I never drove the turbos but did get a few rides in them. My early years were in general duties so the only VLs I got to drive were the standard sixes.
I remember the blokes would wind the turbos out to around the 200 mark and the bonnets would shake, the wipers would move and the cars felt light but very unstable.
But that is in comparison to today's cars...to compare them to their v8 VK predecessors (before my time), blokes thought they were rockets.
Bear in mind that some metropolitan places had been using the odd Starion or Cordia turbos for a while.
When the V8 VNs were reintroduced, there was a bit of controversy regarding their necessity after the roll-out of the all conquering new V6 motors.
The first NSW Highway Patrol VNs were actually V6 powered. During the pursuit test at the Goulburn driver training facility, where a HWP trainee was assessed by having to 'keep up with' an instructor who would go all out to evade their pursuer, my 'crook' chose to drive a V6 VN as he preferred its dexterity through the off camber corners etc. I was in a V8 VN which the instructor reckoned was more prone to wallow. That's another story...
Anyway, as the V8s were available for general consumption but the coppers couldn't have them, street cred became an issue.
With some crafty badge engineering, it was not particularly uncommon to see the occasional VN V6 turbo patrolling the western parts of the state. Confused enquirers were usually told about the mysteries of 'one off police specials' or 'they had a few VL motors left over'.
Of course coppers never lie so it must've been fact....
The introduction to the fleet of the fuel injected V8s was welcomed with open arms. There was no V8 Ford available at the time and as I have previously said, these cars were smooth and fast.
In 1992 or thereabouts (VP), we were called back to the station to be met by some blokes from fleet management in Sydney who wanted our opinions on a new V8 Falcon that Ford had tarted up to interest the police.
In the driveway was a EB base model. It had raised outback suspension and XF style 'snowflake' alloy wheels. It was fully marked. It also had an injected 5 litre motor.
This car was a sh#tbox. Compared to the VP is was slow, wandery, uncomfortable and ugly. Fleet explained that Ford hadn't had a chance to develop a sports suspension or appropriate wheels yet.
We gave them our opinions and they left.
The next V8 Falcons in the NSW police fleet ended up being the ED XR8s a few years later....