MN Police Dept Testing Fully Electric Tesla Cruiser

They say it's the wave of the future, fully electric cars are here to stay. I've seen several fully electric Tesla cars cruising on Minnesota roads and I have to admit, they are pretty sharp looking cars.

Having never driven one myself, I can only go by the testimony of those that have. They say the acceleration is unbelievably quick and the cars are solid.

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Eden Prairie's Police Dept has been checking into other options for police cruisers and have added 2 hybrid electric vehicles to the fleet. Police cruisers make up the majority of Eden Prairie city vehicles.  According to the Eden Prairie website, currently the city has ten hybrids used by various city departments, including Chevy Volts, Ford Fusions, Ford Interceptors, Escapes, Explorers a Toyota Prius and several Rave4s.

Now they are adding to that a 2021 Tesla model Y police cruiser for a 100.000 mile test and see how it measures up in overall performance.  Until now the department has had difficulty with fully electric vehicles meeting strict criteria a police department needs.

Some of the criteria that fully electric cars before failed to meet were things like, officers wear a lot of gear when on patrol and the must be able to get in and out of the vehicle easily. Previous fully electric vehicles looked at by the EPPD failed to meet standards.

Other criteria that needed to be met, the cars had to be big enough to transport criminals, stand up for a lot of miles and get around quickly.

This Tesla fully electric police cruiser had a price tag of almost $40,000 and according to the city, fully electric cars are cheaper to operate and maintain.  An analysis comparing the Model Y to the City’s standard Dodge Charger patrol vehicle showed a slight lifecycle cost savings along with a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.