(credit: translogic.aolautos.com)
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — If you thought the patrol car in the 1987 action movie “Robocop” was high-tech, wait until you see what L.A.’s finest will be soon be driving.
AOL’s Translogic caught a sneak peek of the new squad car of choice for the Los Angeles Police Department: the Chevrolet Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle (PPV).
Billed as the “sum total of all the law enforcement community has learned about patrol cars to date” by the report, the PPV boasts a 6.0L V-8 engine with 355 horsepower, 18-inch steel wheels, and a host of gadgets that puts any Hollywood squad car to shame.
The Caprice, which replaces the long-used Ford Crown Victoria, is equipped with an infrared night vision camera, automated license plate scanner, and a touch-screen center console that replaces the older computers traditionally used by officers.
In addition to horsepower and firepower, the cruiser is also outfitted with the latest in information technology, with ethernet, Wi-Fi and an experimental wireless-mesh network in the trunk.
Even the bad guys can ride in comfort: cut-outs in the back seat are custom-made to accommodate any handcuffed suspect.
LAPD officials say vehicle wrapping was used on all-black sedans instead of traditional paint to minimize repair expenses and protect resale value. This brings the expected taxpayer cost to be about $20,000.
Drivers can expect to see the new 2012 Chevrolet Caprice PPV cruising city streets as early as mid-2011.
