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New Graphics for the Boys in Blue

Posted by Jerrold Litwinenko / February 19, 2007

32 Comments

20070219_policegraphics.jpgToronto Police are phasing in new graphics for their cruiser fleet.

Opinion amongst enthusiasts about the new graphics seems to be mixed. Does the new design shout "serve and protect"? Is the font and design authoritative enough? Easily distinguished from other security company cars?

I think the new look has some nice flare, but it is a bit toyish.

The OPP also has plans for new painting schemes. They seem to have gone for a more menacing look.

20070219_policegraphics2.jpg

Photos: policecanada.ca/

Shout out to coleridge for pointing this out!

Discussion

32 Comments

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David / February 19, 2007 at 12:01 pm
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I think, for marked cruisers, they should go back to the old yellow colour. Now that was an instantly recognizable street presence!
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Jerrold / February 19, 2007 at 12:08 pm
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Yeah, the yellow cars were great because they were so easily noticed, but were they too easily seen (to the advantage of speeders and bad guys)?
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Shawn Micallef / February 19, 2007 at 12:11 pm
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Fantino wants to return the OPP to their old colours, the ones we grew up with on the back roads of Ontario. I don't have a passionate opinion (ie don't care) but you can't go wrong in black and white.

The new paint jobs, with the swipes, are too busy. Cars are weird and curvaceous things with weird elements like windows and mirrors to deal with -- making it hard to integrate a swish that travels through various zones. Better to stick with solid colours, like the new OPP.
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Gloria / February 19, 2007 at 12:48 pm
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Looks more like a box of laundry detergent than a police cruiser.
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Tanja / February 19, 2007 at 01:01 pm
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Wow, that Toronto car is hideous! I completely agree with the laundry detergent comment above, though it had more of a tube of toothpasth feel to me.
Such a dated and cheesy look.

As for the OPP car, I totally dig that. The simplicity there is perfect and it definitely looks like the police. It means business.

(And would fit in well on the set of Dukes of Hazard)
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Sameer Vasta / February 19, 2007 at 01:17 pm
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That new OPP car says 'badass' all over it. I mean, I'm thinking of buying a car with that color scheme now...

...the Toronto one says 'if you mess with me, I'm going to tell my mom' especially with that silly font. Not the kind of message I want my police department to be portraying.
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Jerrold / February 19, 2007 at 01:22 pm
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LOL at Tanja... it DOES say toothpaste.
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Steve Keys / February 19, 2007 at 01:39 pm
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Eww, that Toronto cop car is terrible.

OPP car screams: "Don't f*ck with us, buddy"
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Gloria / February 19, 2007 at 01:50 pm
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Oh God, a tube of toothpaste is even more apt!
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emo / February 19, 2007 at 02:33 pm
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it looks like they're doing a toy company tie in and have been forced to come up with a design they can market to kids..

they could have gone with this one instead - http://www.leftlanenews.com/wp-content/plugins/iimage-gallery.php?idpost=2894&;idg=1&idi=12
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bob / February 19, 2007 at 04:40 pm
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That looks like shit!
why would anybody want to make police cars look like that? looks like a toy someone might buy at dollarama.
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Chester Pape / February 19, 2007 at 04:59 pm
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The yellow cars got killed because the paint was a health hazard to the workers who had to apply it. They didn't call that colour cadmium yellow for nothing, there was a substaintial amount of cadmium sulfide in the paint and cadmium in quantity is very bad stuff, it's carcinogenic and inhalation of cadmium-containing fumes can result initially in metal fume fever but may progress to chemical pneumonitis, pulmonary edema, and death. At the time the MOE was also considering classifing the used cruisers as toxic waste beacuse of the cadmium.
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Jerrold / February 19, 2007 at 05:02 pm
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Hmm. Learn something new everyday.
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stung / February 19, 2007 at 08:14 pm
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You know whats funny about that is i found a brochure of 'vehicle templates'for EMS vehicles and that was exactly in the book! They couldn't even do a custom design.
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Adam C-F / February 19, 2007 at 09:54 pm
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I think the designs reflect the attitude of the chief for each service.
<P>
While Julian Fantino's OPP will be the authoritative traditional coppers, Bill Blair's TPS is intended to be a friendly, approachable service.
<P>
That being said, there's no excuse for such an ugly design. An interesting approach would have been to do a design competition. It would have been telling to see how Torontonians think of the people who do law enforcement.
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Tanja / February 20, 2007 at 01:57 am
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The fact that it's a template design is just sad. It also means they didn't put any depth of thought or planning into how they wanted to portray themselves... they flipped through a catalogue essentially.

Hey Tim, maybe we should try that out on the next blogTO redesign. Default template?
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will / February 20, 2007 at 05:06 am
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i think it'll protect my teeth from the evil gingivitis.

the hand-painted-sign-esque cursive font on the "to serve & protect" looks too old-fashioned. and the slanted font for "POLICE" with the soft blue border looks almost exactly like my tube of Crest toothpaste...

though i suppose, if they are going for friendly and approachable, it works well enough. still, tacky.
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Ryan C / February 20, 2007 at 11:00 am
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Hey, to some people toothpaste is a fucking freaky thing.

If it were up to me, it would have the following symbol on the side of the car:

<^>(O_o)

A big "Fuck you" to everyone. Why? Because we is badass yo.
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Ryan C / February 20, 2007 at 11:09 am
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lol, it comment system got rid of the arrows/horizontal-V's asi t thought they were code. Trust me, it was AWESOME
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Jason Paris / February 21, 2007 at 02:08 am
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The new Toronto design is horrible. I think it also screams some southern American city as well. Dallas or something similar probably has police cars that look like this (at least COPS has taught me that). It's crass and not very refined. Perhaps it's not too late to turn this around? Petition? Letter-writing campaign? Anyone?

Oh by the way, I actually dig the new/old O.P.P. design.
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George / February 27, 2007 at 11:35 am
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TORONTO POLICE CAR 3234

2 3's are 6

3 4's are 12, 1+2=3

3 6's --- 666 WHO THEY WORKIN' FOR?

NEW OPP B&W 29-999? AN INVERTED 666. WHO THEY WORKIN' FOR?
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Jerrold / February 27, 2007 at 11:46 am
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^^^ LOL. Should be cross-posted <a href="http://blogto.com/books_lit/2007/02/conspiracy_theorists_welcome_here/";>here</a>.
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DT / February 28, 2007 at 09:34 am
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New OPP cars kick ass. Black, white, gold. Well played, sir, well played.

The new Toronto scheme is a joke. Swoosh graphics and lower-case fonts? Please... Looks like a rental car, not a cop car. I agree with the allies of Yellow - go back to the unique color that was Toronto's own.
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Clide / February 28, 2007 at 02:06 pm
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I guess Toronto is going for that Miami Beach look.

http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/050828/050828_suge_hmed_7a.hmedium.jpg
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Pete / March 15, 2007 at 01:13 pm
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I remeber way back when Toronto cop cars were yellow....they would stand out at you like a sore thumb. One day when we were driving down Eglinton Ave, there was a yellow cop car on patrol going the other way and my little sister said "there goes a banana car!!"

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Rob / March 16, 2007 at 07:43 am
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To serve, protect, fight gingavitis and bad breath!
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Edward / March 19, 2007 at 07:50 pm
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As a Firefighter I have had many a chance to speak to my brothers and sisters in blue..... in all we feel Toronto should have spent thier money alot better as in putting more Firefighters and police officers on the streets...... Bring back Fantino!
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Adam / March 20, 2007 at 02:59 pm
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Does anyone know if these cars have strobes? We must be the only police force in North America that still has rotating bulbs on the cruisers. The EMS people have been quite successful with this.
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CAV / March 20, 2007 at 10:02 pm
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The new look is vaguely similar to the Washington, DC police cruisers. (link)
http://www.slushpile.net/wp-content/uploads/2006/05/dc%20police.jpg




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Oh Dot's Rock / April 17, 2007 at 09:38 am
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I really have to agree with everyone on here. The new Toronto cruiser is a joke. The first time i saw one on the road i had to look twice. Even then i was still scratching my head wondering if it was some kind of bad joke. As for the OPP cruiser well it kinda speaks for itself, Hell yeah, Don't F#*K with the Po Po.
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florin / February 29, 2008 at 12:50 pm
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Toronto Police - Unique Graphics

Toronto Police Unique Cars Graphics?

Hard to believe that they could not afford to pay for a brand type concept and they copied Greyhound?

Probably an uncle or a niece knows Photoshop or Corel and they?save some cash...

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=13505&;id=728689932&ref=mf
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