Exterior Semi-Tech General discussion of exterior for the Ford Ranger.

unmarked cop look, might be cool

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Old 03-09-2010
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unmarked cop look, might be cool

was thinking of "new ideas", but it would all be external mods for the most part

bland rims (flat paint/no hubcaps), alley light, faux-blue-and-white flashers in grille, rubberized pushbar, extra antennas, etc.
anyone seen it done before? i think i might go for it with mine, with the camper cover it'd look more like an unmaked K9 unit, but it might be pretty cool. anybody with pics/photoshop jobs? seriously considering trying to do this.

also, anything i might not be thinking of to complete the look. would be awesome if it would be able to scare people at parties.

most interested in the alley light, they relatively easy to install? i saw a wrecked cop with dual alleys today, thought about snatching them up.
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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Just buy a used fleet XL lol. you'd be halfway there.
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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alley light = Spot light?
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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I'm thinking he's meaning the spot light. Might be able to find one at a junk yard? Might require a little hacking into your a-pillar tho. Should be an interesting look tho. Good luck with it.
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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this has bad idea written all over it specially if you do put blue and white lights in the grill.
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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Anything cop looking is uncool!!

Why would you want to look like a douche?
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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Most of the MA State highway rangers have the spotlights on them so it cant be that hard to do. Don't put and blue lights on it period.
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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Unitys website with an application guide

I used to order them all the time, Word to the wise they are outdated garbage lights that were designed in the fifties and require you to drill out and cut you a pillars and doors. If you want a spot light for function go with a Go light, but if you want it to look like a douche then go with Unity.

~HJ
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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i wasnt gonna actually do blua andwhites, i was thinking of doing grill markers like on the new SVT raptor, but they'd resemble blue and whites when they were off, just those grayish squares behind the grille.

you have to cut the a pillars? i dont wanna do anything to the doors ifi dont have to as well. i figured i would just be drilling, then sealing it to keep rain out.

whats the difference between go light and unity?
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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Originally Posted by seed60
Anything cop looking is uncool!!

Why would you want to look like a douche?
lol
 
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Old 03-09-2010
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if you do these mods, your asking for trouble. why give the police a reason to arrest or charge you with impersonating an officer? i like the idea about the rims and maybe a pushbar but the lights is asking for it
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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Let me ask you this...
Do you know any REAL officer who wants his personal vehicle to look like a cop car? I don't. If I met one, I would bet he would be a huge douche bag. You are asking for trouble for mounting illegal colored lights, appearing to impersonate an officer, and painting a target on your truck for vandals.
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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Originally Posted by morris
if you do these mods, your asking for trouble. why give the police a reason to arrest or charge you with impersonating an officer? i like the idea about the rims and maybe a pushbar but the lights is asking for it
all the things he wants to do would be legal as long as the blue lights are not used. some fire departments run blue lights and their off duty rapid responders can also use blue in these areas. he just cant actually use them.

just dont put police, or anything that can be misconstrued as some sort of government agency and you arent breaking any laws
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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For some reason I'm seeing the OP flying up behind vehicles just to see them pull over, or parking somewhere just to see cars slow down. Here's the best piece of advise you'll get on here without getting flamed.......DON'T DO IT!
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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IM NOT ACTUALLY DOING BLUE AND WHITES, AND I HAVE A 2.3 SO I"M NOT "FLYING UP" BEHIND ANYONE. THE LIGHTS I WAS THINKING OF INSTALLING ARE LED GRILLE MARKERS LIKE ON THE NEW RAPTOR, THE ALLEY LIGHT "the column mounted spotlight" WAS THE ONLY REAL COP-LIKE THING I"D INSTALL. and i've seen them on ricers and lead sleds, so its not like they'd be that convincing.

just clarifying, i just like the simple look, basically wanting people to "think" its a sleeper.
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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I’ll school you on Go lights VS unity.

Unity’s are door post mounted spot lights (in the rangers case) require you to put holes in your ranger in structural members and the door. Can easily be screwed up in the installation process resulting in a body shop visit (I’ve seen experienced installers screw them up when I designed utility trucks) after a period of time the will wear out and flop around as you drive.

Go lights, I recommend a magnetic mounted model, but you can hard mount them. All they need is a 12V cigarette lighter, or you can hard wire them and have a permanent joystick. They can be mounted anywhere and controlled in the cab from a remote control or joystick. They rotate 360* as well as go up and down. If I bought one I would get the remote controlled model, with a magnet mount so I can keep it locked in the cab when not in use. Then I can mount it in the rear, on the hood, or on the roof. Wherever I need it. It is a great product. I used to like Unity spotlights but after working with them for a few years there is no way I would put them on anything I own.

Golight :: Remote Controlled Searchlights & Spotlights

I think I would go with the MODEL 7901 (white) 7951 (black)

~HJ
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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thanks!

okay golight definitely looks like the better option, i cant find the price though how much does the 7951 cost? do you know?
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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Just spitballing, but i would say around $200. I never had to pay for them I just know how much we charged the customer for them.

~HJ
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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not too bad, cant afford it now though, ill definitely keep them in mind though
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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pushbar, yes, blacked out wheels, yes, everything else, no.
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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okay, not doing the column light, maybe a golight in the future.

anything i'm forgetting?

anyone know where i could get the "interceptor" emblem like they had on crown vics?
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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my truck is already debaged, black rims, black grill, and soon to be black tinit, all i need is a spot light and a cb anntena and i will be a unmarked
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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so im NOT the only one that liked the idea. i have a 9 ft fiberglass CB antenna i was thinking of putting on my back bumper when i decide where i'll be installing my CB
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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Originally Posted by Ace
this has bad idea written all over it specially if you do put blue and white lights in the grill.
he said FAUX blue and white, which means fake... i'm putting amber lights in my grill,. which will look the exact same when they are off

Originally Posted by morris
if you do these mods, your asking for trouble. why give the police a reason to arrest or charge you with impersonating an officer? i like the idea about the rims and maybe a pushbar but the lights is asking for it
see above

Originally Posted by gibsondale
okay, not doing the column light, maybe a golight in the future.

anything i'm forgetting?

anyone know where i could get the "interceptor" emblem like they had on crown vics?
the emblem you are thinking, "police interceptor" is easy to get, completely legal to put on any vehicle (even though it says police) but i wouldn't bother, as police interceptor is the model name for a p71 crown victoria... that is why the police cars you see don't see crown victoria on them, it says police interceptor, that's what the model is called.. if you put it on your truck, imo it would be like putting a suburban emblem on your truck...



Originally Posted by Black1987
my truck is already debaged, black rims, black grill, and soon to be black tinit, all i need is a spot light and a cb anntena and i will be a unmarked
no police vehicles i have seen in the past 10 years have the long cb type antennas, their radios all use UHF style puck antennas, look similar to a satellite radio antenna

seen here


and as for the spot light, a lot of vehicles now use lights built into the roof top light bar, alley lights are on the end (also known as alley sweeps) take down lights are in the middle of the front of the bar
 
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Old 03-10-2010
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i like you weezl.... great post that actually contains facts and no opinions for once in this thread
 

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