According to Stuff the BMW i4 is under consideration for use as a patrol car - Fully electric BMW i4 joins NZ Police fleet as part of $1.7m trial
This is the worst of all worlds - excessive purchase cost, bad PR for EVs, and marginal operational performance. The 80.7kWh battery supposedly takes the car 590km, but 136Wh/km for this overweight beaver is clearly rubbish. 5.8s is not even that great with 250kW of power.
The police spokesperson said it was not a trial of the BMW, but I think only a fool would accept that comment on face value. Their mind is made up and this EECA funded trial is to convince their drivers.
There are so many examples of overseas jurisdictions using better value EVs and PHEVs for police work. Using high end BMWs (and Audi e-trons) in government is unnecessary and wasteful. As a Tesla and BMW EV owner I can vouch that servicing the Bimmer is more expensive, and I suspect the panel damage repair costs on an i4 would be horrendous!
Using the i4 will create negative public perception of BEV adoption at a time when public services are under huge funding pressure. I’m a huge BEV advocate, but right now I would support an interim move to PHEVs for patrol car work, which work better in both urban and rural environments and can rely on better existing refuelling infrastructure.
Frankly I think this is the worst kind of capture of public officials by sleazy car salesmen. As a procurement manager & fleet manager I would love to see the whole of life cost calculation - not just BEV vs ICE, but what other BEVs were actually evaluated before selecting the ugly Bavarian. If this was a proper pilot and not a foregone conclusion, these other BEVs would be tested alongside the i4.
This is the worst of all worlds - excessive purchase cost, bad PR for EVs, and marginal operational performance. The 80.7kWh battery supposedly takes the car 590km, but 136Wh/km for this overweight beaver is clearly rubbish. 5.8s is not even that great with 250kW of power.
The police spokesperson said it was not a trial of the BMW, but I think only a fool would accept that comment on face value. Their mind is made up and this EECA funded trial is to convince their drivers.
There are so many examples of overseas jurisdictions using better value EVs and PHEVs for police work. Using high end BMWs (and Audi e-trons) in government is unnecessary and wasteful. As a Tesla and BMW EV owner I can vouch that servicing the Bimmer is more expensive, and I suspect the panel damage repair costs on an i4 would be horrendous!
Using the i4 will create negative public perception of BEV adoption at a time when public services are under huge funding pressure. I’m a huge BEV advocate, but right now I would support an interim move to PHEVs for patrol car work, which work better in both urban and rural environments and can rely on better existing refuelling infrastructure.
Frankly I think this is the worst kind of capture of public officials by sleazy car salesmen. As a procurement manager & fleet manager I would love to see the whole of life cost calculation - not just BEV vs ICE, but what other BEVs were actually evaluated before selecting the ugly Bavarian. If this was a proper pilot and not a foregone conclusion, these other BEVs would be tested alongside the i4.
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