Patrick James collects memorabilia of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. As a constable on the force, buttons, tunics and other odds and ends are easy to obtain. Last year he obtained the ultimate piece of RCMP history: a restored former highway patrol car.
For decades MoPar vehicles were considered by many police officers who drove them as ideal for patrol and pursuit work. By the mid-1970s, strangling emissions regulations were having a an effect on vehicle size and performance. Among the “Big Three” automakers, Chrysler was the slowest to downsize. When revised “R” body cars premiered in the late 1970s, a Plymouth version was not available. This upset dealers who sold to police fleets. As a result, the Plymouth Gran Fury “R” body, basically a Newport with a different front grille, debuted for 1980 model year.
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