New South Wales Police will put a pure-electric Hyundai Kona through its paces.
The Kona Electric will be used by Penrith Police Station on a 12-month trial, as part of the “Crime Prevention Unit” and on community engagement missions.
The electric Hyundai Kona will be charged using an AC wall box at Penrith Police Station, allowing its drivers to recharge overnight.
Hyundai says the claimed 449km range of the Kona Electric is enough for “several shifts” on a single charge. The SUV will sprint to 100km/h in 7.6 seconds, and has a top speed of 170km/h.
Electric police cars might be new to New South Wales, but they aren’t unheard of elsewhere in Australia. Victoria Police last year announced it would trial a Tesla Model X electric SUV as a Highway Patrol car.
Elsewhere in the world, the Tesla Model S and BMW i3 have been used as squad cars.
“The Hyundai Kona electric vehicle is a valuable addition to the Nepean Police Area Command and will assist our Crime Prevention Unit with its community engagement initiatives,” said Superintendent Chris Keane, Commander of Nepean Police Area Command.
“The sponsored vehicle with unique police markings is generating a lot of interest and comments when out in the community, and we are grateful to Hyundai for its support of our Command.”
New South Wales Police has previously used a Honda Civic Type R in a similar role, and has a back catalogue of ‘community engagement’ cars including a Porsche 911, an HSV GTS, and a McLaren 650S.
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