A funny thing happens when driving an all-black 2011 Dodge Charger Enforcer decked out with light bar, A-pillar-mounted spot lights and a locomotive-grade cow-catcher up front. The automotive landscape slips into slow motion. Brake lights flash, cell phones drop out of sight, drivers guiltily stare straight ahead, not even daring to glance at this apparent escapee from Satan’s own constabulary… it’s all very fascinating, and yes, occasionally frustrating.
You see, every car within spitting distance drives the bloody speed limit – especially the one directly in front. In all the years I’ve lived in Oakville, Ontario I’ve never seen anybody go 50 km/h on Lakeshore Drive. But now I can’t go anywhere around here without being held up by a parade of terrified Sunday drivers.
On the 400 series highways in the Toronto area, it’s a different story. Is this how Moses felt when he parted the Red Sea? The road magically opens up before me, and behind, my law-abiding flock follows dutifully.
2011 Dodge Charger Enforcer. Click image to enlarge
With the recent demise of the Ford Crown Victoria, the North American police cruiser market is busted wide open. This Brampton-built 2011 Enforcer is Chrysler’s bid to grab a slice of the pie, and while the new 292-hp 3.6-litre Pentastar V6 will likely be the most common engine in the Enforcer, my tester pounded the pavement with the virile and vocal 5.7-litre Hemi V8, kicking out 370 hp and 395 lb.-ft. at 4,200 r.p.m. It’ll scoot to 100 km/h in 6.2 seconds.
The life of a police cruiser is brutal, and this Enforcer is much more than a Charger with a few graphics and lights. Behind those 18-inch steel wheels you’ll find load-levelling rear shocks, toughened brakes, suspension and differential, and “severe duty” cooling for the power steering, engine and five-speed auto. The complete structure is reinforced with high-strength steel.
2011 Dodge Charger Enforcer. Click image to enlarge
Unique to the Enforcer is a column-mounted shifter, freeing up the centre console for computers and coffee cups.
All the additional police kit, like lights, sirens, push-bars, interior fittings (computers, gun racks, rear “cage”, etc.), is installed by Legget and Platt, a facility in St. Thomas, Ontario that did the same for the Ford Crown Victoria.
The base fleet price for the 2011 Dodge Charger Enforcer 5.7 is $33,995, which is $4,000 less than the civilian Charger R/T. And no, you can’t buy one. Pricing for the Legget and Platt add-ons was not available.
This car had a few “special” features of which I was sworn to secrecy, with threat of an official ride in the cage and a free sleepover in the crowbar hotel.
If I were a cop, I’d love this bad-ass Enforcer. The redesigned 2011 Charger leaps ahead of the previous model with better visibility (taller greenhouse, thinner A-pillars and 15 per cent larger windscreen), improved interior, and honest-to-gawd steering feel. And I’m assuming it’s in another universe from the prehistoric live-axle Crown Vic. But what do I know from police cruisers?
2011 Dodge Charger Enforcer. Click image to enlarge
To get a real assessment, I conscripted my constable buddy who, after 20 years on the Toronto force, has seen and done more than I care to imagine. As he wishes to remain anonymous, I will refer to him as Officer Billy Clubb.
Billy jumps in, the seat gets powered back, his right arm rests atop the wheel and we’re off. The first thing I notice about inner city police cruising it’s all about the cut and thrust. The modus operandi is one-handed wheel-twirling.
“The Crown Vic? I hate that thing!” Billy offers. He’s not shy with the gas pedal either, giving the Hemi a bit of leash. “There’s so much more room up here… I don’t feel all crammed in. With the utility belt, body armour and winter coat it can get real tight. And some of us aren’t in the best of shape.”
2011 Dodge Charger Enforcer. Click image to enlarge
It was the Charger’s on-road demeanour that had Billy grinning. “It feels so much tighter than the Crown Vic. The steering, the cornering. It’s like a big sports car.”
He takes us to a near by cop shop, and a half dozen of Toronto’s finest swarm my Charger. To a man, they love the looks, and none of them have much good to say about the poor old Vic. Yes, it’s cheap, basic and easy to fix, but most complain about the loose rear end which even in the rain will slide out. Since Toronto police cruisers aren’t fitted with snow tires, driving in heavy snow is a joke, they tell me.
While I thought the cage in this 2011 Charger was claustrophobic, it’s actually roomier than the Crown Vic’s. The officers like the plexiglass grills on the inside of the rear windows – the Vic’s windows are continually being kicked out. Plus the back windows open in the Charger, allowing ventilation, which the lads think would be a good thing.
Front seat comfort is a big deal when spending up to ten hours in the saddle. The chairs got the thumbs up, but most complained of their guns pushing against the centre console. Apparently it could use a redesign with a recess for the heat and holster.
One officer was wary of the powered seats: too slow. If your partner is a different size and you need to make a fast switch, sliding the seat manually is the way to go.
Nonetheless, this exercise was kinda like waving a steak in front of a pack of hungry dogs. Hemi V8 Enforcers for TO’s boys in blue? Not any time soon. First, they have to drive the wheels off all those Vics, and the force isn’t exactly flush with cash anyway. They’d be holding their breath until they’re… er, blue in the face.
This won’t be a cruise in High Park for the Dodge Charger Enforcer either. Ford has a new Police Interceptor based on the Taurus, available with all-wheel-drive and a 365-hp EcoBoost V6, and Chevy has kitted out a rear-drive Australian Holden Commodore V8 sedan for police duty. This 335-hp Caprice had the best showing at the most recent Michigan State Police cop car shootout.
But neither looks as downright nasty as the Enforcer, coming soon to an off-ramp near you.
