SMPV Mustangs?

[mac88chp]

Bill - did you check both doors and the roof for the paint layer composition? I'd also take a close look at the interior for any unusual equipment mounting holes, esp. around the transmission tunnel area as that is where the lay-down shotgun rack was installed. That means removing most of the interior to do it right and hopefully that's in your plans anyway.

What you found so far is intriguing but not really conclusive of an SMPV pedigree. That can really only be verified by either CHP documents or in-service photographs and the CHP has told us that records for vehicles this old have been disposed of and very few in-service photos of SMPVs exist. It is still possible that a photo of your car may surface in the future but in the absence of the above type of proof, your car is probably not worth any more than a normal '85 CHP to a hobbyist.

As to how to proceed, I'd personally hold off on making any firm restoration plans until you have a chance to poke around the car for more clues. In the meanwhile, I'll try yet again to drum up photos of any SMPV Mustangs.

[28HopUp]

Mike -

No, I have not checked the roof for silver paint or both doors for the absence of silver paint. I did find silver paint on the inside of the gas door, under the gray paint. It would be GREAT if somebody uncovered a picture of an SMPV with the tag E408395, but I won't be holding my breath.

I'm not really sure how I want to proceed with my SSP now. I really do not want to own a marked police car, yet I don't want to destroy the car's value if it was a SMPV. I guess I could repaint the car silver, and if another owner wanted to they could paint the doors white and add the star/lettering to the door. Too bad it wasn't painted another color, cuz silver is boring IMO. But repainting the car would erase the best evidence that I have right now as to the car possibly being a SMPV - the layered paint.

I really enjoy driving the thing, as it has alot of character as it sits. But it needs to be repainted and fixed up. A full-blown in-service restoration is NOT what I am looking to do, cuz the way I'd do it, I'd have the black & white paint scheme applied first, and then repaint it silver to replicate the layered paint. That kind of paint job would cost more than I paid for the car. I don't know. This isn't why I bought the car. I just wanted something fun to knock around in.