Restoration of 1987 Gran Fury - Philadelphia Police Department

Nov 7, 2014
53
Lansdale, PA
 

Hi all, I'm in the early stages of restoring a 1987 Plymouth Gran Fury, marked blue car used by Philadelphia Police Department. Numbers on driver side fender are 2511, and there appears to have been a command decal behind the rear doors on the sail panel.

 As you can see, she's a little faded and missing the emergency goodies, however she does run and drive. Not very fast nor far, but she does move under her own power. 70,000 original miles, has been sitting for about the last two years. Elderly man near Allentown PA was third owner and drove it occasionally from 1989 until last week.

Very little rust, the rockers and quarters are in amazingly good shape!

So begins my project.

Most of the wiring for the equipment is still in place, a blessing for sure.

I just put four new tires on, had an oil change and fuel filter done.

Now to be sure what radio and siren...multiple sources lead me to understand that a GE Mastr or Mastr Pro was the radio, and that a 48" AeroDynic or some low-profile Smith and Wesson was up top, and either a Powercall or PA200/PA300 would have made the loud noises. Unfortunately, I do not own any of these specific items just yet. Searching!

Also, I'm told that the unique shade of blue was applied at the factory, however a paint code or paint name seems nearly impossible to ascertain.

Internet research has given only exterior pictures, so any clarifications or images would be extremely helpful!

00O0O_6zDe9WRRB7G_600x450.jpg00q0q_400QXc7jjGk_600x450.jpgIMG_8384.JPGIMG_8385.JPG

I wish my budget was enough to do a body-off resto, however roadworthy, shiny and correct-equipment will have to do for now.

Thanks for looking! I'll try to post updates as I progress.
 

HILO

Member
May 20, 2010
2,781
Grand Prairie Texas
copcar.com will be able to provide you with most if not all the info you need!   Great group of people, and tons of knowledge.
 

delcofirecop

Member
Jul 22, 2012
232
usa pa
LIke i messaged you in facebook and on the facebook post the radio was a ge mastr pro series, And it would have had the light bars you listed however Philadelphia police and fire were big big users of the general electric powercall so that very well could have been the correct siren not the one you listed in your original post here. To get the correct paint you can try a chrysler fleet dealer or try a true professional auto body shop to match the paint. It was called dodge midnight blue or commonly called dodge cop car blue.
 
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Nov 7, 2014
53
Lansdale, PA
This is the correct siren for your car. Good luck finding an original i have been offered crazy money for mine. By the way are you sure the mileage is correct 70000.00 miles is super low for a retired Philadelphia Police car esp a district car which the numbers you posted would indicate your car was. 2511 would be a 25th district car.
 Ok cool. 

 I thought the same when I went to look at it... the title from 1989 said 59,000 miles and its last inspection / registration was 1992...with the lack of body rust, I figure it was tucked away somewhere reasonably safe from then until my purchase.

Something else that I noticed was that the fender with 2511 doesn't match the outline of removed decals from the rest of the car. The other fender and trunk appear to only have had three characters.

Also, there looks to have been a special-unit or command decal on the sail panel behind the rear doors.

The asset number is still on the door and under the hood, 875300.
 
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delcofirecop

Member
Jul 22, 2012
232
usa pa
Well each district had cars with three number too. Examples 254 or 319 or 193 etc the first 1 or 2 numbers is the district and the 3rd and sometimes 4th is the unit number. Yes the name sounds right for the paiint color. And the property tags are hard to transcribe on the older units but the 87 would be the year. It could be a true low mile police car they are just very rare.
 
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Nov 7, 2014
53
Lansdale, PA
UPDATE: Four new tires and a tune-up, she runs better but still bogs down on acceleration. Narrows it to either vacuum problem, the accelerator pump in the 2-bbl lean-burn carb or the catalytic converter.....

Found a functional AeroTwin 3.5-panel and picked it up Sunday.  Picked up a GE Mastr Executive II control head-wires-main box for a good price but it's not right for the car.

More searching for a Mastr Pro...

And for anyone who worked on / drove one of the blue city units, the asset number is 875300
 
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A-TAD

Member
May 21, 2010
304
South Eastern PA
These cars had the Powercall siren in them and the below pictured radio head, not sure on the speaker for the radio.

I'll see what I can find out on the property #.

ai259.photobucket.com_albums_hh288_A_TAD_100_0631.jpg

Here is another picture I found with the lightbar you are looking for. They also had Twinsonics on them and I think some of the all white ones had Streethawks on them.

ai259.photobucket.com_albums_hh288_A_TAD_RPC1210.png
 
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delcofirecop

Member
Jul 22, 2012
232
usa pa
These cars had the Powercall siren in them and the below pictured radio head, not sure on the speaker for the radio.

I'll see what I can find out on the property #.

ai259.photobucket.com_albums_hh288_A_TAD_100_0631.jpg

Here is another picture I found with the lightbar you are looking for. They also had Twinsonics on them and I think some of the all white ones had Streethawks on them.

ai259.photobucket.com_albums_hh288_A_TAD_RPC1210.png
Partially correct. The street hawk bars did not come around until the 1990 crown vics. 
 
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PatricknThe25

New Member
Apr 12, 2015
6
Pa.
Hey, just found this old thread, really awesome:D. I say "really awesome" because, regarding rpc 2511, it hits home for me, because, I'M ACTUALLY 2511, lol! Seriously, I'm a Philly cop and I've been assigned to 2511 car for many years now! It's amazing to see an old blue car though (that used to be 2511).

Being that this post is like 3+ yrs old, I'd be curious as how you made out on the restoration of the old beast! I've been on the job since '95, but from my recollection, you were correct about the light bar and radio, btw....
 

kerry4951

Member
Mar 10, 2014
825
Central Pa
If you didnt already, you need to go over to FB and join....Vintage Police Car Owners. The needed info that you will seek can best be found over there.
 
Jun 18, 2013
3,709
PA
It's really a shame that FB is the recourse.. I avoid it like the plague..
 

exphillycop

Member
Apr 18, 2012
272
Holmes Beach, Florida
LIke i messaged you in facebook and on the facebook post the radio was a ge mastr pro series, And it would have had the light bars you listed however Philadelphia police and fire were big big users of the general electric powercall so that very well could have been the correct siren not the one you listed in your original post here. To get the correct paint you can try a chrysler fleet dealer or try a true professional auto body shop to match the paint. It was called dodge midnight blue or commonly called dodge cop car blue.
IF YOU CALL THE PHILADELPHIA FLEET MANAGEMENT BODY SHOP AT 11TH AND WHARTON, THEY CAN GIVE IT TO YOU. THEY MAY EVEN HAVE SOME LAYING AROUND. 215 685-1857.
 
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Nov 7, 2014
53
Lansdale, PA
Wow, hi! Funny you guys should comment, I've since gotten three of the square Condor II lightbars (all from junked Philly blue cars) and just last month got hold of one of the Code3 black box sirens that replaced the Powercalls. All I need now is a GE Mastr handheld radio with car charger!
I unfortunately had to sell the car, so I sold it to a friend of mine a few years ago out in Missouri, and he has it up for sale again. It's on eBay right now.
I want to get it back, but I've been laid off for the last month and I'm running low on living-money, let alone toy car money.
I really miss that car. I found it on Craigslist, saved it from an old man's grandson (he planned to demo it) spent many hours researching, calling and talking to people like Scratch (Rod Scratchard), back-and-forth with retired officers, guys who used to buy the blue cars at city auctions for $50 each, and some fellow emergency vehicle people.
I've also found two more recently. One was in a field in Massachusetts but is now owned by a fellow enthusiast, and the other is in a field on a property just off Rt. 611 between Philly and Allentown.

If you didnt already, you need to go over to FB and join....Vintage Police Car Owners. The needed info that you will seek can best be found over there.

Oh yeah, been in those groups since the day after I got the car. Lots of great information.

IF YOU CALL THE PHILADELPHIA FLEET MANAGEMENT BODY SHOP AT 11TH AND WHARTON, THEY CAN GIVE IT TO YOU. THEY MAY EVEN HAVE SOME LAYING AROUND. 215 685-1857.

I'll try that, thanks! My research told me that it was most likely "Corporate Blue" or "Petty Blue" as in Richard Petty's racecars back in the day, but I'll look into those other ideas.
 
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exphillycop

Member
Apr 18, 2012
272
Holmes Beach, Florida
Wow, hi! Funny you guys should comment, I've since gotten three of the square Condor II lightbars (all from junked Philly blue cars) and just last month got hold of one of the Code3 black box sirens that replaced the Powercalls. All I need now is a GE Mastr handheld radio with car charger!
I unfortunately had to sell the car, so I sold it to a friend of mine a few years ago out in Missouri, and he has it up for sale again. It's on eBay right now.
I want to get it back, but I've been laid off for the last month and I'm running low on living-money, let alone toy car money.
I really miss that car. I found it on Craigslist, saved it from an old man's grandson (he planned to demo it) spent many hours researching, calling and talking to people like Scratch (Rod Scratchard), back-and-forth with retired officers, guys who used to buy the blue cars at city auctions for $50 each, and some fellow emergency vehicle people.
I've also found two more recently. One was in a field in Massachusetts but is now owned by a fellow enthusiast, and the other is in a field on a property just off Rt. 611 between Philly and Allentown.



Oh yeah, been in those groups since the day after I got the car. Lots of great information.



I'll try that, thanks! My research told me that it was most likely "Corporate Blue" or "Petty Blue" as in Richard Petty's racecars back in the day, but I'll look into those other ideas.
I'm almost certain that its a custom color as for Big Frank's wife picked the color. I know the city was having the dealer paint it before delivery thus costing so much. That's when we went to white in 1988.
 
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delcofirecop

Member
Jul 22, 2012
232
usa pa
Yes originally was a Philly only color then Chrysler offered it to other police departments. Midnight blue or something similar comes to mind.
 

shues

Lifetime VIP Donor
May 21, 2010
10,276
NW Indiana
Are there a few places where the paint is not faded, such as the inside of the trunk lid or under the hood? Do you have a surviving real auto parts store nearby?

Chances are, you can have a paint formula generated using a ChromaVision camera. It won't take long and it won't cost much to have a spray can mixed up so you can see what the paint looks like.
 
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CHIEFOPS

Member
Jan 24, 2011
1,532
NYC
543c4b04-3f5d-4c0a-a7d5-886d99526f79-jpeg.210458


a2301447-6b47-47d1-af4f-41dc3d2c9f34-jpeg.210459

Optical illusion or camera angle?
 

dg0223

Member
Feb 20, 2011
703
USA/Texas
So, let's see if we have this straight...

This thread was resurrected from the projects, builds, and modifications page and the project car has been sold, nothing has been built, and nothing has been modified, and we're just posting pictures of police cars as a reference for a car that isn't going to be built anymore?
 

FCV96

Member
May 8, 2013
149
Queens, NY
So, let's see if we have this straight...

This thread was resurrected from the projects, builds, and modifications page and the project car has been sold, nothing has been built, and nothing has been modified, and we're just posting pictures of police cars as a reference for a car that isn't going to be built anymore?

Surely someone out there searching for restoration references will be pleased to come across this thread and those recent, particularly relevant photos.
 
Nov 7, 2014
53
Lansdale, PA
Another Philly blue car has been found, and I'm helping the young guy get information, so that he can restore his correctly. I'm fixing up a correct lightbar for him, even though I don't have the first car anymore.
Additionally, there is so little documentation of Philly cars and equipment from that era, I believe it prudent for at least posterity's sake to gather and share the information, before it is lost forever.
I get what you're saying, though, DG0223
 

A-TAD

Member
May 21, 2010
304
South Eastern PA
I know this is an old thread but there is alot of good info in it. This is a pic of my car, a 1985 Plymouth Gran Fury. It is a retired Philadelphia police car. It was rpc 312, it's still hand painted on the roof. I plan on restoring it back to a PPD car.
 

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