First-Class First Responder

by | Mar 3, 2026

A police-spec Plymouth Savoy was at the scene of a freak accident in 1964.

A San Jose police officer monitors the recovery of a crashed Cessna 150 from a 1964 Plymouth Savoy patrol car. (Courtesy of Mark Susina)

This scene in 1964 is the aftermath of an event that interrupted the weekend routine within a housing development abutting Reid-Hillview Airport in East San Jose, California. On the afternoon of Saturday, October 10th, pilot Joseph Hannan and his teenage son Gene were returning to Reid-Hillview in a 1961 Cessna 150B (N7374X) owned by Spartan Air, a flight school on the field. While maneuvering to land, the aircraft fell onto the roof of 2110 Bayhaven Drive. Incredibly, father and son were not injured in the crash, nor was homeowner Edward Przemielewski and his family. An investigation concluded that the Cessna stalled due to the pilot failing to maintain flying speed. Luckily, the velocity of the airplane’s descent was significantly reduced after hitting a power line, thus its impact on the roof was apparently not enough to collapse it.

In the foreground a San Jose Police Department (SJPD) officer in a 1964 Plymouth Savoy patrol car was onsite for crowd control. The Savoy was a favorite of the SJPD as evidenced by a 1964 model that is an operational member of their fleet. It served from 1964-early 1970s, and after restoration to original condition in the 1990s it is used for public relations appearances. No information has surfaced to confirm that the restored car is the same one illustrated above.

SJPD’s impeccably restored 1964 Plymouth Savoy is displayed at a car show in October 2024. (TaunusEmerald via Wikimedia)

While most of the details of the SJPD car’s configuration are unknown, police packages of the day included heavy-duty springs and brakes and a choice of engines for different uses. They ranged from a 225-cubic-inch Slant-6 of 145 hp for routine operations to the 426-cubic-inch “Street Wedge” V8 of 365-400+ hp for high-speed pursuits. All powerplants were connected to a Chrysler TorqueFlite transmission with push-button selectors on the dash. This was the last year for these Space Age-inspired controls, as later Chryslers had gear selectors mounted on the steering column or center console. Generally, the cars had heaters but did not have air conditioning, power steering, and power brakes.

One confirmed original equipment item in the SJPD Savoy is a dash-mounted Stewart-Warner “Police Special” speedometer. The numbers on the dial run from 0-150 mph to time speeds in the era prior to radar.

Fast-forward to today, Cessna N7374X was repaired and remained active in FAA records until it was de-registered in 2017. As of January 2026, Edward Przemielewski still owns 2110 Bayhaven Drive. After several previous attempts, Reid-Hillview Airport may be closed in 2031 due to environmental issues and community concerns. Lastly, the Savoy was discontinued in the U.S. at the end of the 1964 model year and was replaced by the Fury I.