Maintaining order in today's society is no small feat, and the frontline soldiers in the battle against anarchy are the men and women in blue that drive their black and whites. While you'll occasionally hear us griping about speed traps and revenue generation, we truly respect and appreciate all they do.
In this vain, we present the latest Face-Off - an homage to the cars (not SWAT vans or battering rams) behind the badges. This installment pits Associate Editor Mark Takahashi's favorite cop car, the current Dodge Charger against Photo Editor Kurt Niebuhr's Chevrolet Camaro B4C. So hop-in, we're in hot pursuit of a winner.
Opening Statements
Mark Takahashi for the Dodge Charger Police Vehicle
Police cars should have a certain look about them. They should convey strength and have a hint of intimidation, but not be mean enough to scare kids. When I first spotted a Dodge Charger being field tested for the L.A.P.D., I can honestly say it was the first time I was happy to see a black and white in my mirrors.
I was never a fan of the Caprice Classics or Crown Vics. Officers of the law shouldn't drive the kinds of cars that our grandparents do. The Charger is perfect as a cop car - it's already got a disapproving frown on it (you know what you did, admit it), it's got a burly 340 horsepower 5.7-liter hemi option, independent suspension and big disc brakes in all corners with ABS.
So the Charger's got the muscle to chase down the majority of baddies, and for the rest, there's the radio. It's also got the space that modern law enforcement needs. The back seats are big enough for a drunk and disorderly linebacker -- but not enough to make them comfortable. The center console has space for a laptop, radio and light controls, while the trunk can hold flares, riot gear and lord knows what else. So assume the position, Mr. Niebuhr, you're not gettin' off with a warning this time.
Kurt Niebuhr for the 1998-2002 Chevrolet Camaro B4C
Look, if you're going to catch the bad guy, you might have to cheat a little bit. After all, the bad guy is not always going to be driving an Aerostar, and he's sure not going to pull over and play dead as soon as you light him up. No. You're gonna have to match wits, or at the very least, equipment. A bloated LT1 Caprice isn't going to cut it and neither will some weak-kneed, mod-motored Crown Vic. No, we're going to need something else.
Enter this unholy alliance. Half lawman, half lawbreaker this is an F-Body with a badge. This is Smokey AND The Bandit.
From 1998 through 2002, Chevrolet built a Camaro with what they called the B4C package. Not much different than a standard Z28 with a 1LE package, the B4C gave you a heavy-duty electrical system, a power steering cooler and a calibrated speedometer. It should be noted that a 'standard' LS1 powered Camaro packed 310 horsepower, a limited-slip differential, a 3.42 rear end (when equipped with the six-speed manual) and a top speed north of 150mph. That's serious performance, even by today's standards.
Paint a B4C white, which the California Highway Patrol did (you can still see them on occasion), and you've got what is, in my opinion, the most stealthy, bad-ass police car to ever hit the highway.
Rebuttals:
Mark Takahashi: OK, Patrolman Niebuhr, what do you do when you catch said perpetrator? Strap him to the roof like a 12-point buck? Wait...that's not such a bad idea come to think of it, but I'm pretty sure the Constitution has something against this practice. Oh, that's right, you'll have to call for backup, something like the big bad Charger. And what about all your gear? You know, your gunbelt, laptop, shotgun, AR15, radio, riot gear and so on? You've barely got room for the radar equipment.
Your beloved Camaro is a narrowly-focused police vehicle -- a pursuit car -- and nothing else. The Charger is an all-around winner here. The catch 'em, cuff 'em and stuff 'em prowler that has the road presence of something out of Mad Max. The Camaro looks like a melted doorstop. And I doubt it'll really climb past 150 mph -- I think that once you pass about 130 mph, it'll be about as stable as Amy Winehouse during Mardi Gras. No thanks, I'll stick with the Charger -- at least until the Carbon Motors E7 hits the road.
Kurt Niebuhr: Well, it's nice to see you've chosen the best cop car for cruising around and shaking down street vendors for free tacos. Big center console and a roomy trunk? Really? Why not just buy a minivan and put a light bar on the roof? Just make sure you get the Caravan -- I've heard that Swivel-n-Go option makes a pretty good lunch table.
Look, a police car is supposed to be able to catch the bad guy and by the time you load your baker's dozen in that practical center console of yours, strapped down that big gulp of coffee and pulled that houseboat out of the parking lot, I've already run the perp down, tattooed his temple with my MagLight and called you to come pick him up and finish the paperwork.
Since you mentioned performance, how's that Charger of yours? You'll need a tailwind to tap 130mph and you'll be lucky to stop at all from half that speed. And that trunk full of riot gear, road flares, safety vests and DARE stickers isn't going to help that car's already sad, sad handling.
Sorry Mark, but I'm afraid the Charger should go back to the rental fleet, where it belongs. Well, I heard mall security might need a car.
So who gets the bad guy at the end of the day?
By sabastian
on February 22, 2010
05:10 AM
"So who gets the bad guy at the end of the day?"
These guys.
http://photocarsonline.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/lamborghini-gallardo-police-car.jpg
By sabastian
on February 22, 2010
05:47 AM
Nevermind...the link doesn't work, but I'm sure you've all seen the Gallardo cop car.
Of these two, I'd go with the Camaro. It's the only police car that I'd actually be interested in seeing...besides the Gallardo.
By estreka
on February 22, 2010
06:21 AM
Argh, Sabastian beat me to it.
By dougtheeng
on February 22, 2010
06:23 AM
link worked for me.
i personally think the Charger is a pretty bad ass cruiser. Overall, its the realistic choice.
By 08_miata
on February 22, 2010
06:46 AM
Dodge Charger is my vote.
In full police dress, it certainly looks the part. It has a very intimidating appearance.
Add that to the fact that it's roomy enough to actually put criminals in the back seat AND has quick acceleration to boot, it's pretty much a no-brainer.
It may not handle the greatest, but I'm sure it handles better than a Crown Vic any day of the week...
By yankeez
on February 22, 2010
07:02 AM
Gotta go for the Charger, no question. I'm sure the Camaros and Mustangs were alot of fun as pursuit cars, but like Takahashi said, at the end of the day they were really just one-trick ponies too narrowly focused to be of any real practical police use.
The Hemi got a power boost in '09 to 368 hp, plenty to chase down most perps with power to spare. And let's face it - if the chase gets over 130 MPH, chances are they're gonna call off the pursuit anyway and bring in the helicopters.
Plus, not since the 1969 Dodge Polara has a car ever looked the part of a police car more than a Charger. That alone makes it totally badass in my book.
By chrome58
on February 22, 2010
07:54 AM
Gotta keep your information current:
The Charger now has 368hp and 395lb-ft of torque.
By chrome58
on February 22, 2010
07:58 AM
Further, the Michigan State Police clocked two different Chargers, in two different years, hitting 146mph.
By iskch
on February 22, 2010
08:41 AM
'Charger does the chase and Vicki does the pick up'
From a Police friend at the highway patrol. Camaro cop car R.I.P long ago in a slow chase by a bus.
By brn
on February 22, 2010
09:08 AM
Of the two options listed, the Charger is the easy winner.
However, I don't think anyone is giving the Crown Vic a fair shake. It's not as fast, but 99% of police work doesn't have anything to do with speed. The Crown Vic is one heck of a good police car. Keep in mind that it's not a slow car. It just takes longer to get up to speed.
Around here, there's a mix. About 80% Crown Vics. The other 20% are specialty vehicles such as SUVs and Chargers. It works well.
By misterfusion
on February 22, 2010
09:46 AM
The Charger is the coolest police car currently available in North America, but that only demonstrates how unimpressive our choices have been. At least this space will be shaken up soon: The Holden Caprice is coming, and the new Taurus is a lot more interesting than the Impala.
I dug those pursuit Mustangs that CHP used to have...there were way more of those than the Camaros. I also saw the CHP Volvo S70 test car once. Too bad that one didn't work out!
LAPD said that they had reliability issues with their test Chargers and were unimpressed with the Impala's performance, hence their remaining an all-Crown Vic force. It'll be interesting to see what they switch to when they no longer have any choice in the matter.
By yankeez
on February 22, 2010
09:46 AM
"Keep in mind that it's not a slow car. It just takes longer to get up to speed."
Well I guess that's one way to put it...
I think what most people have against the Crown Vic is that it's older than dirt. The Charger is the first true competitor to it since the Caprice bit the dust back in '96 (the V6/FWD Impalas/Taurus/Intrepids don't count, at least in my opinion).
I remember Chevy putting out a police package for the Tahoe in the late 90s, but it was some $5000-7000 more than a Crown Vic, which is why not very many police depts used them (Michigan I think was its biggest market).
By greenpony
on February 22, 2010
10:16 AM
That the Crown Vic is still around and commands a majority of the police interceptor market indicates that it has the right combination of utility, performance, durability, and price. I don't understand what people have against an old platform. If it was engineered well to begin with, it doesn't need to be updated every 5-10 years. They're probably the same people who think "I need a new cell phone, mine is soooo 2009."
Anyway, this isn't about the Vic. So I vote Charger.
By subytrojan
on February 22, 2010
06:51 PM
Camaro!
CHP > most of you folks out there
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFes7fVRHF0
Which makes me wonder how the CHP officer died at the wheel of an accelerating Lexus ES 350. :(
By estreka
on February 22, 2010
08:31 PM
Keep in mind that all Chargers are V6s. Dodge does not offer the V8 in a police configuration.
By yankeez
on February 23, 2010
05:02 AM
"Keep in mind that all Chargers are V6s. Dodge does not offer the V8 in a police configuration"
Huh???? I'd like to know where you got that info, cause there are plenty of V8 Chargers out there in "police configuration". It's true that some are V6s (mostly in-town locals), but there are the 5.7 Hemis out there also.
It'd be kinda dumb NOT to have a V8 Charger in "police configuration", dontcha think?
Still don't believe me? Check it out for yourself...
http://www.used-police-cars.com
By estreka
on February 23, 2010
07:21 AM
Hmmm, can't find a reference. I guess I should do some homework before I open my mouth, huh?
Thanks for the info!
By brn
on February 23, 2010
08:02 AM
Yankeez is correct. Our Charger police vehicles are definitely V8's and they're freaking fast.
By mtakahashi
on February 23, 2010
08:25 AM
Don't feel bad about it Estreka, I got the horsepower ratings wrong and I wrote the durned thing!
I'm curious as to when we'll be seeing the new Ford Taurus in uniform. It'd have to be the SHO, for sure, but it might be an intersting exercise, no?
By estreka
on February 23, 2010
01:45 PM
I'm also curious about that dedicated police car that's supposed to come out soon. What was it called? The E7 or something like that?
By mtakahashi
on February 23, 2010
02:25 PM
Yes! The Carbon Motors E7! That is one badasstic looking cop car. In some ways, a little similar to the Charger's blocky styling, IMHO.
By estreka
on February 23, 2010
03:35 PM
Is Edmunds looking into test driving one? I'm all ears.