Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced on Thursday that all 2017 Dodge Charger Pursuit law enforcement vehicles will be equipped with technology designed to prevent the ambush of officers.
The newly installed safety technology detects movement behind the vehicle through the use of a rear-facing camera and radar, according to the news release.
FCA U.S. teamed up with California-based InterMotive Inc. to provide the Officer Protection Package at no additional cost to law enforcement agencies that order the 2017 Charger Pursuit.
"This technology is designed to prevent an officer from being ambushed from the rear while parked," Jeff Kommor, Vice President, U.S. Sales Operations, Fleet and Small Business Sales, said in a statement. "While it does not replace vigilance, this technology acts as a second set of eyes and provides police officers with added peace of mind when they are in a parked Charger Pursuit."
The Officer Protection Package is designed to increase an officer's situational awareness when parked and working inside the vehicle. Through the use of the Charger Pursuit's ParkSense rear park assist system and ParkView rear backup camera, the system alerts an officer if anyone is behind the vehicle.
The InterMotive module is installed by simply plugging it into the Charger Pursuit OBDII port and securing the module under the dash and is activated though the Aux 1 button.
Any time the Officer Protection Package is active, the reverse sensors will be turned on. If any of the sensors are tripped while the system is active, a chime will sound to alert the officer that a sensor has been tripped. The officer can then observe what is behind the vehicle via the camera display. At the same time, all the doors will be locked, the front windows will roll up and the tail lights will flash.
