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making a police morris minor
Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2007 3:26 pm
by davidmayo
hi i have a light blue 1960 2 door and i am looking into the possibility of turning it into a police morris
i have had a few looks on google for some decent pictures of them but they seem to be a bit thin on the ground
if anyone has a police morris, i would be very grateful to recieve any pictures or infomation about it.
i saw a few pictures of an old white police morris and some of a blue and white one but i dont know which would be better for the age of my car
i was also wandering what new badges and things like radios and ariels i would need to add to it and where they can be got from
my mother is very good at stencelling so i think the police signs could be done only if i knew exactly where to put them#
did the police moggies have any specific interiors or can i just stick with my current blue interior
also i anyone has any special parts off a morris police vehicle that the with to sell to me for a reasonable price then please contact me at:
davidmmayo@aol.com
thanks, david
Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2007 8:46 pm
by simmitc
The type of vehicle you are thinking of is a Morris 1000 Police Panda Car. Whilst it would be a fun project, you cannot just "make" a Police car, and certainly not from a 1960. They were introduced to many forces in the late 1960's, and were supplied direct to the forces (sometimes via a main dealer) from new. Some forces may have used standard vehicles for general driving prior to the introduction of Panda Cars.
There is no right or wrong specification, every force had its own requirements; and in some large forces the paint markings and other fittings varied from workshop to workshop.
Having said all of that, good luck with whatever you do, it's good to see interest in the cars. The most important thing is to keep yours on the road and keep using it

Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2007 9:40 pm
by Sidney'61
I'm assuming that your car is 'smoke grey' in colour (it's called grey but it is actually blue) but if you want it to be exactly right i believe the police moggies were painted in 'Bermuda blue', I dont really know the difference, I think only very picky people will notice the slightly different shade.
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2007 8:06 am
by Pyoor_Kate
And as a little note of caution, bear in mind that you cannot have 'Police' permanently stenciled or displayed on the vehicle and drive it on the road.
I turned my four door (which is traffy blue, and a four door) into a 'police' minor for Pride last year; it was great fun, but the amount of permission I needed to be allowed to drive it on the road - even just the parade route - decked out in police livery was astonishing.
And people really are foolish enough to ask if it's a real, working police car.
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2007 3:21 pm
by Jay-Minor
in contrast to what Kate says, i got in touch with my local force and they say it's okay for me to drive with the police on providing i don't use the flashing blue light
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2007 3:40 pm
by bigginger
Hers was for driving in London, which might be different.
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2007 8:24 pm
by simmitc
Colours again depend on the force. Most were Bermuda Blue base plus Police White for doors and sometimes roof. Lancashire and one or two others used Old English White plus Black.
Interestingly, the Met do still have a Minor Panada car on active service. Part of the museum fleet it is still used to go and take the odd statement, for PR work, and to patrol special events such as L2B.
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2007 10:28 pm
by Pyoor_Kate
Ah, that may explain their concerns...
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:07 pm
by davidmayo
thanks, guys
so from what i gather it is a possible project if i can get all the explicit parts of a police morris
i am still very interested in findind out what the exact colour of my car actually is. it is a pale light blue but i dont know what you would call it or where to buy the paint for that matter. i will try to put a picture of it on soon.