Dallas County will be spending more taxpayer money on the purchase of 11 sheriff’s department vehicles after the manufacturer discontinued the model that had been originally ordered.
Last year, county commissioners approved the purchase of 11 Dodge Charger Hellcats, a souped-up version of the Dodge Charger muscle car. The vehicles had different engine options, with the most powerful registering 807 horsepower and capable of going from 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds.
The sheriff’s department had already ordered the cars and was expectantly awaiting their arrival when Dodge informed them that the company would not be able to deliver on the order.
“The manufacturer, Dodge, is no longer making Chargers,” Chris Hooper, Dallas County consolidated service director, told KERA News. “We had ordered some Chargers and were anticipating them [to] come in, and they kindly said, ‘Hey guys, we’re not making them anymore.'”
Now, the department has to switch horses in midstream, so to speak.
The department will now be purchasing SUVs instead, specifically the Dodge Durango. The somewhat clunkier SUV has three engine options. The most powerful is the “supercharged 6.2L Hemi V8,” which has a max horsepower of 710 and can go from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds.
The county commissioners approved the purchase of the SUVs, even though the total purchase price surpassed the approved budget. The county will also auction off seven Chargers that it already owns.
U.S. News & World Report stated that a new version of the Hellcat is slated for production within the next couple of years, but the new Hellcat will be an electric vehicle.
