Buffalo P.D. Gifted with 61 Dodge Chargers

Speeders Beware: Western N.Y. Cops Pick Up Fleet of New Dodge Charger Pursuit-Rated Police Cruisers

The Buffalo, New York, Police Department now has more than enough equipment to pursue speeders and criminals. And it’s all thanks to newly acquired all-wheel drive Dodge Chargers sporting 370 Hemi horsepower. So, don’t even think about trying to out-run these guys.

On Dec. 14, a mixed fleet of 61 shiny new Dodge Charger Pursuit V8 AWD cruisers were unveiled at the city’s downtown police headquarters. The area’s hip alternative publication Buffalo Rising reports that the fleet also included a few V6 RWD unmarked sedans.

The Buffalo Police Department’s most recent cruisers, a fleet of 50 Chevrolet Tahoe police vehicles, were said to have cost as much as $49,000 each. However, the new Charger purchases averaged out to just over $26,000 per unit. Additionally, the Buffalo PD’s Chevys were the older rear-wheel drive Tahoe models. Those SUVS are not nearly as effective as the Charger’s AWD at tackling Western New York’s notorious winters.

According to Dodge, one major benefit of the Charger Pursuit is the complete integration of a 12.1-inch touch screen built into the vehicle’s dashboard. For years, the standard operating procedure for pursuit vehicles has been a full-sized laptop mounted to the console, which compromises safety by getting in the way of safety restraint airbags. It also intrudes on passenger seat space. The system uses an updated version of FCA’s “Uconnect” interface and is connected to most plug-and-play police-designed computer systems through trunk-mounted ports.

The Charger Pursuit, equipped as the Buffalo PD requested them, provides best-in-class acceleration combining Hemi power and all-wheel-drive traction. (Car & Driver claims a 13.8 second 1/4 mile and a 0-60 time of 5.2 seconds.) They also feature heavy duty suspension with rear load-leveling helper springs. Plus, there’s an 800-amp battery, larger disc brakes and a larger capacity engine-cooling system.

All in all, it seems like Buffalo got some pretty sweet new rides.