What retired police cars sell for on GovDeals

Published November 1, 2026 · Updated November 2, 2026 · GavelGap · Original data · 1,553 sales

Retired police vehicles (Ford Police Interceptor Utility and Sedan, Crown Victoria, Dodge Charger and Durango Pursuit, police Tahoes) sold for a median $3,000 on GovDeals across 1,553 auctions that closed from May 22 to October 31, 2026. Half sold between $1,525 and $4,600.

The numbers

Every police vehicle auction on GovDeals that closed from May 22, 2026 to October 31, 2026 with a confirmed result:

Metric	Police vehicles
Auctions with a confirmed result	1,566
Sold	1,553
Median winning bid	$3,000
Middle half sold for	$1,525 to $4,600
Top 10% sold for	$6,300 or more
Median with the 12.5% buyer's premium	$3,375 before tax and transport
Median bids per sold lot	36
Median model year	2017

What moves the price

Newer barely costs more. A 2018 to 2020 police vehicle sold for a median $3,960 and a 2021 or newer one for $4,200. For civilian pickups the same step is $9,100 to $15,500. Patrol units retire with high miles and long idle hours, and bidders price that in.

State matters a lot. New York's 244 sales had a median of $1,213. Ohio's 203 went for $4,355 and South Carolina's 156 for $4,225.

Check what the agency removed (lights, radios, partitions, consoles) and what it left behind (holes, harnesses, spotlight mounts). Both change what the car is worth to the next owner. 59% of sold police vehicles drew more than 30 bids.

By model year

Model year	Sold	Median winning bid
2010 or older	104	$1,538
2011-2014	264	$2,025
2015-2017	427	$2,725
2018-2020	521	$3,960
2021 or newer	237	$4,200

By how contested the auction was

Bids on the sold lot	Sold	Share	Median winning bid
1-5 bids	103	7%	$1,000
6-15 bids	229	15%	$1,260
16-30 bids	309	20%	$2,024
Over 30 bids	909	59%	$3,889

Higher bid counts often go with higher prices because the nicer lots draw more bidders. Read this table as a map of where the competition is, not as a bidding strategy.

By month

Month	Sold	Median winning bid
May 2026*	93	$3,025
June 2026	158	$2,575
July 2026	237	$3,166
August 2026	311	$3,025
September 2026	325	$2,925
October 2026	429	$2,925

* Partial month: tracking for this item starts May 22, 2026.

By state

The states with the most sales (at least 10 each):

State	Sold	Median winning bid
New York	244	$1,213
Ohio	203	$4,355
South Carolina	156	$4,225
Tennessee	114	$3,451
Washington	103	$3,050
Texas	85	$3,050
Pennsylvania	77	$1,950
California	61	$1,825
New Jersey	51	$1,650
Kentucky	49	$3,525

Recent sales

The latest 8 sold, as GovDeals titled them:

Lot title	Where	Bids	Winning bid	Ended
2013 Ford Taurus AWD Police Interceptor Sedan (ID#48446) (FTL) (26-2869) 21716	WA	19	$2,305	Oct 31
2014 Ford Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan (ID# 48447) (FTL) (26-2904) 21716	WA	17	$2,025	Oct 31
2016 Ford Explorer AWD Police Interceptor SUV (ID# 48450) (FTL) (26-2870) 21716	WA	31	$2,525	Oct 31
2017 Ford Explorer Police Interceptor AWD 4DR SUV (ID #48445) (OEF06) (26-3157) 11700	WA	56	$3,651	Oct 31
2020 Chevy Tahoe Police Vehicle	TX	2	$7,100	Oct 31
2016 Ford Explorer Police 4WD SEE VIDEO!!!	NY	15	$1,425	Oct 30
2018 Ford Explorer Police Interceptor AWD	OH	69	$4,500	Oct 30
2018 Ford Explorer Police Interceptor AWD	OH	50	$5,450	Oct 30

What it resells for

We don't publish a resale estimate for police vehicles as a group. Our police cruiser case study follows one car from a $1,570 GovDeals sale to a $4,250 open-market resale. That's one car, not a typical result. Price the exact unit by VIN and mileage, then take off the premium, tax, title and transport.

The winning bid is your cost, not the item's value. Everything above is what buyers paid at auction. Your profit is what the police vehicle resells for, minus the winning bid, the buyer's premium, tax, title, removal and shipping. See GovDeals fees explained, then run your numbers through the profit calculator.

GavelGap puts the other half of the math on every GovDeals listing: what the lot resells for, what it costs you landed, and the pickup-only, title and condition problems that sink a deal, right in your browser.

Try GavelGap free →

Methodology

We include every GovDeals auction that ended from May 1, 2026 through November 1, 2026 whose outcome GovDeals confirmed by status, bid history or bid count. Lots we couldn't confirm either way are left out, as are sellers that sell at a fixed price with no bidding (at least 90% of 20 or more sales with no recorded bid). Police vehicles are cars and SUVs whose title says Police, Interceptor, Pursuit or PPV, with a model year on the listing. Parts listings (seats, consoles, bumpers) are excluded. Multi-unit lots ("lot of 10", "(4)", "10ea", pallets) are excluded so every price is for one item. Winning bids are the final bid before the buyer's premium and tax; Canadian lots are converted from CAD to USD. "Bids" is the bid count on the sold lot, which can include several bids from one person, so read it as a measure of how contested a lot was. Year, bid and state rows need at least 10 sales. We don't publish per-lot resale estimates.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I buy a retired police car?

Cities, counties and state agencies sell retired patrol cars and SUVs at public auction, much of it on GovDeals. We tracked 1,553 police vehicles sold there from May 22 to October 31, 2026, at a median winning bid of $3,000.

How much do retired police cars sell for at government auction?

On GovDeals the median winning bid was $3,000 across 1,553 police vehicles sold from May 22 to October 31, 2026. The middle half sold between $1,525 and $4,600.

Are newer police interceptors much more expensive?

Less than you'd expect. 2018 to 2020 units sold for a median $3,960 and 2021 or newer units for $4,200.

Where are retired police cars cheapest?

In our data, New York had the lowest median of the busy states at $1,213 across 244 sales. Ohio ($4,355) and South Carolina ($4,225) were the highest. Condition and age differ by state, so compare like with like.

What does the winner pay on top of the bid?

GovDeals adds a buyer's premium, usually 12.5%, plus sales tax, title fees and transport. On the $3,000 median that's about $3,375 before tax and transport.

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