Police trial Lexus RX400h

[Pebb]

Source: 4 Car

British police forces are trialling the hybrid petrol-electric Lexus RX400h. Hampshire Police are the first force to put one into action, and further forces are expected to test the model out this year. Fleet manager for Hampshire Police John Bradley said: "We have already received positive feedback from our officers after an initial trial and know that the vehicle's performance was outstanding, with quick acceleration and more than adequate response throughout the range of the electronic gearbox. We eagerly await the fully-equipped model when we will be able to put it through its paces and gauge the performance under police operational conditions. With a fleet that covers 14.5million miles per year and uses in the region of 390,000 litres of fuel, it is the responsibility of all fleet managers to seriously consider a vehicle's environmental impact when purchasing new models."

Image:

 

[amp88]

Sounds like good news for people who want to get away from the police...

 

[niky]

A sub-8 second SUV that can knock the **** out of most cars in a California stop (because she's a heavy 'un)... I don't see how that's good news for any criminal...

 

[amp88]

Sub 8 seconds in optimal conditions. Plus I doubt the mid-range acceleration will be that good (50-100mph kind of range). The police in the UK don't generally ram people off the road (especially in high speed pursuits), so the weight is a disadvantage more than an advantage. Also, a lot of pursuits in the UK happen in urban areas and I doubt this would be a very good handling machine.

 

[TsLeng]

I thought UK police uses Helis for pursuits as to minimise risk to pedestrians annd other traffic.

I read it once in a motorbike magazine. They even tests whos faster, a police in a vauxhall omega or a rider on a bike using a track test.

 

[a6m5]

I'm sure they'll throughly test it, before they decide to deploy it. Only thing I'm concerned with are the ugly decals.....

 

[Pebb]

I thought UK police uses Helis for pursuits as to minimise risk to pedestrians annd other traffic.

I read it once in a motorbike magazine. They even tests whos faster, a police in a vauxhall omega or a rider on a bike using a track test.

They use heli's if the chase gets more danager, plus they use them to track people on foot. Also Police find ways of improving the speed on most cars.

Aswell in Essax some of the police have Lotus Elise's.

 

[Judd]

Don't forget the army of Evos and Imprezas too...

I think this Lexus RX400h is great news. It has the performance of a modern 4X4 with much lower emissions. That can only be good.

 

[Pebb]

Yeah and some of the BMW M5's.

 

[Emohawk]

Aren't they putting the same drivetrain in a Highlander soon? Wouldn't that be far less likely to be set on fire by somebody pissed off that their tax dollars are being spent on a luxury SUV?

 

[1X83Z]

Aren't they putting the same drivetrain in a Highlander soon?

I saw one at the park across the street on Friday.

Wouldn't that be far less likely to be set on fire by somebody pissed off that their tax dollars are being spent on a luxury SUV?

Highlander is North America-only. Toyota does sell a rebadged version of the Lexus RX overseas as the Toyota Harrier, but Europe doesn't get that one either. So premium is the only way to go for a hybrid SUV in Europe. I'm sure Toyota will cut them some sort of break.

 

[Emohawk]

Highlander is North America-only. Toyota does sell a rebadged version of the Lexus RX overseas as the Toyota Harrier, but Europe doesn't get that one either. So premium is the only way to go for a hybrid SUV in Europe. I'm sure Toyota will cut them some sort of break.

I vaugely suspected as much.
I still dissaprove, unless Toyota's giving it to them as a promotional thing. What do they need it for? Let them drive Skodas.

 

[niky]

Aren't they putting the same drivetrain in a Highlander soon? Wouldn't that be far less likely to be set on fire by somebody pissed off that their tax dollars are being spent on a luxury SUV?

Nah... they only do that to civilian Hummers... damn guzzlers. I've never seen a full-on military Hummer set on fire... except with a grenade launcher.

I think it's good for them to try something like this, and I don't doubt that Toyota is giving them a good price on these trucks. Usually when Toyota sells to fleets and police, they sell totally stripped down cars (most of our police fleet is Toyota). Probably the only "luxury" thing about this Lexus is the powertrain.

And as for midrange performance, that's what the helis are for. It remains to be seen how these things perform, and I think they might be faster than you think, when you've stripped out all the un-necessary equipment and insulation.

Brits don't ram lawbreakers? Poop... how utterly boring.