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Want to Buy a New Chevrolet Caprice? You Can, Sort Of

Chevrolet's built-in-Australia, fleet-only police car isn't catching on in America. On a somewhat related note, you can now buy a lightly used one.

By Sam Smith May 11, 2012 7:13AM
2012 Chevrolet Caprice PPV. Image courtesy GM.You might not have heard, but the Chevrolet Caprice -- the rear-wheel-drive, Zeta-platform police car developed specifically for American use -- isn't selling well.  
 
According to Car and Driver, just 542 Caprices have been sold since the beginning of this year. One hundred forty-two of those were the fleet-spec, government-only Caprice; the rest were general fleet cars. In fact, the Caprice is offered in America only as a fleet purchase, which means that if police departments, rental companies et al. aren't buying, nobody is.
 
So, yes, General Motors sold 542 examples of a mass-market sedan over four months. To a captive audience without a lot of options.
 
This number is microscopic even without context, but as C/D points out, context makes it seem even tinier. GM's Zeta platform also underpins the Australian-market Holden Commodore and the extinct Pontiac G8. The Caprice is essentially a long-wheelbase Commodore, while the G8 was the short one. In 2008, Pontiac sold 15,002 G8s in America. In 2009, it moved 23,157. Then Pontiac was killed off.

The point here? Like a lot of people, I miss the Pontiac G8 -- badly. It was a great car, a perfect blend of old-school American character and modern dynamic goodness. And while you can't buy a new one any more, you can buy a new Caprice, which is almost the same thing. And that's in spite of GM's mandate that its dealers cannot sell the car to ordinary citizens. Here's how to do it.  
 
OK, a correction: You can buy a nearly new Caprice. Basically, one with low enough miles that it might as well be new. So I'm calling it the same thing. If you care, you're picking nits.
 
Here's the deal: General Motors prohibits its dealers from selling new Caprices to nonfleet customers. (This was not always the case, but that loophole is now closed.) But it can't keep those dealers from selling used, ex-fleet Caprices to customers, even if said cars have barely been driven. What this means is that you end up with classifieds like this and offers like this:

Chevrolet Caprice for sale to the public. Screencap from: http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=10012&endYear=2013&modelCode1=CAP&startYear=1981&makeCode1=CHEV&searchRadius=0&listingId=314547854&Log=0.
The car above has 9,200 miles, a 300-horsepower V8 engine, a 6-speed automatic transmission and rear-wheel drive. It's being offered for $29,394. It's the only relatively cheap GM rear-drive 4-door you can buy that isn't a 3-year-old Pontiac G8. (For reference, a 2012 Cadillac CTS-V, GM's other new-car-with-a-V8-an​d-rear-drive option, costs roughly twice as much.) There are other Caprices out there, many of them with fewer miles, some with factory-certified pre-owned warranties. How cool is that?

2012 Chevrolet Caprice. Image courtesy GM.Plus, you get enough black paint, you could spray yours up to look like the above, or maybe make a modern version of this thing, just to confuse people. The possibilities for silliness are endless.

Chevrolet Supersports trademark. Image courtesy US Patent Office.Footnote: If this isn't good enough for you, and you want a Chevrolet-badged, rear-drive sedan that isn't a Cadillac, then be patient. One is coming in 2013. (Hint at left.) And it should be cool. 

Footnote II: A friend recently sent me the following bit of trivia. I found it interesting, so I'm pasting it in here directly: 

Since the fleet Caprice can be equipped as a patrol car or as a detective's car, there are two meaningful differences: The patrol cars have been set up to take a plastic divider between the rows of seats, and that means there are no rear-seat airbags. There are front side airbags. The detective cars to me are far more desirable — in addition to the full-length curtain airbags, they are less likely to have vinyl seats, and the center console is normal, with no side shifter.
Detective cars! Ignore what he said; the patrol console has this compact side shifter to make way for radios and things, and that's just cooler than words.

[Source: Car and Driver, Jalopnik.]
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6Comments
kodo the lion
May 11, 2012 11:36AM
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Pontiac G8 was such a great muscle car.  The gentleman's muscle car.
VerumEternus
May 11, 2012 8:02AM
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I know of only one local department that has purchased the Chevrolets, the rest seem to being replacing their Crown Vics with Dodge Chargers. 
Annatar
May 11, 2012 9:58AM
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What is unclear is why GM banned the sale of new units to the general public? Apart from the Impala looking taillights and the automatic transmission, that car is excellent, as far as gasoline cars go.

For how large it is, the suspension, handling and performance are fantastic. Plenty of room too, and we have gotten up to 37 MPG when the computer shuts off fuel injection to half of the cylinders. One has to admit, for a 6.0 L V8, that is impressive fuel economy.

MN Gearhead
May 11, 2012 11:15AM
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Can't wait, get a used G8. You wouldn't be sorry.  Fully serviceable at any Chevy dealer and at  3 years old they are just getting properly broke in. 
insert random name
May 11, 2012 11:58AM
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Can't wait, get a used G8.

I was a handshake away from a used G8 GT (V8 auto) back when they were liquidating the new inventory.  Back then GM was offering $8k off new Pontiac models (in addition to dealer rebates) and that made the used models EXTREMELY cheap.  I drove one and loved it and made them an offer.  They came back slightly higher then I wanted and while I considered it, I decided it wasn't worth it for an automatic transmission. 

 

Now that the new inventory (and $8k rebate) are long gone, the prices for the used inventory are back to normal levels and they are more expensive.  But someday I might hold out for used GXP with the six speed manual. 

 

It was a sweet car.

Rowdygator20
May 13, 2012 1:49PM
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Hoy diggity dog! So all the hate-mail missives I dutifully cranked out to The General bemoaning the Pontiac G8 GT being axed weren't in vain. And it'll be a Chevy to boot! Christmas has done come early.

 

Yo Smith,one reason why I wouldn't buy one of these cop car knockoffs? I'm not black. That's their gig,buying up every Impala and Crown Vic that the city puts on the block.

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