LENOIR, NC (August 10, 2021) — Residents might do a double take during the next couple of weeks when a Lenoir Police Department patrol car rolls by. The department is switching to a new color and striping scheme.
The new patrol cars are silver with black trim. The striping on the side of the car is a swoosh that fades from black to silver to black and is outlined in blue similar to the current patrol car swoosh. Underneath the swoosh is the police department patch, the word “POLICE” with a fade from white at the top to black at the bottom, and “Lenoir, NC” in solid black. On the rear side panel is “911” in black and “LENOIR POLICE” is on the back of the car with the same fade as the side.
Chief Brent Phelps said the department had to change color schemes because it was becoming harder and harder to get cars with the darker blue paint.
“We were running into issues with car manufacturers on the color,” Chief Phelps said. ” We have been told for several years that the color blue we use would no longer be an option in the police package.”
Manufacturers said the only colors that would be available in the police package for the Dodge Charger patrol car would be white, black, red, or silver. Staff decided to go with silver because they thought it looked the best, and it was the most similar to the old gray police cars that were around before the department switched to blue.
“Years ago, the LPD cars were a gray color, so we thought this would be a good way to honor our history,” Phelps said. “We felt like silver would be easier to keep clean, and we think we will be able to get silver cars for a long time.”
Since the department was changing vehicle colors, they decided to change the striping pattern as well. Staff worked with the graphic designer that stripes the car to design the new swoosh and pick the colors.
Currently, the department has four patrol cars in the new color scheme. It’ll take several years to switch all 40-plus vehicles to the new scheme, so residents will see both the blue and silver vehicles around town.
“This will be a project the next chief has to finish,” Chief Phelps said.
Chief Phelps said he wants residents to know that the department has a new color scheme and will be using two different color cars for a while.
“There could be some hesitation from a citizen to pull over if they don’t recognize the new color or from residents when we respond to calls,” Chief Phelps said. “We want to let the public know of the change and why people will see two completely different cars for a while.”
