Fremont polices Tesla in high speed felony chase ran out of battery power!

[MT]

 
“I’ve got to try to find a charging station for the Tesla so I can make it back to the city,” Hartman said.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/09/24/fremont-police-tesla-runs-low-on-juice-during-high-speed-chase/

[james_s]

Seems like an odd choice of vehicle for a police cruiser. Fragile, very expensive to repair, high purchase price. I suppose they probably just stole it (asset forfeiture) from an accused drug dealer though.

[windsmurf]

Fremont is where Teslas are made.  Most likely it was donated by Tesla to the city PD.

EDIT:
Nevermind... they bought it used.
https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/tesla-model-s-police-car-hits-the-streets-in-fremont-california/

[floobydust]

Tesla Model S 85, 0-60MPH around 3.2 seconds and quarter mile time of 11.7 sec 113.7MPH-  is very fast.
Dodge Charger police package... 5.7L engine 0-60MPH in 6.0 seconds and quarter mile time of 14.6 sec 97MPH.

"Fremont Police Department bought a single used 2014 TESLA Model S 85 in January 2018 for $61,478.50 (including taxes and fees) to replace a 2007 Dodge Charger that was being retired in their fleet."

It's supposed to have payback on maintenance compared to internal combustion engine.

edit:
GM has high-speed pursuit detection in their ECM firmware. I wonder if Tesla has it?
If you're full throttle most of the time for several minutes, or extended high speeds >120MPH, it dials back engine power, to give the police a chance to catch you. Feature disabled for police interceptors.
There are production automobiles faster and more nimble than what the cops drive.

[NiHaoMike]

How long before someone develops some sort of grappling hook or something to attach itself to the target car and then allow the cop car to be pulled by the target car so it would be the target car that runs out of power first. (Would make an interesting Mythbusters build!)

[james_s]

It may come out ahead in terms of engine maintenance, however I bet it will be damaged in some sort of collision sooner or later which will be exceptionally expensive to repair. Pursuit vehicles very often have to ram or pitman maneuver the vehicle they're chasing.

[amyk]

Tesla Model S 85, 0-60MPH around 3.2 seconds and quarter mile time of 11.7 sec 113.7MPH-  is very fast.

"Fremont Police Department bought a single used 2014 TESLA Model S 85 in January 2018 for $61,478.50 (including taxes and fees) to replace a 2007 Dodge Charger that was being retired in their fleet."

It's supposed to have payback on maintenance compared to internal combustion engine.

The Charger may not be as quick off the line and in the 1/4 mile, but it will travel far longer on a tank of gas than a charge of the Tesla.

[floobydust]

Car runs out of gasoline... either the gasoline tank or the batteries might be low - it's just misfortune to be unprepared for a chase?

[wraper]

Seems like an odd choice of vehicle for a police cruiser. Fragile, very expensive to repair, high purchase price. I suppose they probably just stole it (asset forfeiture) from an accused drug dealer though.

Nothing wrong with Tesla, stupid police. Started pursuit with almost empty battery. If you forget to fill gasoline car, result will be exactly the same.

[Cyberdragon]

Seems like an odd choice of vehicle for a police cruiser. Fragile, very expensive to repair, high purchase price. I suppose they probably just stole it (asset forfeiture) from an accused drug dealer though.

Nothing wrong with Tesla, stupid police. Started pursuit with almost empty battery. If you forget to fill gasoline car, result will be exactly the same.

Except it takes 20 minutes to charge a Tesla just to halfway even with a supercharger whereas with a gas car you just grab a jerrycan and dump it  in less than a minute. So if you are running the Tesla a lot, odds are you will run out of juice due to the amount of charge time.

[magic]

Another falls for the hype

How long before someone develops some sort of grappling hook or something to attach itself to the target car and then allow the cop car to be pulled by the target car so it would be the target car that runs out of power first. (Would make an interesting Mythbusters build!)

I estimate one year before a bystander gets killed in an accident involving that contraption.

[Mr. Scram]

How long before someone develops some sort of grappling hook or something to attach itself to the target car and then allow the cop car to be pulled by the target car so it would be the target car that runs out of power first. (Would make an interesting Mythbusters build!)

Woefully complicated contraptions in high tension situations are a terrific idea that can only go right.

[nctnico]

GM has high-speed pursuit detection in their ECM firmware. I wonder if Tesla has it?
If you're full throttle most of the time for several minutes, or extended high speeds >120MPH, it dials back engine power, to give the police a chance to catch you.

That seems like an odd story. It is way more likely the cooling system isn't adequate to run the engine at full power for more than a few minutes.

[TERRA Operative]

The grappling hook idea was already done in one of the Fast and Furious movies, but they added EMP capabilities to it too. 

[tom66]

I don't see news stories when the Dodge Chargers run out of fuel...?

[nctnico]

Seems like an odd choice of vehicle for a police cruiser. Fragile, very expensive to repair, high purchase price. I suppose they probably just stole it (asset forfeiture) from an accused drug dealer though.

Nothing wrong with Tesla, stupid police. Started pursuit with almost empty battery. If you forget to fill gasoline car, result will be exactly the same.

But you can fill-up a gasoline car in less than 5 minutes and catch up again. A police car will have much less delays due to red lights and being slowed down by traffic.

[dr.diesel]

You can't outrun the Motorola, as the old saying goes, these people rarely get away for long.

Too bad the story doesn't bother to cover if the suspect was ever caught.

[floobydust]

GM has high-speed pursuit detection in their ECM firmware. I wonder if Tesla has it?
If you're full throttle most of the time for several minutes, or extended high speeds >120MPH, it dials back engine power, to give the police a chance to catch you.

That seems like an odd story. It is way more likely the cooling system isn't adequate to run the engine at full power for more than a few minutes.

uh a friend disassembled the firmware in a GM ECU, long ago. When hacking something was for fun and learning.

We got stumped on the safety routines.
There was a full-throttle event counter and integrator to detect if a vehicle is being driven in a malicious manner. You would not go on/off hard throttle 20 times in a few minutes or stay full throttle for a minute while picking up groceries and beer.

The code would set a latch and progressively retard ignition timing and disable power-enrichment fuel, putting it into "granny mode" as I called it. The engine would get increasingly weaker. There was also vehicle speed limiting code. Not all cars can drive the Autobahn before aerodynamics and handling crap out.

I thought it was police associations lobbying car makers or Congress for this, to lessen high speed chase carnage.  The Corvette code was likely different I'll have to investigate, as it is a performance car that could be driven on a race track.

In a high speed chase, engines don't overheat because they are getting plenty of airflow.
Most of the heat is from the exhaust manifolds, so a chassis dyno without a big fan will quickly have exhaust glowing orange hot and then an engine (exterior) can overheat and roast exhaust valves.

Tesla would have routines to limit thermals on the battery pack, electric motor and drive, to protect the car. I wonder if police car applications were considered, or if this high speed chase triggered code to fake a dead battery?

[Siwastaja]

I remember seeing news of police cars running out of fuel during chases, maybe decades ago, more than once. They are very small news (if at all), won't make headlines. Tesla, OTOH, makes headlines.

Whether fueling takes 3 or 30 minutes is irrelevant. Both are way too long during a high-speed chase.

In any case, high-speed chases are an overemphasized part of police work of getting the criminals caught. Methods that do not risk the bystanders are / should be preferred whenever possible.

[wraper]

But you can fill-up a gasoline car in less than 5 minutes and catch up again. A police car will have much less delays due to red lights and being slowed down by traffic.

LOL, as if criminal will wait even 30 seconds for police to catch up and care about traffic lights.

[tom66]

But you can fill-up a gasoline car in less than 5 minutes and catch up again. A police car will have much less delays due to red lights and being slowed down by traffic.

I suspect that any cop in a high speed chase that pulls over for even a minute is no longer going to be in that chase.

I also wouldn't be surprised one bit if a Tesla has better range than say a Dodge Charger when it is hammered. EVs generally are more efficient than gasoline vehicles under high loads, especially because much braking energy can be recovered by regeneration.

[nctnico]

But you can fill-up a gasoline car in less than 5 minutes and catch up again. A police car will have much less delays due to red lights and being slowed down by traffic.

LOL, as if criminal will wait even 30 seconds for police to catch up and care about traffic lights.

But other cars will block the road while waiting for a traffic light. Same for crossing traffic.

[wraper]

But you can fill-up a gasoline car in less than 5 minutes and catch up again. A police car will have much less delays due to red lights and being slowed down by traffic.

LOL, as if criminal will wait even 30 seconds for police to catch up and care about traffic lights.

But other cars will block the road while waiting for a traffic light. Same for crossing traffic.

In very select cases when there is no way to move around at all. Also if stuck in traffic, criminals usually just leave a car and run.

[MT]

Seems like an odd choice of vehicle for a police cruiser. Fragile, very expensive to repair, high purchase price. I suppose they probably just stole it (asset forfeiture) from an accused drug dealer though.

Nothing wrong with Tesla, stupid police. Started pursuit with almost empty battery. If you forget to fill gasoline car, result will be exactly the same.

Concur police stupid choosing Tesla as police car.

[nctnico]

But you can fill-up a gasoline car in less than 5 minutes and catch up again. A police car will have much less delays due to red lights and being slowed down by traffic.

LOL, as if criminal will wait even 30 seconds for police to catch up and care about traffic lights.

But other cars will block the road while waiting for a traffic light. Same for crossing traffic.

In very select cases when there is no way to move around at all. Also if stuck in traffic, criminals usually just leave a car and run.

Only if the police are chasing them. So filling up in 5 minutes is not a problem. Catch them at the next traffic light. And as someone else noted: nobody can outrun 'Motorola'....