The B-body platform was updated to replace the departed C-body cars. The California State Legislature originally established the California Highway Patrol as a branch of the Division of Motor Vehicles in the Department of Public Works, with legislation signed by Governor C. C. Young on August 14, 1929. I am the second owner of this 1979 Dodge St. Regis. Top Rated Seller Top Rated Seller. Henry Ford II would only go kicking and screaming, and only after he saw the success of GMads from the later 1970s showcased the full-size girth of cars like the LTD II, Thunderbird and LTD. You really wanted the intersection to be very, very clear before you started to make a left turn. I made the mistake of buying one of these that was used by the Georgia State Patrol for six years. My job as a little kid was to jump out and Fix the headlights as my grandpa would say, the covers would always jam. Although it is not a police package car, have cloned it to represent the police department from the 1980s TV show "TJ Hooker" that starred William Shatner and Heather Locklear. Click below to find your next car. The popular Dodge Diplomat was based on Chryslers mid-size M-body platform from 1977. It really needs at least a 4 bbl, mild cam, headers, and a 2.5 inch duals. Dodge Durango Pursuit (Police) 2021. It could work. When you added in the income taxes he paid on the value of the Horizon (at the time, I recollect he was in the 70% marginal bracket) he said later he wished we had just declined the prize. Following its introduction, the Dodge St. Regis saw heavy use as a police car in the United States. They are supposed to be down in the bumpers? Just like this restored 80 model now residing in Edmonton. On Diplomat SE, the heavier steering improves the handling much, with smaller steering wheel. I had the St Regis taken away since one of the commanders saw it and wanted it for himself. Because lower priced F-Body Dodge Aspens and Plymouth Volares were designated as the mid-size squad cars through 1980 - not M-bodies. Does anyone know why a car was named after a Saint? WRT to the RCMP, being Federal, they were very careful to spread the business around. 1979 Dodge Diplomat Station Wagon - Million Mile Dodge / The Green Machine. A person could probably write a whole book on it. Newly-installed CEO Iacocca went to Congress seeking loan. So, old perceptions die hard especially when large sums of money are involved. The Plymouth Gran Fury was initially built using Chryslers larger R-body platform until its switch to the mid-size M-body in 1982, something a lot of ongoing larger Chrysler nameplates did. Dodge Intrepid Police 2004 Dodge Intrepid R/T 2000 Dodge Intrepid R/T 2001 Dodge Intrepid R/T 2002 . The neat clear-lens headlight covers are gone (most police departments ditched them) but everything else about this begs for a road trip. I added dual remote mirrors from a 79 Newport and salvaged the wiring harness from a 90 Daytona so I could use a much later factory stereo. Has the trusty Chrysler 318 V8. [citation needed] For 1979, Chrysler withdrew Plymouth entirely from the full-size segment (making the Volare the largest Plymouth that year); for 1980, a R-body Gran Fury was reinstated, nearly exclusively for fleet sales. It had the 360 4 bbl and the rare open road package. I bet that car is rare with leather interior. 0. I dont recall ever seeing one of them with leather seats. I have a Pioneer in it now because it has a USB port and Im running almost all my music off a thumb drive now. The Diplomats, conversely, were only available in base trim. owner's manuals. Its hardly perfect, but like anything else that is mechanically kept up, it has been and continues to be a faithful member of the family fleet outlasting much newer cars meant to replace it. photo for more information. In the fall of 80, a wheel bearing failed, causing the front wheel to part company with the rest of the heap. Although this model, like the Aspen/Volare and Omni/Horizon models, was conceptually fine and could have been competitive, new Chryslers launched at that time werent even half-baked when foisted on the public. It was only produced from 1979 to 1981 and most of the 58,000+ cars produced went to fleet use. I replaced the standard 85 MPH speedometer with a certified speedometer (120 MPH) that was set to the car's original odometer mileage. Wow, what a cool find! I always thought the St. Regis was a good looking car. This was 1979 and Chrysler still had dial radio with pushbutton Cadillac had digital soundsytems on all models back then. The St.Regis just like a car that was poorly built and designed to fall apart. 1980 Dodge Police cars (Brochure). The Diplomat has been a long staple in American history mostly recognized as police cars throughout most Gateway Classic Cars Click for Phone O Fallon, IL 62269 (644 miles away) 2 27 1984 Dodge Diplomat The next up was the Dodge Aspen. Dodge St. Regis 1979, 4x6" (165mm) Rectangular Chrome LED Headlights with DRL by Lumen, 1 Pair. I drove a later model Volare a few times for work and it steered much better, so I suspect it may have just been our cars particular set up. The CHP gradually assumed increased responsibility beyond the enforcement of the State Vehicle Act and eventually merged with the smaller California State Police in 1995. I was always impressed with the ride quality and handling, even with the police suspension and police pack components. St Louis County Police dept. It was downsized and shed up to 450 kg in the process, and was styled to look bigger than it was. That would kick in around 28-30 mph, causing a massive ping/detonation/lugging event alarming enough to make you let off the throttle. Dodge St. Regis Base 1979 Dodge St. Regis Base 1980 Dodge St. Regis Base 1981 Dodge Stealth Base 1991 The St. Regis is a motor car from Dodge, with rear wheel drive, a front positioned engine and a 4 door saloon (sedan) body style. But at Chrysler, things were a bit more convoluted. Options $0. Remember, this is just before Chrysler nearly slips under the waveswhat quality control? I had front end problems that no one could fix, the transmission slipped, and the car used a quart of oil every 500 miles. Learn how your comment data is processed. 1979 Dodge LRT Express. Even after it warmed up it would sputter and bog down on tip-in from idle. . The change in powertrain was unpopular, as officers found the top speed of the vehicle was reduced to below 100 mph when fitted with a lightbar (or 65 mph on a grade). It wasnt an MSP car originally, but it is a real police spec machine, originally hailing from Virginia. Maybe it will stay there longer. This baby did it very well. In this case, it's a 360-powered St. Regis worked up to represent a Michigan State Police car. Nor have I tried. It was in a church parking lot and I took the picture through the fence from the next door Sports Authority. There is a St Regis hotel on Grand Boulevard rather close to the headquarter of Chrysler at that time. 1968 Chevrolet Biscayne Chicago Police Car, California Highway Patrol 1973 Dodge Polara, Italys Carabinieri 505HP Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, 1966 Ford Country Sedan Wagon Fire Chief Car, Ford Police Interceptor Utility (Explorer). Broad Brook, Connecticut, United States. Ugh, I cant stand that archaic looking climate control system and push button stereo Those buttons always stuck froze in very cold weather in my 77 Newport. Cars used by California Highway Patrol 1929 to present. . . But my dad, who passed away in 2007, actively avoided Chrysler products for the rest of his life. We were not alone in these issues. Hell, there was probably a time when a little junkyard combing could have gotten you all the spare ballast resistors & stuff you would need for life. The best cure for Lean Burn is to pull it, replace it with a standard Chrysler electronic ignition and a matching non Lean Burn carburetor. The underlying platform dates all the way back to 1926 and had a number of major revisions over the decades up to 1991. Its not in as good of shape as this one is. 1980 Dodge Aspen (Canadian brochure). A new grille for its final year heralded the merger of the Fifth Avenue and New Yorker names in 1982, in the more successful luxury version of the M-body Dodge Diplomat. Being less comfortable sounds much better than the lebaron though. The R body was always an odd project: a expensive new car that was only slightly larger than the established compact cars, and slightly smaller than the existing midsized cars. 1:43 Car 1980-1999 USA. I experienced all three years of the R bodies, with a 1979 Newport, 1980 Gran Fury, and 1981 Gran Fury, two with the 360 pursuit and one with the 318 four barrel. The main problem with the LeBaron for us was that it just would not run right. While the St. Regis is of little collector value today (alongside Chrysler/Plymouth R-body counterparts), the mechanical commonality of the R platform with earlier Chrysler vehicles leads collectors to search for scrapped examples for its front disc brakes to upgrade earlier cars (such as the Dodge Dart and Plymouth Barracuda)[citation needed] With the low number built (in comparison to its Ford and Chevrolet competitors) and the high percentage destroyed in film and TV work or retired after police use, very few examples survive today. When I turn off the lights, the doors now make a satisfying thunk as they close. The rpm lock, when engaged, keeps the motor running at a desired rpm, to power the lights or for the air conditioning on those hot sunny highway days. Even nicer if you want to stay with a factory radio is to salvage the radio wiring harness from a later 80s-2000 era Mopar, retrofit it to the St. Regis and use one of the AM-FM cassette/CD players and it still looks good and it just bolts right in. Those St. Regis also wore out tires because they would not hold alignment (drastic negative camber), and three of them blew out their heater cores. Needs a L F manual window regulator; and the headliner re glued. In the book's survey, officers wrote that the 360 powered 1980 St. Regis was the best Mopar police car of all time. What a nightmare.. My current ride is a 2007 Toyota Avalon with 135K and still humming along. Base Price $6,847. At the end of the 1970s, the Big Three were all moving towards smaller, lighter machines. It is barely noticeable, nd another pair of taillights is included with the car. But word did get out that the officers positively loathed these things! Curtis Redgap: The R bodies weren't that bad! piraf23, tim boone and 16 more people faved this Ive known some people who still have working Lean Burn cars and even as a Mopar guy I consider them miracle cars to have one still working 35 plus years later. I fixed it then and 20 years later it needs it again. Pursuit Police Vehicle submodel, manufactured or offered in the years 2012-2014 with sedan body type, equipped with engines of 3604 - 5654 cc (220.2 - 345.6 . -WILL TRADE FOR- preferably 70s sedan, compact, truck, anything 70s. That is me. Even a highly reputable repair shop in my city could not rectify the problem. I just read a piece on John Francis Regis. I bought it in Pa. and drove back to Mi. 1979 Dodge Magnum XE ORIGINAL (Cordoba, St. Regis, 1978 Dodge Magnum GT) NO RESV, 1979 Dodge Magnum XE ALL ORIGINAL (Cordoba, St. Regis, 1978 Dodge Magnum GT) 52K, 1979 Dodge Magnum XE ALL ORIGINAL (Cordoba, St. Regis, 1978 Dodge Magnum GT), 1963 DODGE POLICE CAR, ORIGINAL AMARILLO TEXAS POLICE UNIT. The 1981 318 was a decent police vehicle. The St. Regis was created during some desperate times for Chrysler. The agency is responsible for law enforcement on all public roads in the state. New Product, And How To Assemble It: The Speedway Motors Sheet Metal Mock Up LS Engine! My dad put a factory rear anti sway bar on it, I replaced the rims with factory 7inch and cop sized tires instead of the smaller tires my dad had on it. In California, the St. Regis was fitted with a 190 hp four-bbl 360 V8. That year the CHP put a limited number of Ford Fairmonts, Chevy Malibus, Plymouth 3) Horsepower/Torque Curve characteristic dimensions: outside length: 5593 mm / 220.2 in, width: 1958 mm / 77.1 in, wheelbase: 3010 mm / 118.5 in This was all new body style for 1979-81 Pure stinginess to carry that awful climate/stereo from the last body style into this one. My clearest memory of these is the numerous pictures in the paper showing acres and acres of these things sitting unsold in rail yards all over north Michigan and southern Ontario. So they always occupied a small space in my automotive memory banks. Even so, the original unit in the St Regis has FM radio that I really hope for ( AM only in North Michigan doesnt return many channels ). I swear, I do not think that Audi was out of the shop more than six weeks for the five years he owned it and, once out of warranty, it seemed each repair bill was at least $1000. In contrast to the clean-sheet Ford and GM designs, the dire financial situation of Chrysler relegated the company to retool an existing chassis. The only other thing was the headliner started coming down after the car was 20 years old. If you were feeling spacey, you could have sprung for this. Plastic over part of the chrome bumpers, body panels that do not line up right, rust on the body, wrinkles in the vinyl top, missing trim, broken interior door handles, the door panels and dash look very cheaply made, things dont line up, the dash design looks like a patchwork off pieces from different jigsaw puzzles. Im sure you know that was also the first year they had equipped the Torqueflite with a lock-up torque converter. Only owned it for 27 years, lol. And as Brock Yates wrote in The Decline and Fall of the American Automobile Industry, the combination of options on these cars was sometimes a bit odd, to say the least. Free shipping on many items | Browse your favorite brands | affordable prices. These were usually driven by police chiefs and fire chiefs. For 1980, the 360 was replaced by a 155 hp 318 V8 4-bbl with California emissions to comply with state emissions regulations. Only 34,434 St. Regis sedans were produced in 1979. I'm looking for old restored and un-restored police and fire department cars Either someone needs to use the antenna trimmer or the plug on the end of the cable is messed up and its not making a good connection. I thought they looked cool (my best friends folks had bought a 69 Monaco). I was about to take issue with your comment then remembered the low idle vibration my 1975, Custom 500 had. My clearest memory of these is the numerous pictures in the paper showing acres and acres of these things sitting unsold in rail yards all over north Michigan and southern Ontario.. The more basic S model was produced for fleets which had no vinyl roof, no chrome roof band, no hood ornament and bench seats. As a result, you were apt to see anything, LTDs and Royal Monacos in the mid 70s, & later on, Panthers, B-bodies, M-bodies, pickups sometimes. They should change the breather sticker to Lean Burn of Death. The Diplomat . Rwcar4 Police Car Photos Classic Police Cars. The Chevrolet Malibu was a mid-size model which replaced the ever-popular Nova. Years later they were running the Dodge Diplomat and they were really pretty good. 1977 Dodge Royal Monaco Chicago IL Police photographed Aug 2007: 1973 Plymouth Fury I Delaware State Police . Something that drives everyday. The ad remains on CL for over a year with different photos, obviously the kid has such a hard time selling it. Its been one of the most reliable cars Ive had (thanks to my dads rebuild) so far and because were down a vehicle in the family fleet it got put back into daily driving service again. HP exhaust manifolds from 1968-70. To further distinguish the model line from its Plymouth Gran Fury, Chrysler Newport, and Chrysler New Yorker counterparts, the front fascia was styled with transparent retractable headlamp covers (introduced on the 1978 Dodge Magnum). For 1979, the 360 was available to cops in all fifty states, with a rating of 195 horsepower for everyone but those in California. There is a good chance that the following car may be an ex-prop from the show - it matches the main photo and the last thumbnail with . Shorter than the 1977 Royal Monaco by five inches, narrower by three inches, and lighter by almost half a ton, the Dodge St. Regis (and its platform mates Chrysler Newport and Plymouth Gran Fury) shouldve worked in the market. He never even got it on the road, as he didnt even had a drivers license yet! But, I digress.) Model WC WC-12 1979 Dodge St. Regis For Sale. CLICK the He was amazed the box when that long and he thought the original owner was crazy for putting points on a car he was still making payments on. Its very hard to tell the rust problem though, as the thick chrome trims cover up the door seals and rocker panel, where is most suspicious to rust. I have a line on 5 other cars. Air regulations imposed by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) required detuning the California destined engines to 190 horsepower to meet emissions standards. Like a 47 Chevy, an 80s LTD for pizza delivery, a Chevrolet Nova from 80s for delivery too. All Rights Reserved. 1979 Dodge St. Regis Pricing Original MSRP N/a Price range N/a Average price on CG $0 YoY price change N/a Date Sep 22 Oct 22 Nov 22 Dec 22 Jan 23 Feb 23 Price (US $) $28,500 $29,000 $29,500 $30,000 $30,500 $31,000 1981 Dodge St. Regis 1980 Dodge St. Regis 1979 Dodge St. Regis Index Price See more price trends Trims & specs . Dodge Charger 7th-gen. Something had to be done, and for 1978, something was done. What's in the box: 1-43 1979-81 Dodge St Regis. 1/43 1979-81 Dodge St Regis (BJ7UKP728) by rapidpro on Shapeways. Update: - edit some Textures - make own Dirttexture - edit Seatposition - add 3 new Lightbars - add Working Wipers - Sidemirror are now breakable and crash - Rambar are now breakable (both Side for his alone) - make good Mirrorreflection - add new Liverys "It sits lower to the ground, it is a car, and it is newer". Nowadays, I have my 2012 Chrysler 300c (Hemi of course), my 1977 AMC Gremlin, and my 1969 Toyota Corona. It has a clear California title and is being sold as-is with no warranty. No St. Regis, but the Sask Highway Traffic used them, the guys who enforce truck& commercial vehicle stuff, weigh scales etc.The cars were a kind of dark brass color, ACCOUNT 0. Even AMC, the perpetual fourth-place finisher, bowed out at the end of 1978 with no real replacement in sight. My dad bought it in 1985, rebuilt the engine and the front suspension and drove it for ten years. Base . It would be the last full-size Plymouth model ever built. 1979 Dodge St. Regis brochure 1979 Ford LTD - Australia 1979 Ford pickups 1979 Lincoln-Mercury 1979 Newport 1979 New Yorker 1979 Chevrolet 1979 Plymouth Horizon 1979 Pontiac. The Fab Forums Fox Body Project: Doing A Factory Mini Tub Build Part 3. 1978 Dodge Trucks. I bought my first Chrysler product, a 2014 Durango, about a year ago and it has been a delightful and flawless vehicle for 25,000 miles. 1968 Dodge Monaco with a 383 cubic inch motor. Find 3 used Dodge Diplomat as low as $3,999 on Carsforsale.com. police car fan 2012-09-05 18:16-- Last edit: 2014-03-24 14:42:15: police car fan 2013-11-07 20:50. Dad bought a 1985 Audi 5000 demonstrator in late 1985 to replace the beloved Buick and that thing made the LeBaron look good. However the 2nd space in my garage is zealously guarded by Mrs JPC. Unfortunately for Chrysler, their luck just straight-up sucked. I have been showing the car for a few years and it has won some awards at car shows. 1986 Chevrolet C/K 10. I believe 79 was when Lee Iacocca came in to clean house. It forms part of Dodge's Series EH range of cars. We are always looking for good bang shifty stories, projects, photos & videos. He pulled the engine to put in a 53 Willys and sold the car before he finished it. The Impala was phased out in 1986 when the Caprice 9C1 police pack replaced it, but would come back in the future. I used to see these on police shows on tv when I was a boy. Of course I later learned that the Monacos performed far better than the St. Regis. I havent seen this kind of car in years, I always felt they should have sold better than they did, I absolutely love the blue leather seats in this car, I always thought the Dodge St. Regis was the best looking of the R-body cars, how many of these cars were produced in the 1980 and 1981 model years? In the future Ill be equipping it with period correct equipment as a Chiefs Car. 1978 Dodge Pickups. I thought, most of the St. Regis were used on T.J. Hooker. Its engine is a naturally aspirated petrol, 5.9 litre, overhead valve 90 degree V 8 cylinder with 2 valves per cylinder. 1980 Dodge St Regis (Canadian brochure). Original MSRP $6,847. After the lease went up, he ended up buying it and driving it for 2 more years before buying an 82 Audi 5000, itself a whole nother story. Coinciding with efforts to expedite the retirement of the St. Regis from patrol service, the CHP adopted the 'Ford Mustang Severe Service Package' police pursuit vehicle (PPV) in 1982.