Sad…
The use of Dodge Charger Pursuit police cars in Australia has hit a bit snag, possibly derailing a plan to put them into widespread use. That’s the claim of a recent report out of the land Down Under. We’re just as shocked as you probably are to learn “most” police departments there had expressed at least some level of interest in getting some Chargers to add to their fleet. Apparently, the Aussie cops are sick of driving Kia Stingers and Toyota Camrys – go figure.
Watch a Hellcat Redeye race a Dodge Charger police car here.
While some would assume the problem is Dodge Chargers are far too manly for Australian service, they are indeed not. After all, the Aussies have produced some pretty sweet muscle cars, of which we got a taste with the Chevrolet SS Sedan and the final-generation Pontiac GTO. Instead, the problem is with safety or more precisely the safety of their conversion.
You see, Australians like South Africans, British, Japanese, and a few other silly little nations still think driving on the left side of the road while sitting on the right side of the car is the way to do things. While the US gets made fun of for not using only the metric system, these countries often miss out on some really cool cars because they think sitting on the “wrong” side of the vehicle is somehow going to cause societal decay.
The work of converting the two Dodge Charger Pursuits which we reported were already brought over to Australia was done by SCD Remanufactured Vehicles, a company based out of Brisbane. The thing is, they didn’t do this with the help or even blessing of Dodge or even Stellantis, which owns Dodge.
Naturally, Stellantis and its Australian subsidiary, which is still called FCA Australia (we told you they’re backwards Down Under), has worked to ensure everyone knows it has zero relationship with SCD. Stellantis released and official statement which sounds like it was written by attorneys, because it likely in part was, stating the automaker “cannot guarantee or endorse the conversion processes” used by the other company. Basically, the work could be shoddy and it’s not going to be Stellantis’ fault.
What was really the arrow through the heart of this effort to bring Dodge Charger Pursuit police cars into Australia is the part where Stellantis said anyone using aftermarket modifications from companies like SCD “may not receive the same level of regulatory compliance for recall and safety obligations.” As you can imagine, police department fleet managers don’t like those sorts of verbiage.
We just wonder why Australian cops can’t just drive on the left side of the car. Is it really that hard? I mean, some of us here in the US drive import cars with the steering wheel on the right. In fact, that can be a badge of honor in some circles. It’s just a thought, but we’re sure the Aussies already know all the reasons such a nature-bending arrangement can’t be used for their police to get some real American muscle, and that’s too bad.
Source: Car Advice
