What makes the best storm chasing vehicle?

[Tom Burgess]

Thats quite incredible. Because I have the exact same camera you have on your dash with a 9 volt battery in it to make the red LED on the front flash sitting in my garage... I knew it looked familiar...

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Most fake ones are made from real cases. Somewhere there is always a real on that looks like your fake one.

 

[Bryce Stone]

Thought I'd offer these pictures as a cautionary tale for any of you that are considering permenant decals for your vehicle. This is my new car for this year. It is a 2001 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor. It comes from the Michigan State Police and had less than 85,000 when I got it.

Because of the aftermarket equipment (spotlights, pushbumper, radios, lights, etc.) I almost had to place decals to avoid law enforcement thinking I was trying to impersonate. I really wanted magnetic signs, but they were WAY expensive and would have looked like . . . well, magnetic signs. So I went with permenant decals.

It has been a nightmare. This is my daily driver, and everywhere I go I get questions or comments. Stuff ranging from "What are we getting" to "I don't see no turnaders 'round here" to "What do you do with the storms when you catch them?" I highly recommend that if you're considering permenant decals to NOT do it, at least not unless you plan on driving the car only for chasing.

On the plus side, LE seems to like the car and I have had no problems with them. You don't get pulled over in this car unless you're being really stupid. Also, it has speed and can take abuse from the highway. I've spent 25+ hours this week chasing in it and have been really happy with it. It looks pretty sharp when it's washed. I'd recommend a used cop car to anyone because of the durability, but learn from my mistake and steer clear of the permenant decals.

Edit: Don't want to get into the light debate, but there are lights on the car. Most of them are unseen (strobes), but there are two mini amber LED lightbars on the rear deck. They don't stick out too much. I put lights on it because with my EOC I have had to work traffic control and needed the lights. When chasing, I almost always will just use my hazards on the side of the road. Also wanted to mention the camera mount: I got one of the suction cup mounts and used four screws to mount it on my dash. It is very sturdy and looks professionally mounted.

 

[Cris Schroeder]

Wow, Bryce, that's a dead ringer for a Kansas state police car. I'd probably check my speed if I saw you on the highway!

My favorite chase vehicle is the family Chevy Venture with AWD. As long as I'm on-road, it'll make it through just about anything. Plus, I can watch DVD's in the back while waiting for the cap to break. However, the idea of hail damage doesn't go over very well with the primary driver. For now, I'm sticking to my Chevy Aveo. I wouldn't put in a 1500-mile day in it, but it handles fairly well and gets 30+ mpg. Since I almost always chase by myself there's no problem with interior space. From Clearwater I can (in theory) make it to E Colorado, the OK panhandle, or W Nebraska and back without stopping for the night, so sleeping in the car hasn't been an issue for me.

 

[Bryce Stone]

Thanks for the info, Cris. I was trying to go for a weird color that no one uses around here. I did check the KHP webpage because I'd never seen a blue KHP car. To my surprise, they use several colors (I believe that most state trooper orginizations just have one color scheme). Their main color schemes seem to be blue, silver, and white, but they have other colors as well.

Yeah, the one bad thing about this car is the RWD. Can't do too much off-roading. After several encounters with rain-soaked mud roads, I'm half-seriously considering a monster truck when I go shopping for a new chase vehicle in a few years. Being able to get close to storms or get away from storms has always been an issue with me because I have never had a vehicle that could handle off-road conditions. I opted for this car because it was handy, cheap, had low miles, and was in excellent condition. The only problem with it is that mud is off-limits.

 

[bvassmer]

I drive a 1999 Saturn SW2. It gets about 35-40 mpg on the road, with the help of a transmission swap and nice driving. It has 145k miles and other than the dead tranny @ 103k, it works great.

As for my perfect car, I love the concept of a Subaru Outback. AWD is something that I had in my Saturn (if it were possible).

As for my wish car, my wife and I have a 2001 Jeep Cherokee 4x4 with the I6 4.0L engine. I love that SUV. I would love to chase in it, but it is in too nice of shape to take out into the risk of hail (and it is her car ). It gets about 17-24 mpg normally, which isn't too bad for a Jeep.

 

[John Erwin]

It has been a nightmare. This is my daily driver, and everywhere I go I get questions or comments. Stuff ranging from "What are we getting" to "I don't see no turnaders 'round here" to "What do you do with the storms when you catch them?" I highly recommend that if you're considering permenant decals to NOT do it, at least not unless you plan on driving the car only for chasing.

Hi Bryce, nice ride!

I think there's several issues here; first of all large bright letters on any vehicle attract attention, which is probably why companies often use that space to advertise their product or service. I can see how you would get the inevitable questions, both stupid and otherwise. Personally I'm not inclined to put signs or decals on my ride but I don't really care what others do in this regard.

The other factor here that I think multiplies things in your case is the fact that you're driving an ex-police car, and you've outfitted it to continue looking like one somewhat. Even without the decals you're going to provoke some kind of reaction from at least a certain percentage of people; some will admire the ride, some will be confused and others will mutter things like "whacker" etc.

So I think in this case a person sees something that looks a bit like a police car, they see the sign and of course they're curious..maybe thoughts like "is this an 'official' car for storm chasing" etc... not too much of a stretch to imagine some of the comments you would get.

Personally I understand the interest in police equipment and vehicles and have known a few people who've built up rides similar to yours, however like a lot of things I think one has to expect a certain amount of negativity (or simply a bunch of questions) from some folks when one has something like this.

Cheers!

 

[Andrew Gunneson]

I also drive an old police interceptor. I've heard a lot of people talk bad about them, but I've had mine for 2 years and am quite confident in my handling abilities. I'm an Extra class amateur radio operator and a volunteer examiner (VE).. So that's why all the antennas. The long one is HF.

I figure most people around here know that I'm not a cop since all of the cars around here are the newer body style, but people still continue to surprise me now and then.

I'll be taking it west and south this year for my first 'real' chases. I'm tired of lurking around here reading and watching videos all the time. I want my own experiences.

 

[Jody Radzik]

For what it's worth, here's a look at my vehicle:

http://nmupdraft.blogspot.com/2007/03/introducing-ativata.html

I've stopped using the magnetic signs to stay more in stealth mode. I basically took my truck and added the fog lights. Since this picture was taken I've added an ARB antenna mount and Firestik to the right front of the bull bar. I've got a suspension that's been beefed up with OME components from Australia. The engine is mostly stock save for the addition of an Injen air intake and a flow-thru muffler. It sounds like a Baja 1000 racer when I hit the gas, although it's not nearly as fast as that. I get about 18 miles to the gal. when all is running well.

 

[David Drummond]

I've always preferred identification on the vehicle myself. I've chased without it and with all these friendly rural folks on the plains, someone stopping just about every time a car passes by on a rural road asking if your ok and need help was just getting darn right annoying. With the decals, people still stop once in a while to ask about what the weather is doing and if it's safe to proceed to their destination. I much would much rather be answering those questions than the constant "You need some help? Are you broke down?" questions.

Since I have had the TV station markings I get about an equal amount of people asking about the weather with people who just wanted to meet someone from the TV station.

I don't know how you guys get the magnets to stay though. Every time I ever used them I lost them on the first chase.

 

[Mickey Ptak]

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lol I thought you were the sheriff when I saw you on March 28 2007. I said out loud to my chase partner, S**T the damn Sheriff is turning around".

My personal chase ride has nothing on it and I like it that way because no one bugs me. Now my chase partner's ride has the mesonet on his car which attracks plenty of people and it kind of gets on my nerves.


Mick

 

[Bryce Stone]

John:

they see the sign and of course they're curious..maybe thoughts like "is this an 'official' car for storm chasing" etc

Thanks for the discussion, John. This is what I get the most-people thinking I'm an "official" storm chaser. Oddly enough, many seem to think I'm with a TV station. Like I said, I've only had the car for a couple of months and it has been a learning experience. I definately wouldn't make the same choice of vehicle/graphic combination again. In fact, after this experience I'm thinking I'm not big on graphics at all . . . maybe something small on the trunk/rear window, but that's it. Trouble is, the car has about 87k and I'm stuck with it for a while. Might see about getting a second vehicle and driving this one during March-June only.

Jody: nice ride! I wanted a SUV, but this car was cheaper. I envy you your mud-slinging ability.

Mickey: That's funny. I actually had the sheriff's dept. thinking I was a cop a few weeks ago. I had pulled off the N/S road near an intersection to replace a fuse (had the hood up) and a couple of them drove through the intersection going E/W. I guess they didn't get a good look at the graphics. I replaced the fuse and drove on, but I was listening to the radio and they said they had turned around and were coming back to help the cop in the blue car who was broken down.

 

[Darrin Rasberry]

I don't think "any one will do fine" works; if I still had that old Suzuki Samurai, I'd at least have fun taking a big flight even in proximity to an EF0 before I bite it

I'm a bit worried about an older Civic. It'll be ten. It's in good shape, but at 95k miles "good shape" necessitates "as far as I know." The last thing I'd ever need is for my car to freakin' overheat and melt down during a backaway from an approaching surprise satellite tornado ... does anyone else have anything around a '98 Civic?

If need be, I'm going to plan to stay a nice, hearty distance.

Best answer to this is certainly a tank, but I think those are kinda not an option. /=

 

[Jeremy Ludin]

Kidding aside...my '99 GMC Sonoma 4WD has been a very reliable vehicle although it's getting up there in mileage. When it comes time to shop around again, two things are certain: it'll be another truck and it'll have 4WD. I don't know where I'd be without it.

 

[Rob Cannon]

I have a 2001 Honda Civic... it's a pack of gum when loaded, but it works for me and a buddy. (he lost interest, soo I am back to staying in my area) A couple of guys around me use Subaru Foresters and such. Most of the County EMA guys bought/use Ford Crown Vic's and Chevy Impala's. I used to have a 2001 Ford Ranger, but traded it in for a more fuel efficient vehicle.

 

[Brandon Sullivan]

I love my 03 Jeep Liberty Renegade.

Granted, I just got it so haven't had a "Chase" in it yet.. But the 4WD works great! Paid 14,100 for mine. Without Tax/Title/Insurance. I didn't complain too much.

If you get the renegade package, you usually get:

Pro's:
4WD
Off Road Lights
Moonroof
Leather Seats
Heated Mirrors
17 Inch Wheels
Skid Plates
Pretty Powerful 3.7 V6

Cons:
22 MPG
Not Many Mounting Solutions, if you don't want to drill into interior lots!