BMW Wins Bid to Supply LAPD With 100 Electric Vehicles

by Steph Willems

Published: June 8th, 2016

bmw wins bid to supply lapd with 100 electric vehicles

The Los Angeles Police Department just inked a deal that will see 100 BMW i3 electric vehicles wear the iconic black-and-white paint job of their vehicle fleet.

BMW emerged the winner in a supply bid that saw the i3 and rival EVs vie for the LAPD contract. The force chose the slab-sided Bimmer for its reliability and connectivity, and for the company’s charging infrastructure and service network.

If you’re imagining the stubby i3s hanging their tails out as they slide around L.A. streets in hot pursuit of a suspect, think again. The EVs are bound for the LAPD’s non-emergency fleet, meaning officers will use the vehicles for basic transportation and community outreach.

“The attributes of the BMW i3 position it to excel as the ideal vehicle for municipal organizations,” said Ludwig Willisch, president and CEO of BMW of North America, in a statement. “The performance and technical capabilities, such as the BMW i3 ‘s acceleration, and its ConnectedDrive integration, are perfectly suited to transform the future mobility of the Los Angeles Police Department while also reducing their carbon footprint.”

Following field trials earlier this year, the LAPD rejected the Tesla Model S as a pursuit vehicle due to excessive cost and concerns about recharging. To monitor the new i3 fleet, which should roll out of precinct garages shortly, the vehicles’ data system will be integrated with the force’s fleet management system.

The contract is part of the city’s efforts to green its municipal vehicle fleet.

Small and tall, the BMW i3’s 22-kWh battery offers a range of 80 to 100 miles, while its electric motor is good for 170 horsepower and 184 pounds-feet of torque.

[Image: @ 2016 Kevin McCauley/The Truth About Cars]

#BMW #BmwI3 #ElectricVehicles #EVs #Green #LAPD #Police

Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments

Join the conversation

2 of 71 comments

The Comedian on Jun 09, 2016

The i3 for current production can be ordered with a 33 kWh battery, offering about 40% more range than the old 22 kWh battery. (Not 50% more because the new battery is a bit heavier).

Like Reply
-Nate on Jun 28, 2016

I dropped by Police Supply to say 'Hi' to my old chums and one was loading up a new black and white BMW , I took a quick photo of it (iPod,blurry dammit) but there's no way to share it here..... . -Nate

Like Reply

Recent Comments

Varezhka Dunno, I have a feeling the automakers will just have the cars do that without asking and collect that money for themselves. Just include a small print in your purchasing contract.I mean, if Elon Musk thinks he can just use all the Teslas out there for his grid computing projects for free, I wouldn't be too surprised if he's already doing this.
Varezhka Any plans yet for Stellantis to wind down some of their dozen plus brands? I mean, most of their European brands (except Fiat and Maserati) are not only 80~90% European sales but also becoming old GM level badge jobs of each other. Lots of almost identical cars fighting within the same small continent. Shouldn't they at least go the Opel/Vauxhall route of one country, one brand to avoid cannibalization? The American brands, at least, have already consolidated with Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep/RAM essentially operating like a single brand. An Auto Union of a sort.
Namesakeone I read somewhere that Mazda, before the Volkswagen diesel scandal and despite presumably tearing apart and examining several Golfs and Jettas, couldn't figure out how VW did it and decided then not to offer a diesel. Later, when Dieselgate surfaced, it was hinted that Mazda did discover what Volkswagen was doing and kept quiet about it. Maybe Mazda realizes that they don't have the resources of Toyota and cannot do it as well, so they will concentrate on what they do well. Maybe Mazda will decide that they can do well with the RWD midsized sedan with the inline six they were considering a few years ago
IH_Fever A little math: An average, not super high end EV (like a model 3) has 70 kwh of storage assuming perfect fully charged conditions. An average 2-3 person home uses roughly 30 kwh per day. So in theory you have a little over 2 days of juice. Real world, less than that. This could be great if your normal outage is short and you're already spending $50k on a car. I'll stick with my $500 generator and $200 in gas that just got me through a week of no power. A/c, fridge, tv, lights, we were living large. :)
EBFlex No. The major apprehension to buying EVs is already well known. The entire premise of the bird cage liner NYT is ridiculous.The better solution to power your house when the power goes out is a generator. Far more reliable as it uses the endless supply of cheap and clean-burning natural gas.