An excellent model this!!! (I must take some up to date pics of mine!). Thanks for the detailed history behind it too, I certainly wouldn't want to have to outrun one of them!!!
Subaru WRX Police car
G
Heres a little bit of the history behind this Scooby :happy
A crack crime team has developed the all-wheel-drive Subaru Impreza Turbo into possibly the ultimate high-speed police car.
Now Humberside's drug dealers, burglary gangs and habitual joy riders will have to contend with 150 mph observe and pursuit vehicles specially modified by Banbury-based Prodrive - the same company behind Colin McRae's 1998 FIA World Rally Champion Impreza.
The Subarus are about to go into service with Humberside Police Crime Unit the UK's first team dedicated to targeting car thieves. They replace a Volvo T5 and Ford Escort Cosworth.
Both Impreza Turbo features a power boost from 211 to 244 PS, torque boost from 214 to 240 lb ft and a performance increase from 143.5 to 150 mph. The 0-62 mph time comes down from an already outstanding 6.4 seconds to 5.0 seconds.
Key changes include items from Prodrive's WRSport accessory range such as a new engine management system, big bore exhaust, uprated brakes, headlamps and driving lamps. Also fitted are Recaro front seats and Pirelli P-Zero in the standard 205.50x16 size.
One police Impreza Turbo appears visually standard and will be used for surveillance work but the other is striking, thanks to its white paint work with red side flash, strobe roof bar light, high level rear boot spoiler and gold alloy wheels.
"We wanted something to stand out," said unit leader, Sergeant Mike Peck without a hint of understatement.
He added: "Our previous pursuit car, a Ford Escort Cosworth, became something of an icon in the Humberside area. We need the extra performance to build up a margin of safety. The joy rider only needs to go through a couple of red lights to gain a lead but the Impreza will close the gap."
Sgt Peck a former Subaru mechanic and amateur rally driver chose the Impreza Turbo because of its agility, reliability and performance and believes all wheel drive is essential for a high speed pursuit car.
He has also had installed a substantial sump guard which he says affords extra protection when giving chase across fields and wasteland.
He said: "We decided to leave the standard suspension alone because it combines excellent damping with long spring travel. It allows us to skim over 'traffic calming' humps at 70 mph and the sump guard helps prevent damage."
The founder of Humberside Police Vehicle Crime Unit is very proud of the video camera equipment, VHF/UHF radios, GSM Cellphone and supporting electronics which he and two colleagues installed themselves over a three-week period.
The Unit went into operation in September 1994, the year Humberside suffered the greatest percentage increase in car crime in the UK at 50.23 per cent.
Hull was branded 'Car Crime Capital of England' and £42.2 million worth of vehicles were stolen during 1994.
Since then the area has seen 39 per cent reduction in car theft, while an estimated £10.4 million worth of cars were saved from being taken during the first year of operation. Last year a forecasted 9, 184 vehicles were stolen - down from the 1994 peak of 15, 018 cars.
Often, arrests by Sgt Peck's team of sixty highly trained officers' lead to other convictions such as drug dealing and burglaries. It is estimated that almost one third of all crimes in Humberside involve the use of motor vehicles
A crack crime team has developed the all-wheel-drive Subaru Impreza Turbo into possibly the ultimate high-speed police car.
Now Humberside's drug dealers, burglary gangs and habitual joy riders will have to contend with 150 mph observe and pursuit vehicles specially modified by Banbury-based Prodrive - the same company behind Colin McRae's 1998 FIA World Rally Champion Impreza.
The Subarus are about to go into service with Humberside Police Crime Unit the UK's first team dedicated to targeting car thieves. They replace a Volvo T5 and Ford Escort Cosworth.
Both Impreza Turbo features a power boost from 211 to 244 PS, torque boost from 214 to 240 lb ft and a performance increase from 143.5 to 150 mph. The 0-62 mph time comes down from an already outstanding 6.4 seconds to 5.0 seconds.
Key changes include items from Prodrive's WRSport accessory range such as a new engine management system, big bore exhaust, uprated brakes, headlamps and driving lamps. Also fitted are Recaro front seats and Pirelli P-Zero in the standard 205.50x16 size.
One police Impreza Turbo appears visually standard and will be used for surveillance work but the other is striking, thanks to its white paint work with red side flash, strobe roof bar light, high level rear boot spoiler and gold alloy wheels.
"We wanted something to stand out," said unit leader, Sergeant Mike Peck without a hint of understatement.
He added: "Our previous pursuit car, a Ford Escort Cosworth, became something of an icon in the Humberside area. We need the extra performance to build up a margin of safety. The joy rider only needs to go through a couple of red lights to gain a lead but the Impreza will close the gap."
Sgt Peck a former Subaru mechanic and amateur rally driver chose the Impreza Turbo because of its agility, reliability and performance and believes all wheel drive is essential for a high speed pursuit car.
He has also had installed a substantial sump guard which he says affords extra protection when giving chase across fields and wasteland.
He said: "We decided to leave the standard suspension alone because it combines excellent damping with long spring travel. It allows us to skim over 'traffic calming' humps at 70 mph and the sump guard helps prevent damage."
The founder of Humberside Police Vehicle Crime Unit is very proud of the video camera equipment, VHF/UHF radios, GSM Cellphone and supporting electronics which he and two colleagues installed themselves over a three-week period.
The Unit went into operation in September 1994, the year Humberside suffered the greatest percentage increase in car crime in the UK at 50.23 per cent.
Hull was branded 'Car Crime Capital of England' and £42.2 million worth of vehicles were stolen during 1994.
Since then the area has seen 39 per cent reduction in car theft, while an estimated £10.4 million worth of cars were saved from being taken during the first year of operation. Last year a forecasted 9, 184 vehicles were stolen - down from the 1994 peak of 15, 018 cars.
Often, arrests by Sgt Peck's team of sixty highly trained officers' lead to other convictions such as drug dealing and burglaries. It is estimated that almost one third of all crimes in Humberside involve the use of motor vehicles
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