Five Questionable Vehicle Choices By American Police Departments

"Satish Kondapavulur" (becauseCAR) 11/09/2013 at 00:52 • Filed to: MY STUPID LISTS

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Jalopnik likes to keep track of the different police cars around the world. This mainly consists of reporting the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! or an update of the Carabinieri's !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , with the occasional mention of a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

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But who am I to question the patrol vehicle decisions of foreign nations? I live in the United States of America, a country whose local police departments own !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! even if the town has a population of 1500. And who couldn't stop a man from setting a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

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Therefore, I've decided to mention the follies of our law enforcement agencies at home in their vehicle selection, which no doubt will literally put my name on the radar of police departments across America.

Author's Note: For the love of God, don't actually retort with anything that I suggest (not that I think people actually follow my advice !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ). If you feel compelled to, just say them under your breath when the officer walks back to the patrol car.

Toyota Highlander Hybrid

Why the choice is debatable: No department needs a hybrid crossover, especially when this one costs over $40,000 before the requisite police equipment. In fact, an Explorer with the police package costs the same. And these aren't only found in Aspen. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! use them to shore up their environmental credentials, even though an Ecoboost Explorer is just as fine.

What you'll want to say: "You're driving the official vehicle of !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ! My kids LOVE that show. I think it's a good way to connect with the young community since Spongebob breeds so much optimism. How about keeping up that optimism and letting me off with a warning?"

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Smart fortwo

Why the choice is debatable: Granted, many of these are used for parking enforcement. But criminals will be tempted to run from the police officer driving a Smart. Because once a car chase moves to the highway, a Smart will have trouble keeping up, giving television news helicopters a reason to interrupt a feature on underwater basket weaving. Provided the good officer can get the transmission to work in his or her favor.

What you'll want to say: "Did you draw the short straw to get that car? How's the transmission on that thing? I'm sure you liked the Crown Vic better. Yeah, my car can outrun yours any day of the week, but since I respect the law, I pulled over. Now can you please let me off with a warning?"

Hummer H2

Why the choice is debatable: On Jalopnik , the Hummer H2 has suffered plenty of vitriol. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! The one in the photo was actually bought outright as a police vehicle by an Indian reservation. However, most H2s in police fleets tend to be those seized from drug dealers and then used for drug awareness and recruitment campaigns. As if people take career advice and narcotics information from H2 owners seriously.

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What you'll want to say: "Love the H2. You must be the coolest guy on the force. I think it makes you look very authoritative and makes me want to obey the law. Also... Officer, how many times have you actually gone off-road? If it's none, let's go four-wheeling sometime. Can you let me off with a warning?"

Saab 9-5

Why the choice is debatable: Once again, we come back to the inexplicable car preferences of the Aspen Police. Though the police Saabs are no more, as a taxpayer, I'd have questioned the service costs and wondered out loud why they couldn't get a Tahoe, Durango, or Expedition, like other wealthy parts of the country. Then again, this is Aspen , where !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , so maybe there were larger issues than complaining about department car choices.

What you'd have wanted to say: "Why hello officer! Did we not meet at the Policemen's Benevolent Association meeting? Well, I'm among their largest contributors. In fact, I think one of those checks probably paid for that wonderful Saab of yours. I would know...I bought it for my daughter. Twice."

Volvo S70

Why the choice is debatable: Now this didn't actually happen in the end, but the California Highway Patrol came !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Perhaps, the CHP figured they could play up their public safety card while receiving nicer seats and a better stereo. But let's think about what would've happened with !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . The !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! with the CHP at the high speeds and stresses placed on the cars, leading to through-the-roof service costs and another sustained raising of taxes.

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What you'll want to say: "I'm amazed you managed to catch up at such high speeds without your strut towers breaking. How many brake jobs has your patrol car gone through? Couldn't the CHP have at least bought the wagon? At least I could pick up a good family car at auction. There is no way I am getting out of this ticket, is there?"

Which questionable vehicle choices has your local police department made? And what would you want to say to them about it?

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! runs !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , named because "Clunker.com" was $82 at auction and would've taken 30% out of the balance of his Eagle Vision for LeMons fund. In between contemplating cross-country runs, he spends much of his time attempting to convince others that his MkV Jetta 2.0T Wolfsburg is indeed a sports sedan.

First Hummer photo credit Policecarwebsite.net, Smart car photo credit Autoblog, second Hummer photo credit Policecararchives.org, Volvo photo credit !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , Highlander photo credit !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , Saab photo credit !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

TheJWT > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 09:34

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I agree with the list but I'm liking this livery for some reason...

I just can't put my finger on it...

Satish Kondapavulur > TheJWT 11/09/2013 at 11:41

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"Hi Officer! Really love your race car livery on your Hummer. You must be a very good race car driver. How about a warning? After all, we racing drivers have to stick together..."

 > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:06

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Because Dumb and Dumber.

Somethingwittyer likes noisy > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:17

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Could this be on the list? Can't imagine how dreary it is having to spend most of your job driving around in this piece of shit.

truebeliever > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:17

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I love those Saabs. Great seats, great in the snow with a good set of tires. I will miss the 9-5.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:20

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Cincinnati used to have a Highlander Hybrid. The cop who had it used it as a take home. He now has an unmarked Charger.

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:21

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On Thursday, I was on my way to pickup a LSD diff for my Celica and drove through the town of Edmonds, WA. There was a Chevy Equinox police car shooting radar on the side of a residential street. No SR20, as I didn't want a ticket. A really weird sighting in my opinion.

Doug DeMuro > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:22

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Aspen uses the Toyota because there's a huge Toyota dealer nearby. It's bizarre how many cars you see in that area with plate frames from that particular dealer — their market share must be unbelievable. These are the same assholes who refused to diagnose the CEL on my Elise when I was driving it across the country.

S70 is so interesting. Good thing they didn't choose it, as you state!

Hal > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:23

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So, I work in public safety - not a cop, my company makes stuff for cops. I go to all the major trade shows, which means I get to check out really cool shooting simulators and I get sample size tear gas canisters.

Anywho.....

I walked by the Dodge booth at the last show, and they are pushing, wait for it....

Fiat. Fiat 500, in fact. For patrol. Poor guys....

1quickshortbus > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:23

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LOL Belle Isle, FL, one of their officers lives 1 door down from me (he drives a Crown Vic).

langadamd > Somethingwittyer likes noisy 11/09/2013 at 12:24

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I have a police officer friend that has a Charger as his cruiser. It was in the shop for a few weeks and he had to drive one of those. He said it was the worst thing ever.

Nick Has an Exocet > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:24

2

Meh. I like the smart police car. I happen to think that if we switched our police cars to smart cars, painted them with a pink stripe, and gave them to our police, we'd have far less police brutality.

dasko > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:26

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I fully support Saaab cop cars. Turbo is a great choice at elevation!

Ltd783 > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:26

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The Oklahoma Highway Patrol also briefly tested some Volvo S70 and V70's. I once saw a V70 just like the one in the pic blast through my small town with lights and sirens going, a very strange sight.

Kevin Bergin > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:28

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H2? Hardly questionable when you consider Seabrook, NH has an H1. You know, to protect and serve their 9 thousand residents.

Michael Banovsky > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:28

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Disclaimer: I wasn't there. I have no idea what actually happened. I know nothing about CHP testing. This was told to me by someone who also was not there.

The Volvos were chosen for good reason, based on a story I was told— hopefully someone can verify !

Two Swedish Volvo engineers found out about CHP testing, and shipped over two S70s for testing. It was literally two Volvo guys and two cars, who showed up to CHP testing…against the Big Three, who had cruisers, lots of spares, and engineers.

When it came time for the Volvo engineer to do a 90mph brake test with a CHP judge beside him, he did the stop. "Ok, you can pull over into the pits and change brakes if you want," the CHP judge said.

"Why would I change brakes?" said the engineer in broken English.

"Because they're ruined," said the CHP judge.

"No, they're not," replied the engineer, accelerating again to the test speed and hammering the brakes, coming to a complete stop. Apparently this impressed the judges…

tl;dr : The Volvos simply held up, with no spares or outside support, while the domestics had teams of people and parts, apparently an indication the S70 would make a good patrol car.

Commando Solo > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:32

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Disney Oklahoma has a Jeep Commander to help patrol their offroad park in the area.

365Daytonafan > Ltd783 11/09/2013 at 12:35

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The UK police forces have been using the V70 as one of its principal motorway patrol vehicles for years. Their other weapon of choice is the BMW 530/535d Touring

Eyaare > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:38

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The Highlander Hybrid is an excellent choice.

Okay, maybe not excellent, but it makes sense.

Highlander costs about as much as the V6 Ecoboost (the only ecoboost offered as a cop car) and the Chevrolet Tahoe. So unless the police modifications are cheaper to get pre-installed than they are DIY (which, considering what I know of pricing for built-in GPS, I doubt), price isn't that big a deal.

It gets better fuel economy than the V6 ecoboost (which is actually worse than the base) and the 2L ecoboost (which gets 23MPG to Highlander's 28, and isn't even offered to cops because of how sluggish it is).

And then there's a rather big point to make - if you think a Ford is going to last nearly as long as a Toyota, you really shouldn't be blogging about cars.

ZweiDeutschesAutos >  11/09/2013 at 12:39

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If I were a cop I'd actually want these. They're quick, good in the snow, and have awesome seats for those long shifts. Why drive some domestic POS when you can have something that probably actually meets the needs of a cop (i.e. speed, space, comfort)?

Service costs, I know...but everything else is great!

ZweiDeutschesAutos > dasko 11/09/2013 at 12:40

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Completely agree. As I told someone else a second ago in another comment, the 9-5 is perfect for cops: fast, agile, good in snow, and AWESOME seats for a long shift. What's not to like?

Ltd783 > 365Daytonafan 11/09/2013 at 12:42

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Yeah, but Volvo's are about as common as Maserati's or Porsche's in this part of the US, so seeing one as a police vehicle is especially unusual.

And I know it's not all roses on the other side of the pond, I've seen plenty of police chase videos from the UK involving 90hp diesel Vauxhalls too :-)

Neuro > Ltd783 11/09/2013 at 12:47

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Volvos are built like tanks so probably quite good for high mileage fleets esp if they do a lot of motorway work

Lilday > TheJWT 11/09/2013 at 12:47

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Might I introduce you also to a 'questionable' police vehicle from Britain?

Ed Wood Jr Jr > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:48

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Riding in one of these made you feel like a star.

MattATiller > 365Daytonafan 11/09/2013 at 12:48

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We have some 3 series as well! I live in quite a rurual area, so the 5-o have some slighty unexpected whips, Focus ST, Impreza STI, Evo 10 and I'm told there is an Exige or Evora running around

countersteer > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:49

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from back in the day. Went like stink (for it's time), drum brakes sucked... As told to me by a trooper friend from that era.

PRBot II > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:49

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I actually saw this one in person performing a traffic stop about ten years ago. Driving up Rt. 22 in North Haven, I drove past thinking "WTF? Is that really necessary?" I proceeded to facepalm, not knowing that it would be an internet meme so many years later.

MoparOrNoCar (Okay, maybe a Mazda?) > Hal 11/09/2013 at 12:50

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Is the 500 they're offering to the police at least an Abarth? I think the Abarth would be a great police car, especially in urban areas. Just scare criminals with the bark of the exhaust that's coming oh-so unbelievably from the tiny unassuming car.

dave.iuliano > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:55

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I wonder how folks feel about police departments NOT choosing the Carbon. It seemed like a great idea- a vehicle designed exclusively to meet the needs of police forces, yet it flopped. I'm still not certain why.

victor > Michael Banovsky 11/09/2013 at 12:55

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CHP trials were with v70 and s70 high pressure turbo vehicles (t5 models). It was said that they were well liked, but the three factors that killed them were the fact that they changed too often (they were coming on end of life) vs panther, they were smaller than the panthers, and that they costed more to purchase and operate. Appearantly, they were acceptable in terms of reliability.

There were stories of these things running up to the 150 limiter in the central valley. Officers generally liked them.

http://articles.latimes.com/1999/apr/18/ne…

http://articles.latimes.com/2000/may/28/ne…

"CHP Commissioner D.O. "Spike" Helmick said the chief problem is that Volvo next year will stop making its S70 police sedan, the model the patrol has been road-testing since last summer. "The officers' reports have been positive," Helmick said. "The performance is good.""

Iwaswonderofwonders > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:56

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My alma mater...

firefly80482 > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:58

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Where I live, the police have a H1, and and a converted (to SAR operations) MRAP... that said, I live in the mountains, and police/fire are frequently called to help people in some rather difficult high angle/deep snow/fast water terrain.

turbonium959 > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 12:59

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What a waste of jalopspace and jaloptime. There is nothing questionable about these vehicle. The tax payer didn't pay for them brand new, as these types of cars are almost always repoed. Big hwoop. Back in the day, in Portland, ME there were two D.A.R.E. cars a Camaro and 928 Porsche. I'm sure there hunkers of others all over the country.

phDiesel > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:00

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My local county PD uses a ForTwo to patrol a paved trail that bike riders use. Is it sad that the bicyclist probably has the better acceleration?....and gets laid more? a lot more.

JKGecko > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:07

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Any decent police station has a cleanliness policy and keeps their vehicles spotless. This is such a disgrace.

Jonee > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:07

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ccstealth > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:10

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Speaking of the Highlander, yesterday I was walking through the UofT campus and the campus police drive Hybrid Highlanders....why does campus police need anything like that?!

Atomic Buffalo > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 11/09/2013 at 13:11

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Equinox? Should have been a Captiva :)

BTW, what's an LSD diff? Do you go on a lot of trips in your Celica?

shitheelandtoe > Michael Banovsky 11/09/2013 at 13:11

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The part that doesn't ring true to me is the broken English, since I've never met a Swede in a professional job setting who couldn't speak perfect English.

Satish Kondapavulur > turbonium959 11/09/2013 at 13:12

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Trust me, I made sure to steer clear of the DARE and police recruitment cars. Otherwise a Panamera and a Jaguar XF would've been on the list.

Christian > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:13

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Satish Kondapavulur > firefly80482 11/09/2013 at 13:13

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That's exactly why I didn't include the H1 on the list. The departments that do have them have very legitimate reasons and are in areas with difficult terrain.

Satish Kondapavulur > Iwaswonderofwonders 11/09/2013 at 13:13

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So much win.

Satish Kondapavulur > PRBot II 11/09/2013 at 13:15

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The funny part is ten years ago, most people would've thought the North Haven PD was cool because of the H2. How times have changed...

CloverGreveland > Ltd783 11/09/2013 at 13:15

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Addison (TX) Police had all kinds of Volvos among their fleet during the 80's.

Satish Kondapavulur > dave.iuliano 11/09/2013 at 13:16

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In the end, I think it was funding the Carbon project, and I think police departments didn't want to pay that much for them. I really liked it too, since it would've made finding cop cars a lot easier.

ffoc02 > Eyaare 11/09/2013 at 13:17

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I have to agree with the Highlander Hybrid, even as a Ford guy. Any hybrid for use in a police/security fleet makes a ton of sense. Newsworthy chases and hunting down speeders make up a small percentage of a vehicle's life. 75% of the life of these vehicles is spent idling on detail, waiting for a speeder to pass, directing traffic, etc. An engine sitting idle that long is simply a waste. All the waste heat sitting stagnant under the hood destroys wiring looms as well.

As a Ford guy, though, ask any taxi driver running a CVPI with the better part of a million miles how durable their car is. Trust me, they have good reason to lament it's death.

Satish Kondapavulur > countersteer 11/09/2013 at 13:18

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Hopefully it could keep up with Trans Ams helping transport some forbidden Coors...

Satish Kondapavulur > Ed Wood Jr Jr 11/09/2013 at 13:18

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Hah!

proceedwithspeed > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:18

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If youre gonna have a big douchey H2 in your fleet, this is the way to do it.

"The Hummer was seized from a corporate criminal.

The black truck is worth about $65,000 plus another $20,000 in accessories including custom wheels and exhaust, but taxpayers did not pay a cent of this, said Sergeant Foti Koskinas.

This is because the Hummer was obtained from a white collar fraud case. In 2008, the car was taken from a Westport criminal and sent to a secured Secret Service facility in New Jersey. It was held there until the end of September, when it was awarded to the Westport Police for the work Koskinas did on the case.

The Westport Police is required to keep the vehicle for at least two years, under federal seizure laws. Any extra assets awarded from the case have to go towards the vehicle, which explains the custom additions. No tax money was spent and no profit could be earned from the car, said Koskinas."

VashVashVash > Michael Banovsky 11/09/2013 at 13:19

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A panic stop from 90 ruins the brakes? This is news to me, as I've done that in countless vehicles, in various states of disrepair. Seriously, was this something that only applied to 70's cars? Or do they mean that your second stopping distance will not be as short as the first? I always assumed that any vehicle can be panic stopped from anything below 100mph countless times on dry pavement with no ill effects.

Satish Kondapavulur > Michael Banovsky 11/09/2013 at 13:22

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The thing with the Volvos is that they're very good cars brand-new and when they've been properly serviced. But the costs of servicing the Volvos compared to the low-cost maintenance of Crown Victoria would never have worked out.

nauyop > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:22

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A lot actually. I'm from Taiwan, and here, they decide the model for a police cruiser by choosing the cheapest deal. Therefore we have all kinds of police cruisers here which is ridiculous, including

Ford Tierra(Mazda 323),

Camry,

Corolla,

Focus,

Mondeo(Fusion),

Galant,

Escape,

Outlander,

Escudo,

Teana/Cefiro(Maxima),

Space Gear(Delica),

iMax(Mazda 5),

Luxgen 5(A sedan from a domestic brand),

Luxgen 7(A minivan from a domestic brand),

Formosa Magnus(Chevrolet Epica)

Lancer Fortis

Leaf

Bluebird(Sentra)

In some extremely rare cases the Bimmer 7 series

you name it.

PotbellyJoe and 42 others > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:23

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Meanwhile in Cahokia, IL they make a great choice. And I mean that genuinely.

Satish Kondapavulur > Eyaare 11/09/2013 at 13:27

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The extra cost of buying and servicing the hybrid far outweighs getting a normal gas Highlander.

As for your second point, the CHP just bought a fleet of Explorers over Highlander Hybrids, and they don't go easy when it comes to testing cars.

945T > langadamd 11/09/2013 at 13:28

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They're not that bad. Think of it as a big squishy couch... And hat includes the handling and braking.

Satish Kondapavulur > JKGecko 11/09/2013 at 13:28

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Then again, this was probably during ski season.

50fridge > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:28

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I really do not see anything wrong with the Saab and Volvo police cars besides that government agencies really should buy American made cars. Still though I bet that Saab and Volvo would be way safer then the Crown Vic and I bet in snow the Saab and Volvo would handle well. It is ironic that Police agencies are using Ford Taurus and Explorers that are based off of a Volvo platform.

Satish Kondapavulur > Jonee 11/09/2013 at 13:28

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HOW DID I NOT REMEMBER THIS! Now I'm mad at myself.

Kizzmansky > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:32

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BMW R1200RT-P bikes for city of Edmonton police here in Canada. Buying BMW from taxpayer's money? Really?

Iwaswonderofwonders > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:32

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The article the photo came from is very interesting. VCU has pretty small campii (Academic and Medical) compared to others...

http://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/vcu-p…

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > Atomic Buffalo 11/09/2013 at 13:33

3

Nope, it was an older Equinox. And to answer your question:

LSD - Limited Slip Differential.

MoparIsWinYouAreFail > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:33

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I'm not gonna say I disagree with the H2 being on the list, but I do disagree with the article cited as it's just a circlejerk about "DAE H2 SUX?" for no real reason.

DasWolf13 > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:34

1

The smart car is a great cop car I which my little college town I live in would do this, or a Toyota Prius. It's a joke here they have three SUVs and a four door pickup for traffic stops, why? I love the dodge chargers the town has but I don't see the need for the waste in gas in the SUV departments.

Ps. the photo is the town in a nutshell.

MarloRocci > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:34

1

My local police department uses Dodge Chargers, which explains why they issue more tickets than any other police department in the state. You're going to have a problem outrunning one of these, and they have to p

ay for them, so get ready to pull over.

nauyop > nauyop 11/09/2013 at 13:35

1

However when it comes to highway patrol we have the latest BMW 3, 5 and Mercedes C, E models.

Mercedes cop cars are close to extinct though,

These are rare. G-class and 5 series wagon.

JDiesel >  11/09/2013 at 13:35

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"I'm talking about a little place called Aspen!"

Zoom > Atomic Buffalo 11/09/2013 at 13:36

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posi. posi. POSI POSI POSI POSI !!!!!!!

Jarrett - [BRZ Boi] > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:38

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Someone disagrees with one of your choices.

MrSinister > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:44

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Seen a undercover Chrysler Pacifica cop car in Dearborn Michigan yesterday. That has to rank up with one of most questionable cop cars I have seen in service.

The Transporter > Somethingwittyer likes noisy 11/09/2013 at 13:45

1

But you have to admit that a police interceptor based on a full sized FWD quasi-luxobarge would be well received...

...by criminals.

mk4wagon > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:47

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Im sure this has been mentioned here before. Good ol' Bloomfield with more money than they know what to do with apparently.

Mockylock > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:49

2

This is one from a place in South Carolina that a company bought to modify. Rolls Royce V10, turret, etc. Couldn't imagine why they'd need it there.

aw_man > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:51

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Lots of volvo's up here in norcal, not sure how V70 would have been that questionable. Also considering how bad drivers are in the bay area, I think the safety of a volvo would be a big plus. Of course they went with the CV/Panthers

nmalinoski > Lilday 11/09/2013 at 13:51

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I believe the question you're looking for is "Why weren't more produced and deployed?"

Built BMW Tough > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 13:59

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Service on the Hybrid costs no more than service on a base Highlander with AWD.

ben loves his new "real" SUV > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 14:03

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I am sad about the Aspen Highlander. I had hoped that after years of Saabs (I remember in the 70's they were painted red, but changed to blue when too many people thought that the fire department was arriving at someone's house or trying to pull them over) that they would have something more exciting. Not sure what I was expecting, but not a Highlander Hybrid.

FYI, Vail used Saabs for awhile as well. trying to keep up with the Joneses I imagine

cdakost > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 14:04

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The Cincinnati Police use Highlanders. Need I say more?

James May is my spirit animal > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 14:05

3

Hipster Cop approves.

James May is my spirit animal > Lilday 11/09/2013 at 14:06

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There was a RS200 police vehicle? Where would you put the suspect?

Man, I love that car.

Satish Kondapavulur > Hal 11/09/2013 at 14:08

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No! Is it at least a 500L?

iwantastarbutihaveaburneraccount > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 14:11

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My school has one of these.

And one of these. Why, just why?

dal20402 > dave.iuliano 11/09/2013 at 14:11

1

Vaporware. The company never showed that it would be able to build and support them in reasonable quantity.

Satish Kondapavulur > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 11/09/2013 at 14:12

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I came across one of those on Google. It seemed like a DARE car.

Satish Kondapavulur > Somethingwittyer likes noisy 11/09/2013 at 14:12

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It makes some sort of sense. It can hold a lot of equipment.

harmonyav > Ed Wood Jr Jr 11/09/2013 at 14:15

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A Eurosport Star!

Satish Kondapavulur > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 11/09/2013 at 14:18

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Equinox makes sense. At least it's domestic.

Satish Kondapavulur > Nick Has an Exocet 11/09/2013 at 14:20

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Sad, but true.

Goofnik > Commando Solo 11/09/2013 at 14:23

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Holy crap, that is the best possible way for parents to troll the crap out of their kids.

"Hey kids, ready to go to Disney?!" Then they get all excited, tell their friends and everyone, and basically have a seizure from the happiness.

Then you drive to Oklahoma to look at tumbleweeds. For the lulz.

Satish Kondapavulur > Doug DeMuro 11/09/2013 at 14:25

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And all of those cars must be Land Cruisers, Sequoias, 4Runners, FJ Cruisers, Tundras, Highlanders, RAV4s, and the occasional Venza, because wealthy place.

It was a rational decision not going with Volvo, but some part of me wonders if Volvo would've been better off today if the CHP had decided to use S70s.

Satish Kondapavulur > Ltd783 11/09/2013 at 14:26

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Interesting. I never knew about this one!

madmolf > Jonee 11/09/2013 at 14:26

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I was looking at posting this "Le Car" by Renault, thanks.

I find the policeman very relaxed, times were simplier with less self image control.

I guess such a small fun looking car wouldn't go well with the idea of projecting fear in citizens nowadays.

madmolf > Nick Has an Exocet 11/09/2013 at 14:30

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Agreed, see above the comment with The "Le Car" by Renault. An American R5, yellow and small, with a very smily cop.

Satish Kondapavulur > Kevin Bergin 11/09/2013 at 14:31

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How do you think they justify it?

Land-Rover Matt > Mockylock 11/09/2013 at 14:31

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That's a Pig - can't remember what the real name was for them but that's what they were commonly called.

It probably was cheap as chips because they've been around since the 1960s, at least. After the British army no longer needed them for front line use they were used in Northern Ireland by both police and army.

V10? Not so sure about that... Rolls made truck engines back in the day so that doesn't mean much but it would be a petrol so fuel bills would be huuuuge.

Carl242 > Satish Kondapavulur 11/09/2013 at 14:39

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At first glance I had thought someone had tagged this, but no ... just a leaf decal.

jsgreenwood > Lilday 11/09/2013 at 14:41

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A Ford RS2000 powered by cosworth busting a Ford Sierra cosworth.

wagnerrp > Eyaare 11/09/2013 at 14:44

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Unless you plan on the vehicle towing heavy loads, or being involved in extended high speed (120mph+) chases, a hybrid makes no sense.

M54B30 > Somethingwittyer likes noisy 11/09/2013 at 14:46

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Air Force Security Police use them here in South Dakota. They also use Silverado Hybrids.