I suppose this was inevitable: you can now have a Tesla Cybertruck upfitted for police duty. Yes, following in the footsteps of such legendary cars as the Dodge Diplomat or the Volkswagen Rabbit, the Cybertruck can now be had with reds and blues and prisoner partitions and even K9 enclosures, all thanks to Tesla upfitter UP.FIT. The company is part of Unplugged Performance, one of the first Tesla tuning companies. Police departments have been reportedly excited about this, according to publications like Law Enforcement Today, perhaps because it allows for all sorts of RoboCop/Judge Dredd-types of future-cop fantasies to feel a bit more real as law enforcement officers muscle shoplifting teens and deadbeat dads into the back of their electric low-polygon stainless steel land-speeders.
The cop-spec Cybertruck offers a number of enhancements to the consumer-grade truck, which I’ll quote from UP.FIT’s press release to give you the full rundown:
“The UP.FIT Cybertruck combines Tesla’s unparalleled electric vehicle technology with Unplugged Performance’s expertise in vehicle modification and adaptation to deliver a complete turn-key solution to meet the needs of police departments. It features the expected suite of warning lights, sirens, PA system, as well as upgraded radio and computer systems thanks to specialized wiring systems and proprietary integrations. UP.FIT Cybertruck can be customized for tactical, military or search and rescue missions with available prisoner partitions, storage for weapons and specialty tools, K9 enclosures, upgraded vehicle dynamics with specialized UP.FIT Forged wheel and tire packages, braking systems, and optional upgrades for extreme off-road usage, as well as Starlink internet connectivity. Law enforcement agencies and fleet operators will find the UP.FIT Cybertruck a key advancement in practical policing, offering officers the best tools to protect and serve communities effectively.”
The upgraded radio and computer systems and specialized wiring systems I’m curious about; is this referring to the special terminals (like the legendary SCMODS) that cop cars already have, or is this something new and different?
https://t.co/m8yvbWeZtS introduces the world’s first duty-ready Cybertruck. This Next-Gen Patrol vehicle, expands the capability of this new platform for tactical response, patrol and Fire response. The future has arrived, and it’s ready for anything. pic.twitter.com/sJHdGsipg5
— UP.FIT (@UpfitTesla) June 7, 2024
The promo pictures released by UP.FIT include the expected cop-car-with-all-the-cool-lights-on photos, and also a number of photos with military-like tactical gear casually and artfully draped in the interior:
That shot also shows the added control panel of pleasingly illuminated physical buttons, which makes me wonder: is the Cybertruck’s huge center-stack touchscreen employed to act as the cop terminal’s display? Adding another console with a separate display seems a bit absurd, considering what comes in the car already. So far, I’m not sure how this is working, though I believe there is a web browser in Tesla’s software, which could allow for cop-specific software to run in a browser and use some manner of StarLink internet connection. But I’m just guessing.
They’re really enjoying draping that helmet and vest on here.
Okay, okay, we get it, there’s hardcore tactical equipment! This is a big, scary, law-enforcing machine, got it.
The cop-spec Cybertruck has different wheels and tires than the consumer-grade one, too. These aren’t the rugged steelies seen on iconic cop cars like the Ford Crown Victoria, but are custom-forged wheels.
I’d be curious to see how the large bed area is utilized; is it all racks of tactical gear? Is it a dungeon for particularly uncooperative perps? Just open space? Nap area? Maybe they’ll release some pictures of that, too. Same goes for the frunk; what’s in there?
The cop Cybertrucks also seem to have at least a partial black wrap from the beltline down; it’s hard to see in this profile pic, which looks all black:
Those side lights are interesting, too. A three-quarter view here seems to show the upper stainless area more clearly:
I like those searchlights, too.
As I said, I’m not surprised to see police Cybertruck variants; the imposing look of these seems like it would appeal to police agencies, for better or worse. The tone of these is a lot less “protect and serve” and a lot more “pursue and subdue,” but I guess that’s the way the world is at the moment.
Re: “upgraded radio and computer systems and specialized wiring systems I’m curious about; is this referring to the special terminals that cop cars already have, or is this something new and different?”
It’s referring to standard cop-car equipment. The physical-button thing you point out is a standard Code 3 siren controller. I presume the lighting is Code 3 too.
I imagine the bed has slide-out trays in it if it has anything.
This looks like kind of a PR thing more than a practical concept that shows a vehicle that any municipality is actually going to buy.
Among other things, I write technical requirements for a bunch of stuff including police patrol vehicles and manage getting them built, so I’ve got some familiarity with this.
Excellent PR prop to display for children at Officer Friendly meet n greets and recruitment fairs. I can’t imagine a giant stainless steel brick would serve well in tactical situations.
Now let’s see if the military would like to buy some.
I believe that the police prefer vehicles that can reliably steer both left and right. Steer by wire doesn’t have a place on public roadways let alone be in use by people who need to actually make it to the scene of a crime. Also, in the case of a large accident, police vehicles need to be in one place with equipment running for up to several hours, theres no way an electric vehicle could possibly do that.
The “in one place for several hours” seems feasible, as long as the truck doesn’t arrive at the scene with low charge. My Volt consumes 2kW at rest with the A/C on high. Let’s generously assume all the other electronics and lights on the truck use 4kW. That’s 6kW, or about 20 hours if the truck’s 123 kWh battery was full. Not saying it’s a great police vehicle, just that idling shouldn’t be an issue.
If the frunk clamps down on an officers hand, will it be charged with assaulting an officer?
Why does the dumpster behind the police station need lights and sirens?
With all the sharp edges on this thing, I’m thinking “protect and sever.”
No protect! Only sever!
The header image is perfect, because a) the Cybertruck is the perfect modern EV equivalent to the 6000SUX and b) Elon Musk is doing whatever he can to create a real life OCP.
I’m frankly kinda surprised electrical vehicles with onboard 120v haven’t caught on more among police departments/county sheriffs.
There’s a lot of stuff – SAR, accident management, to name just two – where you need electricity to power your gear. In a lot of cases, that means getting a truck on-scene with a generator. If you can deploy a vehicle (whether it be a Ford or a Tesla or whatever) that has lots of onboard battery capacity, you neatly solve for a big chunk of your deployment problems. Roll the EV, turn on your lights and comms and coffee maker and skip the genny.
Ford, given their longstanding effort at making factory-direct police vehicles (Crown Vic with police package, Interceptor, etc.), would be the logical ones for this kind of market, though. The Cybertruck has some things that make it sorta useful (onboard power, lockable tonneau), but if I were a municipal procurement committee then there’s no way in hell I’d touch a Cybertruck (which, unlike Ford, doesn’t really support third or second-party maintenance and management programs; if I’ve got a fleet of 20 Interceptors, you damn well better believe that they’re probably going to be maintained in-house for the most part, whereas a CT it would be impossible to do that with). Not to mention that “easily replaceable body panels” is one of those things you really do want in a police vehicle.
If I am being chased I will just cut through a small puddle or modest incline to get away.
A police force like cal to me has several Model 3 cars for patrol and have shown massive fuel savings.
So why isn’t a vehicle that can better protect the occupant, be used to recover another vehicle, and able to go more places not better than this: https://www.theautopian.com/why-the-tesla-model-y-cop-car-makes-perfect-sense/
Sure. Give a cop a 4-5 ton vehicle that is fast in acceleration. Nothing bad can happen.
Here’s the thing about vendors: they try to sell things. They screw on some lights, take some photos, gin up a brochure, and start hitting the socials. They especially do all of that before they build a production line, procure parts in quantity, or hire anyone new to do the new work. Just because a vendor wants to sell something doesn’t mean that anyone is buying anything.
I’m not seeing a Unique Selling Propostion here – what is the vendor selling that no one else is? Why is it useful for the police to own a CT? After getting past the “INNOVATION!” buzzwords I don’t see them even trying to make a case.
So, will one or more of the 18,000 police agencies in the US buy one? Sure. But in our national conversation about policing, a Sheriff’s Department buying an electric pickup truck doesn’t move the needle. At all.
Yup. This thing likely wont pass most of the fleet durability tests anyway.