, fuel economy and ergonomics. With the bids still sealed at print time there was no award; the highest total weighted score was the dual-exhaust Crown Victoria S’s, +0.528. Of the five scored cars it was fastest around the pursuit course by a second and a half, had the best ergonomics, and was second-quickest to 100.

Source: Michigan State Police, 1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing, competitive evaluation tables (Tables 7 and 8). Raw category scores with the published total weighted score.
Car	Dynamics (s)	0–100 (s)	Brakes (ft/s²)	Top speed (mph)	Ergonomics (pts)	EPA city (mpg)	Total weighted score
Ford LTD Crown Victoria S 351	90.59	39.81	23.99	117.9	202.93	14.0	+0.528
Chevrolet Malibu 305	92.13	40.73	24.51	116.3	185.11	17.8	+0.310
Plymouth Gran Fury 318	92.64	39.68	24.92	120.0	196.31	14.0	+0.249
Dodge Diplomat 318	93.54	40.46	24.26	118.8	196.31	14.0	−0.319
Chevrolet Impala 350	92.21	42.51	23.23	115.0	188.43	14.8	−0.767

See the original page: Table 8 in the 1983 book

Scan of Table 8 from the 1983 Michigan State Police test book: raw scores, weighted scores and total weighted deviation for the five competing cars — Table 8, “Michigan State Police competitive patrol vehicle evaluation”. The bid columns are blank in the book. Michigan State Police, *1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing*, PDF page 20 of the scan (printed page 19). Open full size.

What Michigan’s specification called for

The September 1982 specification (Mich. 3905-0010) kept the familiar bones — the ⅛-inch steel roof plate welded under the roof panel, with a hole drilled through it and wires run down the corner post; Unity #225 spotlights with aircraft landing lamps on both A-pillars, individually fused; a limited-slip differential, maximum cooling, an 80-amp alternator with 45 amps at idle, and a 455 cold-cranking-amp battery; seats in cloth, or cloth and vinyl (blue), with all-vinyl not acceptable; paint to Dulux 93-032 on Goodyear rayon police radials.

Two additions collectors should note on a 1983 survivor: a tilt steering wheel was now required equipment, and the specification spelled out a calibrated speedometer — accurate to ±3 mph, in 2-mph increments, reading to at least 120 (the specification in the 1981 book had required one; the one in the 1982 book did not). A front license plate bracket was also written in; factory power door locks had already been required in the September 1981 specification. See how to identify a genuine police package car and the police package option codes guide.

What 1983 settled

The Mustang, not scored, had the highest top speed (132.0 mph), the quickest times to every speed, the fastest lap average and the shortest single stop in this test, reaching 100 mph within about four tenths of a mile. Of the five scored cars, the Crown Victoria S had the highest total, without the highest top speed or the quickest time to 100.

Among the other cars: the Canadian Impala reached 100 mph nearly six seconds sooner than the US Impala, the propane Caravelle reached 60 sooner than three of the five scored cars, and the fuel-injected LTD missed the 0–80 and 0–100 requirements; a year later the 1984 book’s fuel-injected mid-size LTD beat every scored car to 60, 80 and 100 mph.

Source. Michigan State Police, 1983 Model Year Patrol Vehicle Testing, East Lansing, Michigan; reprinted by the Technology Assessment Program Information Center, International Association of Chiefs of Police, October 1982. All figures transcribed directly from the book. Read the official record at the DOJ virtual library, and see how these videos are researched. A note on the record: the DOJ library’s abstract for this edition states the Chevrolet Impala received the highest total score. The book’s own scoring table says otherwise — the LTD Crown Victoria S scored highest at +0.528, and the Impala placed last at −0.767. Where an abstract and the primary source disagree, this page follows the book.