Monday, August 21, 2006

Will New York City Police Get Sirius In Their Dodge Chargers?

A Police Car With Plenty of Muscle
By AL BAKER, New York Times, August 21, 2006

Playing a police detective, Steve McQueen chased a criminal driving a Dodge Charger in the 1968 movie “Bullitt.” In the 1980’s, “The Dukes of Hazzard” television series made the Charger a star, in its role as the General Lee, the muscle car that could outrun the law.
More than two decades later, Chrysler is manufacturing a new version of the Charger for law enforcement agencies, and the New York Police Department has bought 15 of them for a trial run: 10 with powerful V-8 Hemi engines for its highway units and 5 with V-6’s for patrolling in precincts. The Midtown North Precinct, in Manhattan, got the first V-6 Charger last week.
The new police Charger is faster than the cars currently in use by the department. While some have questioned why an urban police department might need a car that reaches 150 miles per hour, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said the main reason for buying the cars is to make the department’s fleet less monolithic...read more: HERE