I have just posted pictures of the two CHP Ford Crown Vics from First Response on my website, right on the front page at www.policecarmodels.com, you can scroll down and see larger pictures as well. These are PRODUCTION CARS. NICE!!
www.policecarmodels.com

Thanks Jeff. The CHP cars look good. Just a question in your photo's near slick top white versions rear wheels look out of whack. What is the story with that??

Mark - It looks like the rear wheels on the CHP slicktop may have been pushed on the axle just a bit too far when made, I am sure that these can be easily adjusted back to correct

Jeff,

How about the grill on the "white" CHP car, shouldn't it be BLACK?

Location: NM

I would assume on the real thing the grill would be black. The first picture provided by First Response showed a black grill, but also an all black pushbar, which was not correct - the pushbar is white.

Here is a picture of the real thing, it sort of looks to me like the entire grill is white. On the real car of course the grill itself has holes, on the 1/43 model the grill is a solid piece

http://l.yimg.com/www.flickr.com/images/spaceball.gif

Sorry, try this one for a picture of the front end of the white CHP FCV:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sspvortech/457405741/

Thanks for the info Jeff. On the white push bar etc, Dick W posted sometime back that the unmarked white versions have the extra white push bumper etc. This was one of the details that FR insisted be correct before the car is released. If you look at previous photo's the push bumper etc are black which was incorrect.

The real white CHP marked cars have white grilles and white pushbumpers. I believe this was done to make the cars look less aggressive with the black grille. I could be wrong on the reasoning though.

Location: Staten Island, NY

The whole ideas of the white car is stealth (even though its marked to a certain degree) the white grill and push bars are designed to blend in with the rest of the car so they cannot be easily made out as police from a distance.

Here is a photo of a white one that I took yesterday. I'm not really sure why it doesn't have push bumpers? This is the first one I have seen without them. But as you can see in the photo, even the outside mirrors, and the LED lights on the bumper have all white housings.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v309/tgibson4653/IMG_2794.jpg

Any idea why the bumper LED's are angled outward?

LED's are more visible when they are straight on.

It's for clearing intersections...front grill or bumper lights do nothing for side visibility when they are mounted straight ahead. Any slicktop should have side visibility lighting for this exact reason. Front coner strobes (which are usually white) don't cut it, and are not an emergency color.

We are running out of October folks. Weren't we told all the CVs going to be available by now? Now I'm hearing rumors the wheels may be lose. What is the real story? Just trying to get a straight answer.

i have seen these in person at dd booth at the ihobbyexpo in rosemont ill and they look very nice and as for the wheels being the ones i was able to hold in my hands which was about 5 of them they were all fine

Chuck. Manny's Diecast reported about a week ago or so that they won't be out until the end of November now. I'm still amazed that a mold that already existed can take this long to get squared away. These delays have gone beyond reasonable. I know that they want the cars to be "perfect", but come on already

I agree Troy, its getting long in the tooth. I just reviewed my order form from policecarmodels, and its dated June 9th. Can't blame Jeff, but someone has to tell Dennis we can't wait forever.

I've got ya beat. My order is dated April 29th.

These items were announced in January - a full 10 months ago. At that time, they were slated for mid to late 2nd quarter...that means NO LATER than June 30. Occasionally delays happen, but this is ridiculous. I know this is only diecast, but company planning is all relative. If FORD or GM announced a 5 month delay on a new line, where would they be? Their stock would tank in a heartbeat and people would call for the CEO's head. Once again, just like Code3 leadership failed to explain their actions to their customers, which alienated many of its loyal customers...first response could be headed that direction barely out of the gates. My guess is they will be eating a lot of these (or their dealers will) if they are not readilly available soon.

As seen on another site. It's seems that the latest delay is blamed on the wildfires in CA. Go figure???

This is my last comment on these cars until they are actually in stores and being shipped to customers. Walt Conroy has stated on his site that the cars are on a boat that was diverted from the Port of LA due to the fires ( How fires disrupt shipping on the high seas is for someone else to explain as I have got nothing on the subject) The delay is expected to push the cars release until mid November. Time will tell if these date are accurate. On a much brighter note, Walt's site also mentions that all 50 States are being pursued by FR to replicate in their police line. Also mentioned is the fact that General Motors want to have more of their vehicles done by FR. Go over to Walt Conroys Cruiser site for info.
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I have to agree that the delays and delays and more delays are totally out of hand. However, I must say that these cars are not the only things that have been announced and are delayed. These other items include Classic Metal Works HO busses, Hot Wheels Batmobiles... there are cars that have been in the Minichamps catalog for 2-4 years that have yet to be issued - just to name a few. I am not trying to make excuses for First Response or any other company. I think they have done a very poor job of explaining things, all they do is change their delivery dates. I have asked First Response for some sort of official word on the delays, and exact delivery dates - if I get a reply I will post it here.

I have said before that I am behind this new line and I still am, especially after seeing two production run cars in my hands, as well as the sample of their Dodge Charger. I will say that, at least on my website, I have not collected one dollar for any of these cars that have been pre-ordered, and will not hold up people's money until the products are in hand and ready to ship. I take preorders to gauge interest and to determine how many models to order.

I think we will all enjoy these cars when they do finally arrive.
Jeff at www.policecarmodels.com

Didn't speccast already go that route of trying to have all 50 states? I thought there are 2 or 3 at least that wouldn't grant the licensing.

I also have samples of several of these cars and agree that they will be worth the wait, as trying as that is. The only drawback is that the spotlight on the passenger side is mounted in the windshield, not on the A-pillar as on the driver's side. I suspected that was because the original mold was created for the Pennsylvania State Police Centennial Committee series and the PSP cars only have one spotlight. I asked Dennis Deal about that and he confirmed it is correct - would cost way too much to change the mold, as the original car has a cutout on the driver's door to accomodate the light mount when the door is closed. Apart from that small detail the cars are really super (the passenger side light, on the cars that have one, is mounted as close as possible to the pillar and isn't readily noticeable as being on the windshield unless you're a detail fanatic like me). The Charger is even better than the Crown Vic and will be one of the best American police models ever made.

I agree with Jeff. Although the delays have been substantial, I feel this will be an awesome new line of police cars (once they finally arrive)!
We are currently working on a Premier Police vehicle with First Response (it will be available next year) and look forward to doing more premiers in the future.

Manny
www.mannysdiecast.com

Location: NY

****Disclaimer**** I am not commenting about the FR cars in this post. This is a reply to our nameless poster above. Yes, some states have refused to play ball in the past with Diecast Companies. Most note worthy are Pennsylvania SP and New Hampshire SP. Both of these departments look to be on board with this new line. So the 50 are looking promising (Except for Steve McGarrett Island, no State Police there)

I personally wish that the USA diecast companies would learn from German Diecast companies such as MINICHAMPS. I don't see the need of opening doors, trunks & hoods for 1:43 scale models. In my opinion, the IXO Ford Crown Vic in some respects is better than the First Response Crown Vic. Maybe in time "they" will realize that we want highly accurate, highly detailed "Models", not TOYS!

Location: NM

I placed my order through die-cast direct for the two CHP cars. I hope I see them by Christmas.

Location: CA

I have to echo John's comments on opening doors, hood, and trunk (and steering). Sure, if you are repainting a car into say FHP, opening full doors make the job easier, but masking tape is readily available. I'd prefer to see R&D money spent towards a more accurate model.

One more little observation. I actually got interested in converting cop cars because PSP wasn't readily available. It gave me something to do, as I'd rather make it myself than buy it off the shelf. With the help of Ed Baldini, I was able to convert and repaint a variety of cars and trucks over the period from the 30s to present. PSP seemed to change their colors and design every couple of years, so it made modeling interesting. Plus I got to make friends with a lot of great people.