Not a creative name, but my girlfriend started calling it that, and now all my friends call it that, so I'm stuck with it.
Ironically, I ran car #54 with the Cumberland Motor Club for years before I got this thing. Now the number is just that much more appropriate.
I found this car on Craigslist. I'd been eyeballing another P71, a blue 2004, but the kid kept screwing around with me on the title, and then I found this one for less money and bought it instead. I needed a larger daily driver than my Miata, one fairly new, cheap to maintain, and easy to find parts for.
This particular car started life as a sergeant's car with the Ashland, NH police department. There are a few interior blemishes where the emergency lights used to be, but overall it's pretty much unmolested. It came with the complete service log from the PD, receipts from subsequent owners, and even the original window sticker. Before falling into my hands, owners after the PD installed keyless entry with remote start and a pair of Flowmaster mufflers on the stock dual exhaust. They rumble nicely.
Since this is 99% my daily driver, I haven't done any extensive mods with it. A K&N drop-in air filter is the only performance mod, unless you count the Falken Ziex 912 tires I just put on because the cop tires wore out (and the one autocross I've done so far mostly killed them anyway - Goodyear Eagle RS-As, if you're curious). I've made a few other non-performance mods, though. I got the air conditioning fixed. One is a Kenwood KDC-252U stereo to replace the AM/FM factory radio. I haven't yet played a CD in it, but it reads my MP3s on flash drives, and ever since getting an iPhone I just plug that in - they play nicely together. I also substituted a red bulb in the "ticket light" just above the rear view mirror, so that I can use it at night without completely ruining my night vision. I still have the standard dome light for white light if I need it. And since the photos in this particular post were taken I've done the rear bumper tuck mod.
The most significant mod is my ham radio setup. I used the center console the previous owner had sourced from eBay plus some wood scraps to add a radio console similar to what police cars have. Included is my Kenwood TM-621A and Radio Shack HTX-10. There was already an NMO antenna mount on the trunk from the car's old police radio, so I used that plus my own antenna for the Kenwood. Since the trunk lid already had one antenna hole punched in it, I didn't feel bad about drilling a second for my 10 meter antenna, a Shark Mini. I plan to eventually buy a multiband HF rig, and will buy additional Shark Mini antennas for each band I plan to use.
Oh yeah - and the license plate.
This setup worked awesomely for working the New England Forest Rally earlier this month. Between the radio's crossband repeat function and the remote start, I could park the car blocking a crossroad, grab a good place to watch somewhere else nearby, still get into the radio net, and be able to start and stop the engine remotely to keep the battery charged.
Future plans? None, really, at least as far as modifications go. I've done an autocross with it, and was one of the slowest cars there - and one of the most popular. The organizers of the event told me I needed to turn on some flashing lights during my runs. I'd like to try a track day later this year, and a rallycross once I get some snow tires for this beast. With its locker diff it ought to do well on loose surfaces, not to mention snowy roads.