BMW i8 hybrid joins Dubai police fleet

ENERGY-CONSCIOUS SPORTS COUPE JOINS SUPERCAR STABLE

In an effort to one-up the police fleets of other Gulf states, the Dubai police force has recently acquired a BMW i8 which it has painted in police colors. The acquisition follows the purchase of a Rolls-Royce Phantom by the police force in Abu Dhabi; a less energy-conscious purchase, we think.

The BMW i8 joins a well-curated stable in one of the region's wealthiest cities. The Dubai police fleet currently boasts aBugatti Veyron, a Lamborghini Aventador, a Ferrari FF, a Mercedes-Benz SLS, an Aston Martin One-77, an Audi R8, a Nissan GT-R, and an extensive assortment of other sports cars that aren't necessarily that well-suited for police duty, aside from their performance statistics.

The purchase also follows the acquisition of a Mercedes-Benz B63S - 700 Widestar tuned by Brabus just over a year ago. The 700-hp SUV, based on the Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG, debuted at the Dubai Motor Show in November of 2013 prior to joining the fleet, becoming one of the more practical exotic vehicles to join the force.

The supercars acquired by Dubai for police use won't be chasing down criminals anytime soon -- there are dozens of arguably more expendable BMW 5-series sedans on the force that will do the dirty work.

The BMW i8 is powered by a turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine that produces 228 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque, along with an electric motor up front that produces an additional 129 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque. The gasoline engine drives the rear wheels via a six-speed automatic gearbox, while the electric motor solely powers the front wheels. Yet another electric motor, one producing 13 hp and 81 lb-ft of torque, gives a little extra help to the rear wheels. In all, the i8 produces 357 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque, and being a plug-in hybrid it can be fully charged in two hours. BMW claims a 4.5-second sprint from 0 to 60 for the sports car, which can also run a total of 22 miles on electricity alone and boasts a combined range of 310 miles.

But we're not sure if its the car's green cred that motivated Dubai to purchase one of these -- this won't make a dent in the police fleet's average fuel economy. The fuel economy Brabus G-class alone could cancel out the beneficial effect of several BMW i8s.