I believe there are police officers everywhere who want to switch to electric cars — or are at least interested in finding out more about them. Considering the advanced technology and the instant torque, of course they do. All that is holding many of them back is the bureaucracy of budgets. Some police forces in Europe, though, have been moving into the future now. A growing number of polizei are managing to cut through the bureaucracy and start the switch to electric. Interestingly, many of those Europeans are choosing Hyundai Kona EVs to use in their fleets.
You can't hear the police car approaching? It can be Hyundai #lowemission vehicle🚓🔌Our #EVs and #FCEVs are making streets safer and cleaner in the fleet of police forces around Europe. #KonaElectric #Nexohttps://t.co/jAcVc9IuHA
— Hyundai Motor Group – Brussels Office (@eu_hmg) May 18, 2020
It seems counterintuitive if you are in government at this time to invest in anything short of a 100% electric vehicle. When you consider the total cost of ownership, costs over the lifetime of a vehicle (including resale value), and the performance and safety of an electric car, nothing else compares.
Especially consider the length of time in a day that police cars spend idling. While they do protect society in important ways, those idling cars come at a huge societal cost.
A new electric police vehicle in Spain, the popular Hyundai Kona Electric. I am sure officers appreciate the stealthy drive and instant torque.
Perhaps more city officials like Mayor Hidalgo in Paris, who has held firm on her position to increase the city’s anti-pollution measures, will be inspired by these early efforts and will electrify more governmental vehicles sooner than later.
“The fact that our eco-friendly vehicles are able to meet the needs of civilians and civil servants alike shows that our products can help making streets safer as well as cleaner,” explains Andreas Christoph-Hofmann, Vice President Marketing & Product at Hyundai Motor Europe.
Swiss police forces are also switching to electro-mobility to make their police work more sustainable. As an added bonus, it also functions great as a surveillance car, as criminals can’t hear the car approaching.
Hyundai’s best-selling all-electric Kona EV is a particularly popular choice for police forces in countries like Switzerland, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom. There may be no more popular EV for police forces in Europe.
A year has passed since the police force of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland added 13 Hyundai Kona EVs to its fleet — 5 as police cars and 8 as civilian vehicles. The St. Gallen police force felt that the Kona Electric was the only EV able to fulfill their stringent requirements: over 100 kW power, over 400 km range, acquisition cost below CHF 50,000 each, and availability. Everyone looks satisfied with the choice.
Kona Electric with neon orange and white paint, blue police lights, sirens, and a police radio, plus happy officers from the police force of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.
Hyundai reports that in the Netherlands, police forces in Amsterdam, East Netherlands, and Central Netherlands are also testing Kona Electric’s suitability as a police cruiser. “Its long driving range and fast charging make it an attractive choice for police use: when connected to a 100 kW DC fast charger, the battery can be charged up to 80 percent in approximately 54 minutes. This is true for both the 38 kWh and 64 kWh battery variations.”
“Kona Electrics can be found in the police fleets in Valencia, Spain, in both the 39 kWh and 64 kWh editions. And in the U.K., Sussex Police and North Wales Police already have one Kona Electric each in their fleets. Additionally, Hampshire Police have ordered nine Kona Electric models for their fleet, which will be delivered early next month.”
A Hyundai Nexo fuel cell electric police vehicle in Spain.
Hyundai’s second-generation fuel cell electric vehicle, the NEXO, is also being used in police forces in Surrey, England and Osnabrück, Germany. Each of them have just one NEXO in their fleet.
The police in Bolzano, Italy
The police in Bolzano, Italy, have been at this game for a while, with the NEXO’s predecessor, the ix35 Fuel Cell, in use as a patrol car. The Italians more recently added “a fleet of NEXO to patrol emissions-free on the polluted Brenner Autostrada.”
Fuel cell cars have not been particularly competitive on the consumer market and many see their time as very short lived since they don’t compete well on performance and features for the cost. We’ll see how far this fuel cell police vehicle trend goes.
The IONIQ was Hyundai’s first model to be offered as a hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or 100% battery electric vehicle. “The current generation IONIQ has a 36 per cent increased energy capacity than the previous version and a real-world range of 311 km, thanks to an upgraded 38.3 kWh battery.” The police forces in Guadalete and Bilbao, Spain, have both added IONIQ EVs to their fleets.
Hyundai isn’t the only game in town for electric police vehicles, though. The BMW i3 has been adopted in Bavaria, Germany; Los Angeles, California; and London, England (not to mention the considerably more expensive i8 in Dubai). In the following videos, look at how the BMW i3 maneuvers in tiny spaces. It can certainly be another good EV for certain metro police stations.
Way back in 2013, the West Midlands police force of England adopted some Nissan LEAFs, and that was actually beat by a Portuguese police force getting 8 LEAFs in 2012.
Regarding Tesla, the Swiss police have taken a liking to the Model X, a police force in Belgium got a Model S, the LAPD had an early Tesla Model S P85D, the Westport Police in Connecticut got a Model 3, and Taiwanese police got a couple of them. And, of course, the Fremont police have long had Teslas. Additionally, first responders in Nuremberg, Germany got a Model 3. Meanwhile, numerous police forces are considering or have reservations down for a Cybertruck, and the Ontario Provincial Police decided to ask Elon Musk on Twitter if he’d recommend the Model X or Cybertruck for police duties.
Hey @elonmusk can you suggest which model would make make a better police car? #Cybertruck or #TeslaX? pic.twitter.com/texsL1enJ3
— OPP Highway Safety Division (@OPP_HSD) February 19, 2020
شرطة دبي – 2020 – Dubai Police #CyberTruck pic.twitter.com/V9rMPLgjS4
— Dubai Policeشرطة دبي (@DubaiPoliceHQ) November 26, 2019
Tesla gets order for 15 Cybertrucks to be converted into police vehicles: The Tesla Cybertruck is attracting the attention of many, including a mayor in Mexico who decided to order 15 electric trucks from Tesla to convert them… https://t.co/1iifBTNixP #Cars #Autos #Automotive pic.twitter.com/icJXNjCURF
— Autotestdrivers.com (@Autotestdrivers) December 2, 2019
Kansas Highway Patrol PIO 👮🏼♀️serving North Central Kansas wants to use Tesla Cybertruckhttps://t.co/aUed1y78xb
“Let’s make it happen!” @TrooperBenKHP @elonmusk $TSLA #Tesla #CyberTruck pic.twitter.com/ElwPNfALkW
— Vincent 🚀🟠 (@vincent13031925) November 25, 2019
Check out our Facebook page for more about our Police Department's newest addition! @Tesla pic.twitter.com/VbjlIRSd4H
— Westport Police Dept (@WPDCT) December 10, 2019
There are surely many more stories of police forces and other governmental agencies going electric that we’ve missed over the years. If you have any favorites, feel free to share them down below.
Also, be sure to encourage your local police forces to go electric! I’ve had several conversations with the police about this.
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