Californian Cops Outfit Tesla Model S as Future-Friendly Police Cruiser

Then it comes down does the offence warrant the chase?

Do you use spike strips on a 120 mph car because they're evading a speeding ticket? Sending a couple tons tumbling into who knows where.

You obviously haven't seen modern spike strips which are designed to have a controlled release of air in order to prevent catastrophic loss of control.
 
If the power to recharge the car comes from their own solar panels, how is that not green exactly?
well solar panels arent dug up from the soil , it takes a lot of processing plants and manufacturing plants to get the refined stuff , those are CERTAINLY not green .
plus their 870Kw supply wont be there all the time , so the grid has to kick in many times ;)
 
This actually would be real interesting, In high speed chases I wonder instead If AI could be programmed to execute maneuvering and calculate the best way to follow pursuit and apprehension versus having a human driving with the amount of damage reduced. I95 north bound in PA near Philly airport recently they had 2 state cruisers wrecked on pursuit, shutting down part of a major highway.
 
This actually would be real interesting, In high speed chases I wonder instead If AI could be programmed to execute maneuvering and calculate the best way to follow pursuit and apprehension versus having a human driving with the amount of damage reduced. I95 north bound in PA near Philly airport recently they had 2 state cruisers wrecked on pursuit, shutting down part of a major highway.
I cannot imagine this transpiring any time soon.
 
Even if Santa Claus gave them the panels and the Tooth Fairy is doing all the maintenance, it's still not free because of opportunity cost. They could be selling that electricity. Whatever they could make by selling it is the money they are losing by using it to power their electric car. That's real money lost, a real cost.
Therefore, the electricity is not free.

It's not free, it's costing the universe hydrogen atoms as they fuse into helium. Those hydrogen are gone, replaced with helium and exorbitant amounts of released energy.

God forbid they capture some of it, directly converted to electricity. THE SHORT WAY. The energy is being released whether we want it to or not. Might as well be utilized.

The long way involves letting trees and plants capture solar energy for millions of years, store it, only to release it in a messy oxygenization chemical reaction (combustion), that is proven to be about 80% wasted, just in the final combustion process... let alone the energy it takes to gather and refine it so it is even ready to be used by an automobile engine.

"but it costs!!".. go back in time 500 years, you will fit in better there.
 
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Has the speed to keep up
Green hippy factor
Won’t be the only cop car in the chase if it goes towards the max range of the car


I do not see the issue mere
 
never had interest in teslas so i have never seen the inside of one but i would imagine that for an leo and his posse bag along with the cad terminal and radio there isnt a whole lot of room in there. forget about transporting anyone either. crown vic interceptor best cruiser ever made.
 
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If the solar panels have been up for more than 5 years in CA they will have paid for themselves. All the electricity after that, in my mind, can be called free.
Solar panels are tied to the grid. When they are producing in the middle of the day, any excess power is 'deposited' and at night any extra power can then be 'withdrawn' at no cost until there is no more 'funds' at which point electricity is sold at the standard rate. OC the power company wins as the middle day electricity is more valuable than the night electricity.

Anyone who thinks solar panels will pay for themselves in 5 years needs to go back to school and take a basic math class.

If you are leasing the panels, they will end up costing more as the lease is longer than 5 years.

If you borrow the money, then you will be paying of the loan for much longer than 5 years.
(like the new California plan to require Solar panels on all new homes. Just roll it into your 30 year mortgage and if you live there 30 year you will end up paying more than double the cost due to interest)

If you pay the full amount up front, then you are missing out on all the interest that money could have made if it had been invested instead.

Besides, without the government tax rebates on solar panels, they would never be cost effective.
So in effect you are making everyone else help you pay for the panels.
 
On related news, Bill Gates is offering $1 billion of his own money plus $1 billion dollars of other private capital to build next-gen nuclear power plants.
Now if we can just get the ignorant pseudo-green wackjobs to not use lawsuits to delay the nuke plants into the 22nd century, maybe we can get a little progress on that climate-change thing.

This is the real solution as we would have unlimited power (day AND night), and at a much lower cost.
We wouldn't need all those gas/coal plants generate power when the sun isn't shining or the wind isn't blowing.
 
And what were those solar panels powering before the electric cop cars existed?
Where they up there for show?
Or where they powering the station, which will have to now buy more power off the grid to make up for the solar power used to charge the cars?
And how are the solar panels going to charge the cars at night, for the cops who have shifts during the day? Or do you think power storage batteries last forever?

The "solar is free" nonsense is just media spin, which only the ignorant will buy.
If these cars make economic sense, it's at the price of electricity sold to the station, solar panels or not.

On related news, Bill Gates is offering $1 billion of his own money plus $1 billion dollars of other private capital to build next-gen nuclear power plants.
Now if we can just get the ignorant pseudo-green wackjobs to not use lawsuits to delay the nuke plants into the 22nd century, maybe we can get a little progress on that climate-change thing.
You realize in the previous statement I basically agreed with you. You are attempting to twist the conversation. If you provide a report proving that they have no excess capacity, your argument would be a bit more solid.

You also are concerned about the life of electricity storage? Power banks can store excess generation for more than 8 hours.

Yet we are still talking about a single vehicle, which is a test and may fail greatly once functionality results are completed, but you guys are going down a rabbit hole (which seems to be more common on any change subject that comes up here).

And FYI, I'm a giant proponent of advancing and utilizing nuclear technology. It's clean and efficient. The small risks associated with it is nothing compared to the long term detriment caused by fossil fuels or inefficiency and cost of developing "clean" energy. Good luck with nuclear though, it doesn't cater to the base as a large number educated skilled employees are necessary and would cannibalize rural mining jobs, refineries, and outdated power plants that require less skilled workers in general.
 
Eh, the Tesla Model S P85D does 100km/h in just 2.8s from zero and has a max speed of 155 mph. That's about 250 km/h... Under what definition is that slow???
Sure, and how long can you go on a single charge before completely draining the battery or it goes into limp mode to prevent overheating?
How long does it take to recharge the car using their solar panels?

Most patrol cars are on duty 16-24 hours a day, they just keep switching out the crews.

Will this car be limited to one shift per day?

Can it even handle a full 8 hour shift?
I've read that beats can vary wildly from 20 to 200 miles per shift. If this pilot is only for neighborhood patrols then I imagine it will be on the low end of that scale.
 
Anyone who thinks solar panels will pay for themselves in 5 years needs to go back to school and take a basic math class.

If you are leasing the panels, they will end up costing more as the lease is longer than 5 years.

If you borrow the money, then you will be paying of the loan for much longer than 5 years.
(like the new California plan to require Solar panels on all new homes. Just roll it into your 30 year mortgage and if you live there 30 year you will end up paying more than double the cost due to interest)

If you pay the full amount up front, then you are missing out on all the interest that money could have made if it had been invested instead.

Besides, without the government tax rebates on solar panels, they would never be cost effective.
So in effect you are making everyone else help you pay for the panels.

I will concede i had the time wrong. 5 years is Arizona. California is 8 years to pay back solar installs.

I have installed solar on my two previous houses. I have priced out payback periods. Here in Colorado it's ~10 years. My previous house had an excellent bid as the buyer loved the fact i had solar, so no money lost there =D

I can tell you do not understand how mortgages work. Yes you do pay interest over 30 years and if mortgage rates were high it would be terrible. If you can tie solar into a mortgage of 3.75-4.5% it's a no brainier that you'd want to tie solar into the mortgage. Inflation is 2%-3% so it's not much over that (a doubling time of 50-70 years, so you're looking more like ~30% premium over 30 years) and the stock market, over that same time period, should average a normal investor with a 70/30 investment strategy at least 5%.

With solar paying for itself in 8 years, that leave ~17 years of extra money not going to PG&E (now bankrupt i guess)... any other mega-corp share holders and instead going into your pocket (easily covering that 1% interest payment)
 
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I'm all for the gas guzzling pursuit bikes of Judge Dredd.

Electrics are green but theyre not cool Haha
 
I will concede i had the time wrong. 5 years is Arizona. California is 8 years to pay back solar installs.

I have installed solar on my two previous houses. I have priced out payback periods. Here in Colorado it's ~10 years. My previous house had an excellent bid as the buyer loved the fact i had solar, so no money lost there =D

I can tell you do not understand how mortgages work. Yes you do pay interest over 30 years and if mortgage rates were high it would be terrible. If you can tie solar into a mortgage of 3.75-4.5% it's a no brainier that you'd want to tie solar into the mortgage. Inflation is 2%-3% so it's not much over that (a doubling time of 50-70 years, so you're looking more like ~30% premium over 30 years) and the stock market, over that same time period, should average a normal investor with a 70/30 investment strategy at least 5%.

With solar paying for itself in 8 years, that leave ~17 years of extra money not going to PG&E (now bankrupt i guess)... any other mega-corp share holders and instead going into your pocket (easily covering that 1% interest payment)

It also depends on how much electricity you are using. The more you use, the sooner your payback will be.

In my case, my electrical costs are about $100 a month, and about $200 for a few months in summer. Pretty typical for my area unless you have a pool.
Payback in my case would be closer to 20 years based on price quotes I've seen.
The solar companies usually ask how much you spend on electricity, because it really doesn't make sense unless your monthly bill is higher than $200.

Most people would be better off installing LED lights, insulation and a more efficient air conditioner system.
 
I would be curious as to the impact of all the ancillary equipment on battery charge ~ computer, radios, lights, along with the vehicle's climate control running full-tilt in the Freemont sun.
 
It also depends on how much electricity you are using. The more you use, the sooner your payback will be.

In my case, my electrical costs are about $100 a month, and about $200 for a few months in summer. Pretty typical for my area unless you have a pool.
Payback in my case would be closer to 20 years based on price quotes I've seen.
The solar companies usually ask how much you spend on electricity, because it really doesn't make sense unless your monthly bill is higher than $200.

Most people would be better off installing LED lights, insulation and a more efficient air conditioner system.

Electricity used is promotional to the solar size. How much electricity are you using and when was the last time you.got quotes?

Solar is an exponential technology with a doubling (halving in this case) of roughly 4 years. That's for the panels not labor.

An 7 kW system would be around $14 to 16k after 30% fed rebate. An average of $150 a month in electricity would put you at a 7 to 8 year payback. Far less than your 20 years
 
you know believe it or not, most people pull over when the cops light them up. All this outrun comments are funny.
 
And I take it you missed the part where they said they already have the solar panels?

well solar panels arent dug up from the soil , it takes a lot of processing plants and manufacturing plants to get the refined stuff , those are CERTAINLY not green .
plus their 870Kw supply wont be there all the time , so the grid has to kick in many times ;)
 
So what does an EMP during a high speed chase do to a model S?

Likely brick it, as well as anything made after the '90s. Iirc from a commission based study; most cars made in the '90s or older will likely suffer brief engine failure with the ability to be restarted, but there's just too much electronics in most 2000s and newer cars for them to come out of an EMP blast in a workable state.


On another note; no one has mentioned the service life on these batteries let alone their physical durability.

Iirc, Tesla expects them to run 8+ years with unlimited mileage, or at least that's what the warranty covers. But, I'd expect that to dramatically decline in a service vehicle, since they see much more use than an average commuter; Li-Ion batteries are typically rated by charge cycles.

I'd say that any officer driving one would also be advised against using take-down maneuvers to stop runners at any moderate speed; Li-Ion batteries are too volatile to be trusted in high-shock applications, imo.

Overall, nice idea, but we need to advance battery cell technology a bit more first for it to be reliable and safe.
 
An 7 kW system would be around $14 to 16k after 30% fed rebate. An average of $150 a month in electricity would put you at a 7 to 8 year payback. Far less than your 20 years

My average is a little less than the $150, but lets use your number.
Lets also use your $16k number as the contractors like to charge extra in this area as the homes are expensive. (that's a cheaper price than I saw a couple years ago)

So, $16,000/$150 per month equals 107 months, or 8.9 years.

However if I invested the $16,000 at 8% (stock market average), I would almost double my money in 9 years.

I could also use the investment returns on the $16,000, $1,280 per year at 8%, or $106 per month to help pay my electrical bill leaving me with a cost of only $44 per month.

Of course if electrical prices went up, the numbers would change.
Also, it you had to replace the inverter or had other equipment failures, the solar costs would be higher.
There's also the threat that the power company will no longer buy back the excess power during the day (or might pay much less), causing you to have to pay more at night for power.
The electric companies are also trying to raise the minimum monthly change to be connected to the grid, meaning that even if you generate 100% of the power you use, you could still be paying $20-$40 per month.

I stick to my opinion that the payback is too long, especially with the chance they could change the rules.
 
So what does an EMP during a high speed chase do to a model S?

A massive EMP would be as bad or worse than a nuclear bomb.
No internet, no computers, no phones, no power, no cars or trucks except for 1970's or earlier.
Plus it would take months if not years to just restore power.
 
My average is a little less than the $150, but lets use your number.
Lets also use your $16k number as the contractors like to charge extra in this area as the homes are expensive. (that's a cheaper price than I saw a couple years ago)

So, $16,000/$150 per month equals 107 months, or 8.9 years.

However if I invested the $16,000 at 8% (stock market average), I would almost double my money in 9 years.

I could also use the investment returns on the $16,000, $1,280 per year at 8%, or $106 per month to help pay my electrical bill leaving me with a cost of only $44 per month.

Of course if electrical prices went up, the numbers would change.
Also, it you had to replace the inverter or had other equipment failures, the solar costs would be higher.
There's also the threat that the power company will no longer buy back the excess power during the day (or might pay much less), causing you to have to pay more at night for power.
The electric companies are also trying to raise the minimum monthly change to be connected to the grid, meaning that even if you generate 100% of the power you use, you could still be paying $20-$40 per month.

I stick to my opinion that the payback is too long, especially with the chance they could change the rules.

Electricity is very expensive in CA at .25 a kW, so 1000 kW will set you back 250 bucks a month. It's also more expensive for residential at .28 per kW. Now with PG&E going bankrupt power prices are likely to rise again. You should see the power bill the city has to pay where I work and were looking at installing solar and getting electric vehicles, just not for police use. Solar may not make sense everywhere but out here in CA it makes a lot of sense.
 
Electricity is very expensive in CA at .25 a kW, so 1000 kW will set you back 250 bucks a month. It's also more expensive for residential at .28 per kW. Now with PG&E going bankrupt power prices are likely to rise again. You should see the power bill the city has to pay where I work and were looking at installing solar and getting electric vehicles, just not for police use. Solar may not make sense everywhere but out here in CA it makes a lot of sense.

Most power companies have a tiered rate structure for residential. If most your power usage is in the lower tiers, Solar usually doesn't make sense.

With SCE the baseline is 18 cents/kwh where I live.
After that it jumps to 23 cents/kwh for up to 400% of the baseline.
Finally it jumps to 40 cents/kwh for any usage over that.

Since I only use about 200% of baseline (around 600kwh), I'm paying 18 cents/kwh for half my power and 23 cents/kwh for the 2nd half.
That's why Solar isn't cost effective for me.

If I was heavily in the 40 cent/kwh tier, than yes solar would save me money.
Also businesses don't get the lower tiers like the residential rates, so their cost starts out higher meaning solar can make more sense.

There's 2 ways to save money on electricity, either install solar, or make your home more efficient. I chose the later.
In California, if you are paying $300+ per month, you should probably look at solar.
If you are paying less than $150 per month, you should look into making your house more efficient (insulation, lights, etc.) to reduce your bill.
 
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