Police Car 48
In 2003, the LaSalle Police Service decided that they would like to replicate LaSalle Police Car 48, which was a 1957 Pontiac Laurentian, 2-door coupe.
A Historical Vehicle Committee was assembled, consisting of LaSalle Police members, Dave Dean, Mauro Tonin, Duncan Davies, and later, Russ Hazael. Also joining the committee was John Tedesco and Vito Campanaro who helped spearhead the project and begin the search.
John Tedesco located a 1957 Pontiac Laurentian in Lindsay, Ontario which was almost an exact match to the police car that patrolled the streets of LaSalle in that era. A deal was struck and the vehicle was purchased by the LaSalle Police Service marking the beginning of an arduous process of restoring it to replicate the original LaSalle Police Car 48.
The restoration was completed at Ontario Collision between August and November of 2003, just in time for the LaSalle Santa Claus Parade, much to the delight of onlookers.
After more than two decades and earning numerous awards and accolades, both locally and internationally, Car 48 began to show signs of wear and tear, including scratches, dents, cracks, and fading paint. Consequently, in October 2023, a decision was made to overhaul its body and apply a fresh coat of paint.
Domenic Ianetta, owner of Fix Auto East in Windsor, has been with this project all along and was a part-owner of Ontario Collision when we began this journey. Domenic and his team at Fix Auto East have graciously donated all the labour and materials to refresh our beloved Car 48. We hope you are proud when you see our vehicle out in public.
We offer our sincere gratitude to everyone who helped make this possible.
We invite you to join us on this new part of the journey that began in the fall of 2023. We will be posting updates about the process on social media.
Part 1 – Monday, January 15th, 2024
Historical Vehicle committee members, Dave Dean, Mauro Tonin, and Vito Campanaro at LaSalle Police Service Headquarters, removing all of the exterior metal trim, siren and roof light from Car 48, prepping it for restoration.
Part 2 – Friday March 1st, 2024
LaSalle Towing attended the LaSalle Police Service station to bring Car 48 to Fix Auto East to begin to the restoration process.
Part 3 – March 18th, 2024
Domenic and his team at Fix Auto East have the restoration project of Car 48 well underway. Dave Dean, Mauro Tonin, Terry Seguin inspecting the work thus far.
Part 4 – April 2nd, 2024
LaSalle Police attended Fix Auto East to check out the progress of the restoration and were over the moon with the quality of work thus far! It was evident that Nicolas Iannetta, Max Iannetta, and Dante Tomassi oversaw and worked on the project with their team as if it were their own.
The lettering was skillfully applied by local artist, Maria Rosati who jumped at the chance and flew home from art school to take part.
Can’t wait to see it with the chrome all polished…
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Town of LaSalle
5950 Malden Road
LaSalle, ON N9H 1S4
T. 519-969-7770
F. 519-969-4469
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Mission Statement
Our sole mission is to protect lives and property of the citizens we serve, provide a safe community, improve quality of life and prevent crime while working in partnership with the community.
Contact Us
LaSalle Police Service
1880 Normandy St.
LaSalle, Ontario
N9H 1P8
Phone: 519-969-5210
Fax: 519-969-2662
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