Motor Officers

Grant is the only MO I recall from Adam-12 and the episode that pops into my mind first is 'Roll Call'. At the end he was getting some ribbing about having a bike rather than a car, but he was giving back just as good. He was also told he'd be in a car until his bike was fixed, so he's definitely on the same level. I think it's just an internal rivalry just like fans of different sports teams in the same city - they'll razz each other about the team they like, but it's good natured and they're still friends and have each other's backs when needed.

I'd say the biggest difference is the MO has to call for a car every time he makes an arrest because he can't transport a suspect on the back of the bike.

Even worse was the traffic / accident officer who made a few appearances during the first two seasons - a long-winded, slow-talking middle-aged 'Okie from Muskogee' type straight from central casting. (He wasn't on a motorcycle, however.)

The traffic division (responsible for vehicle laws / enforcement and accident investigation) is just a specialized branch within patrol. They may not deal with the most exciting or high-profile incidents - perhaps why they're somewhat looked down on - but they still serve a purpose.

Definitely a lower rank on the totem pole. Motor units were used for their mobility in traffic to deal mainly with traffic violations. They weren't going to be sent on the burglary, murder, domestic violence and other street crime calls. The two man Adam cars were manned that way to deal with unknown and violent situations, and the cars held a lot more equipment as well as having transport space for suspects.

Motor Officers were definitely the junior cops on the force, or cops close to retirement that wanted or needed an easier beat.

The better promotions of course were up into unmarked cars like Sgt. Friday and the detective squads.