US police recruit a 43-year-old Chevrolet Camaro

A Michigan County Sheriff has a ‘new’ ride – a 1981 Chevrolet Camaro, purchased with money seized by police from drug cartels.

Saginaw County Sheriff William Federspiel this week unveiled the latest recruit to the fleet, complete with period-correct black and white police livery and signage.

Sheriff Federspiel told Michigan news outlet MLive the 1981 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 was bought at an online auction for US$29,000 (A$44,540) after his department and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) seized funds from a drug cartel operating in the region.

According to the Sheriff, the Camaro will be used for his regular police duties, which will include putting any detained individuals in the front seat, due to the coupe’s hard-to-access second row.

The reveal of Sheriff Federspiel’s new patrol car reportedly came ahead of schedule, as he was due to reveal it in November after hopefully being re-elected Sheriff.

However, when the Camaro was spotted being worked on at a local workshop, he unveiled it early to then quash claims that taxpayer money had been spent on it.

“It’s a way for me to communicate with the public,” Sheriff Federspiel told MLive. 

“People come up to me all the time. They stopped me on the streets, and they want to know what’s behind this car, and I get to tell them.”

It’s unlikely the Camaro will be used in any pursuits though, as it was produced at the height of the US’s emissions-busting ‘smog’ era.

By 1981, this led to the Camaro Z/28’s 5.7-litre V8 being choked down to as low as 123kW in automatic examples such as this one, or less than you’ll find in a new Mazda MX-5 now.