i8 Coupe

Make
BMW
Segment
Coupe

The BMW i8 changed many people's perceptions about electric hybrid vehicles. Sure there are plenty around now, some fully electric and much faster than the i8, like the offerings from Tesla, but they don't share the BMW's supercar looks and feel, even though it may only be classed as a fast cruiser by some. It's not new for police to use exotic cars, but you'd expect them to use fast ones, unlike the LAPD's new fleet. According to The Southland Times, Australian police in New South Wales have added a BMW i8 to their fleet.

Luckily there will be no outcry from the public about using taxpayer's money for this one, the i8 was given to the New South Wales Police Department as part of a commercial agreement between the Rose Bay Chamber of Commerce and a Sydney BMW dealership. So it's basically a rolling advertisement for the dealership, and a good one at that. When people see a police car they tend to stare a little and slow down in what they're doing, giving them time to see the signage on the car directing them to the dealership. The car will be part of the Rose Bay Local Area Command's community engagement programs, used to get the public to engage with the police.

The BMW i8 is something rather different for the Australians, the car-mad, V8-loving country is used to seeing police livery on cars like the V8 Holden Commodore SS used for high speed pursuits. Ozzie site Stuff reports that the i8 won't be used in any high speed pursuits though, that will be left to the cars already in the fleet. That means the car will likely stick to the manufacturer's economy figures of 134.5 mpg, which is quite sad. The bonus with the car being used in an emergency will be that the bad guys won't hear it coming, if the sirens are off of course. Even dodgy types walking down the road being suspicious could be trailed by the car and they wouldn't have a clue. OK, that part is scary.