Once upon a time, it was easy to point out the charcoal gray VW Passat with visible diodes in the crowd. Today, however, the police have several models at their disposal, and they have adopted new tricks. Can you still spot the civilian car?
There are bird watchers who get up early to see returning migrants and plane spotters who gather at the Flyvergrillen when there is a rumor of a special departure from Kastrup. And then there are people like me who stop when an emergency siren approaches. It’s a geeky interest, I know…
Even so, it is an interest that at times can give me a remarkable kind of satisfaction. It is when I can hear from a distance whether the siren belongs to a civilian or uniformed patrol car, or when I can point out a civilian patrol car from a distance from the crowd. An exercise that has become more challenging than it once was.
Before, a civilian spot typically consisted of either a VW Touran or a VW Passat. Today, the police have got many more models in civilian clothes, and so they have learned more tricks to blend in with the crowd. So slow down, put your cell phone down and play a quiet game of civilian car bingo with me.
New cars, old features
Not all birds with beautiful colors are rare. In the same way, the characteristics in this article are not guarantees that it is a civilian patrol car. There will always be exceptions that prove the rule, and the police are constantly innovating to blend in with the crowd.
There are, however, four general characteristics that usually apply to a civilian patrol car, and which, moreover, have been doing so for a long time. It is the antenna, number plate frame, the diodes and actually the insurance.
Take, for example, one of the police’s recent acquisitions, which appears both in uniform and as a civilian: the Mercedes-Benz GLB. It has a built-in antenna from the factory and therefore a completely flat roof – unless it is driving for the police. If so, it has a small and pointed antenna.
Another example is the BMW iX1, which is also a relatively new purchase. It is equipped with a shark fin antenna from the factory, but as a patrol car will have an additional antenna at the front. In general, two antennas are a good characteristic, which is also seen on the Volvo V90 in civilian service.
The number plate frame is generally free of advertising on a civilian patrol car. Here, there are exceptions that confirm the rule, including the Mercedes-AMG A45S and BMW M135i, which run in limited numbers as “video cars” for the traffic police. We have written more about them here.
Although the police have gotten better at hiding the diodes on the civilian patrol cars, they are still there. They can typically be seen in the radiator grill or the rear window, while some Touran and Passat patrol cars still drive with externally mounted diodes.
Finally, there is the insurance, which you cannot spot with the naked eye. Cars that drive in the service of the police will not have a regular insurance company listed when the number plate is looked up on e.g. Numberplate.net. Here it will instead say ‘Self-insured’.
List of known civilian patrol cars
Although there is still a preponderance of VW Touran and eighth generation VW Passat, the variety in the police vehicle fleet has grown significantly in recent years. Although the police do not want to confirm individual models, the list below contains the most well-known civilian patrol cars – among other things with diligent help from the Facebook group ‘Civile Patrulje Vogne’.
- BMW iX1
- BMW M135i
- Cupra Born
- Mercedes-AMG A45S
- Mercedes-Benz GLB
- Mercedes-Benz Vito
- Volvo V90
- VW ID.3
- VW ID.4
- VW Passat (B8 and new ninth generation B9)
- VW Tiguan
- VW Touran
- VW Transporter
New tricks in the book
In addition to more models in the fleet, the police have also expanded the number of tricks in the book. Once upon a time, a civilian car was as anonymous as possible, which means toned-down paintwork and no retrofitted equipment. It is no longer like that.
Among other things, the police have turned up the color palette. The picture shows both a very blue and a very red VW Passat, the latter of which I myself have spotted in Nørrebro. In other words, a paint job that goes directly against the motto that a civilian car is always discreet.
Civilian patrol cars are now increasingly spotted with retrofitted equipment. Thus, you do not have to write off a Mercedes-Benz GLB as a civilian patrol car if it only has a roof box or tow bar.
Major rebuilds and modifications are not abnormal either. The fast Mercedes-AMG A45S and BMW M135i civilian patrol cars hide extra well with hidden LEDs and advertising on the license plate frame. They also run with different bumpers as well as removed emblems. You can thus meet an A45S disguised as an ordinary A-Class, complete with different bumpers and without emblems.
A growing community
Believe it or not, the police car’s answer to ornithologists is actually a growing community. This article would not have been created without the help of the Facebook group ‘Civile Police Cars’, where no fewer than 132,000 users share photos of their encounters with civilian patrol cars. Some are rare, others are more common – but all with great user interaction.
With 132,000 active users, the vast majority of whom are young men aged 16 to 35, you obviously have a good voice for a specific target group. The talented guys and administrators behind ‘Civile Police Cars’ intend to exploit that, which is why they are on the steps with the community CarHype.
To Bilbasen, one of the administrators behind it tells that the goal behind the new page, in all its simplicity, is to gather young car lists. CarHype will establish itself as a link between the Danish car world and the existing members from the group. In connection with the CarHype project, the administrators have been in dialogue with both the police and the Council for Safe Traffic with a view to being able to make tests and articles about police cars. Something that I personally really want to take part in.
