New police cars on patrol
By Nathan Straus News Reporter

Brownsboro Police Department's new Dodge Charger crusier

Two new black and white police cars patrol the streets of Brownsboro. The police cruisers, Dodge Chargers, arrived in mid-July following a decision made in June.

Ron Shields, chief of the Brownsboro Police Department, said he received permission from the Brownsboro City Council to purchase two new police cruisers on June 14.

"The money I was spending on maintenance was more than it would cost to buy new cars," Shields said. "I was spending $1,100 a month on the existing vehicles."

Shields said he bought the cars from a dealer in McKinney after discovering both Chevy and Ford had a wait longer than four months, and other police stations around the country had rated the Charger superior to police models such as the Chevy Impala.

"I got the Charger police package. I bought two cars for $19,200 each and saved $3,000 by using the state bid system," Shields continued.

The bid system, Shields said, enabled him to look at prices from several different dealers around Texas until he could find the best price. The Dodge dealer in Tyler charged $3,000 extra, so Shields said he relied on the state bid to find a better deal; the vehicles in McKinney.

As for the vehicles themselves, Sergeant Dawn Cunningham said she had never owned a Dodge before, but was impressed by the vehicles.

"They handle real well, better than I thought," Cunningham said of the new cruisers. "They're higher off the ground than Fords, but they can take turns fast."

Cunningham explained vehicles higher off the ground couldn't take turns as fast as vehicles with their carriage lower because of the risk of tipping involved.Cunningham said the Charger could take turns faster than she expected.

And the vehicle certainly moves fast.

"They tell me it didn't take it long to get over a hundred," Cunningham said.

Cunningham also said though she has never had to take the vehicle to such speeds, she has experienced some of the power the new cruiser can muster.

"Once you get it past 40 it really kicks in and goes," Cunningham also said.

Shields stated the cars were bought with heavy-duty cooling and transmission systems, and a high-powered electronic system.

Though Cunningham noted she didn't know exactly what extra systems were all put into the Charger, the sergeant did say the vehicles are a welcome addition.

"I think the car looks good, more like a police car," Cunningham said. "We've had the Fords for a while and they were used when we got them."

The cruisers haven't been on the road for two months, and Shields is expecting good things.

"I expect them to perform exceptionally," Shields said, "or else I wouldn't have bought them."