WATSON, La. (BRPROUD) – “Barney wishes he had a car like this!” Those words came from the current owner of the 1972 Ford Custom 500 429 Police Interceptor seen below.
Have you ever been in transit around Livingston Parish and noticed this older police car?
If you are one of those people, you are likely one of many who have seen its owner, Perry Rushing, driving around in this 1972 Ford Custom 500 429 Police Interceptor.
This video from Heartbeat Films provides some history behind the 50-year-old retired police car.
When it is nice outside, Perry Rushing said he takes it for a spin several times a month.
It can be seen everywhere from his work, to church and car shows to boot.
Perry Rushing gave us a peak at the engine under the hood of this 50-year-old vehicle.
So what would it look like if you were sitting in the driver’s seat? The car owner showed us what that would look like too. The video below is courtesy of Perry Rushing.
The Livingston Parish man purchased the vehicle about a year and a half ago and reassembled it for use on the road.
Rushing found the vintage police car on Facebook and had it transported from Ohio.
The vehicle restoration started five years ago in Ohio.
This retired highway patrol car was once used in South Carolina.
A written description found below provides even more details about this hard to find vehicle.
Greg Bunch calls himself a classic car enthusiast and he said this about the 1972 Ford Custom 500 429 Police Interceptor.
I absolutely love to see a well-preserved classic car. This car is absolutely beautiful, and truly special because it not only retains the original features of the car itself, but all of the equipment specific to its use in law enforcement. It’s a lovingly preserved time capsule on wheels!
This is not the first retired police car that Perry Rushing has owned over the years.
Rushing said he has owned dozens including a retired 1972 Ford Mississippi Highway Patrol car and retired 1972 Ford Louisiana State Police car.
Those two police cars had the 429 Police interceptor engine in them.
Rushing said, “Back then, we would drive them a while, repurpose the engine for another car, usually a Mustang, and then “junk” the police car body.”
The police car body is not so easy to find today.
So, how well does the 1972 Ford Custom 500 429 Police Interceptor run these days?
For a police car that was considered state of the art in 1972, Rushing said it runs very well.
As Rushing said, “There is nothing like driving a car with “big ole” chrome bumpers and a carbureted high performance V/8 engine.”
So the next time you see this 50-year-old retired police car on the road, you will know something about its place in law enforcement history.