Seattle To Use 28 Nissan LEAFs For Parking Enforcement

Police cars in America have traditionally been big sedans with big engines and little regard to fuel economy, but those days are long gone. Now many police cars use V6 engines instead of V8s, and an increasing number even have plugs. The city of Seattle, Washington has enlisted 28 Nissan LEAF EVs for the Parking Enforcement wing of the police department, which is a big upgrade from the glorified golf carts many agents were using.

The news comes from the @NissanElectric Twitter feed, which congratulated the Emerald City on going green in a big way with the purchase of 28 LEAFs. The LEAFs will likely replace an equal number of the GO-4 EV built by Westward Industries, which can only go about 75 miles per charge to the LEAF’s 82 miles, but with three wheels instead of four. The 19.2 kW/25 HP electric motor makes a peak output of 55 HP, but it can only reach a top speed of about 45 MPH.

Really, it’s kinda dinky, and the Nissan LEAF is an all-around better vehicle, even if it is a bit “overkill” for a ticketing agent. What likely happened is the city of Seattle got a good deal on leftover 2014 LEAF models, as sales have taken a nosedive while many buyers hold out for the next-gen model. Other cities, like Indianapolis, have purchased plug-in hybrids for detectives and other non-pursuit police jobs, though even heavy hitters like the Ford Police Interceptor now use comparatively-efficient twin-turbo V6 engines to conserve precious petrol. The Nissan LEAF has even seen police service in the UKand Portugal, though the Dubai Police Department is the only one to employ a BMW i8 thus far.

Once the police plug in, many other government agencies can’t be far behind. Once the Tesla Model III comes out, maybe Elon Musk should start considering fleet sales.