Z06 Police Car

[peppy]

Saw this on the morning news.


This one has the video.
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/5627211/


http://www.newsobserver.com/news/wake/story/1616561.html

RALEIGH -- If you plan to outrun the law in Wake County, you'd better have a very, very fast car.

Or maybe a rocket.

Wake deputies have been spotted using a black Chevrolet Corvette Z06 to pull over speeders on Interstate 40. Among the fastest production cars in the world, the Z06 has a base sticker price of $74,875 and a growling V8 racing engine that turns out 505 horsepower.
ZO6.jpg
This is a Corvette Z06. Wake County deputies have been seen chasing speeders on I-40 in a similar car. - GENERAL MOTORS PHOTO
Request for records

Sheriff Donnie Harrison did not grant a request filed early Tuesday seeking public records about the Corvette's acquisition.

"I can get those to you at my convenience and at a time allowed by law," Harrison said. "We'll get you public records when I get time to get the public records to you."

State public records law dictates that government agencies provide public records "as promptly as possible."

Harrison said he was displeased that a reporter had called county commissioners for comment about the car before he could hold a news conference about it.

In a telephone interview, Harrison also said, "You’re not going to force me to talk about anything, you understand? I’ve got a schedule to run. I don’t sell papers.”

Check out the Vette

See photographs of the car on a blog at tinyurl.com/mlzsq6
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* Blog: See photos of the car

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Quantcast

The car has a top track speed of 198 mph, according to Chevrolet.

Though the car has set tongues wagging among Triangle sports-car enthusiasts, Sheriff Donnie Harrison declined to talk about the Corvette on Monday or Tuesday.

County Manager David Cooke said that the Corvette was seized from a drug dealer but that he could provide no further information.

Gary Buchanan, a Raleigh resident who owns a 2007 Corvette, saw Wake deputies last week using the stealthy, unmarked Z06 to enforce the 65-mph speed limit on I-40 in Cary.

"It had blue lights in the back and blue lights in the front," Buchanan said. "It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Something like that is so extreme. I mean, if my wife was out driving and this thing came up behind her and the lights started going off, man, she'd be scared to death."

A Corvette connoisseur since seeing his first one in 1963, Buchanan said he was concerned about the safety and expense of using the car for law enforcement.

The special-high speed tires the Z06 requires have to be replaced every 10,000 miles and cost up to $1,500 a set, he said. The vehicle handles poorly in wet or cold weather, he said, and he wondered how a deputy could use a stick shift and work the blue lights and radio all at the same time.

The car's wide, low-slung profile makes it nearly impossible to take off road, such as when crossing an interstate median.

"This thing is not cheap to operate," Buchanan said. "And Corvettes have to be driven by people who know what they're doing. Because if you don't, you can get into serious trouble real quick. The Z06 in particular is a pretty potent automobile."

Other North Carolina sheriff's departments have deployed flashy cars.

Former Davidson County Sheriff Gerald Hege had a black Chevrolet Impala SS with a painting of a black widow spider emblazoned on the side doors. Souped up by the same NASCAR shop that built Chevys for legendary racer Dale Earnhardt Sr., the government-owned car Hege drove had a Corvette engine and two tanks of nitrous oxide to boost its horsepower.

The "Spider Car" was sold at auction for $32,000 in 2005, after Hege was removed from office and convicted on corruption charges.

In Forsyth County, former Sheriff Ron Barker bought several Camaro Z28s in 1999 for a special Highway Interdiction Team. Deputy Kevin Barker, the sheriff's grandson, soon totaled one of the $21,000 sports cars while driving more than 100 mph during a chase.

No comment from sheriff

The Wake Sheriff's Office refused to comment on how its Z06 will be used or who gets to drive it. Spokeswoman Phyllis Stephens said the car could not be photographed because the deputy it was assigned to was not on duty until today.

There are several photos of the sheriff's car posted on Internet sites run by Corvette enthusiasts, however.

Wake Commissioner Tony Gurley, who used to race Chevy stock cars, said he first heard about the Z06 being used by the sheriff's office while at a recent auto show. "I was looking at a Highway Patrol car, and a trooper told me about it," Gurley said. "He was jealous. I told him that I didn't remember voting on any funds to authorize that. I can't even afford one for myself."

Board Chairman Harold Webb wondered whether using a Corvette as a police cruiser sends the wrong message at a time when the Sheriff's Office and other county agencies are imposing deep budget cuts and layoffs.

"I hope he didn't use any stimulus money for this," Webb said.

[m21sniper]

"I can get those to you at my convenience and at a time allowed by law," Harrison said. "We'll get you public records when I get time to get the public records to you."

What a douche.

Correction, mega douche:

State public records law dictates that government agencies provide public records "as promptly as possible."

Harrison said he was displeased that a reporter had called county commissioners for comment about the car before he could hold a news conference about it.

In a telephone interview, Harrison also said, "You’re not going to force me to talk about anything, you understand? I’ve got a schedule to run. I don’t sell papers.”

This is one of those petty, don't belong in Law Enforcement jackasses that infuriate me.

[austin552]

Well he wont be doing the PIT.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Pretty sure selling the car for a quick $40k or so would have been a bit more wise, considering the current economic climate.

I remember as a kid the local PD had an '80s Corvette as the DARE car. It was a seizure car and used in parades and at schools. Pretty cool to see a Corvette with a light bar.

[GothingNC]

I give it a week until someone wrecks it

[MMARSH]

Maybe I missed it in your original post, but I didn't see this important quote from the article:

"County Manager David Cooke said that the Corvette was seized from a drug dealer but that he could provide no further information."

Ok, just reread ur post and saw it.