I don't know why some would complain about 'take home' patrol cars. The presence of marked police cars is a known crime deterrent. Some police departments park police cars near trouble-traffic areas or around banks just as a deterrent. Cops, like anybody else, take better care of equipment that is personal, rather than shared, so I'm sure it reduces maintenance costs, even if slight. On-call people respond faster from home than having to drive to a station to get a car. It saves money.