In the country that’s home to both Ferrari and Lamborghini, even the police cars need to be fast. Italy’s Carabinieri has employed everything from SUVs to Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric cars over the years, but the force’s latest acquisition seems like the perfect choice for an Italian police car.
Two Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio sedans are slated to enter service in Rome and Milan. They’ll be used for “special operations,” including transporting organs and blood, and serving as police escorts at public events. Alfa Romeo parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) will also supply 800 admittedly less sporty Alfa Giulietta and Jeep Renegade police cars to the Carabinieri this year.
Like the civilian version, the Quadrifoglio police car packs a Ferrari-designed 2.9-liter twin-turbocharged V6 that produces 505 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque. Police cars even have the six-speed manual transmission that’s standard in the stock version. Alfa says the Quadrifoglio will do 0 to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds, and reach a top speed of 191 mph. That’s not quite fast enough to catch most Ferraris, but definitely fast enough to catch everything else.
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The cars appear fairly lightly modified for police duty. Both cars have radios and tablets mounted to the dashboard on the passenger’s side. Each also comes equipped with a defibrillator, portable cooling units, LED flashlights, and a storage compartment for weapons. Outside, Alfa added light bars and other extra lighting, and decked the cars out in the Carabinieri’s dark blue livery.
Because the Giulia is a lot faster than the average police car, officers will be specially chosen to drive them. They’ll be trained by Alfa Romeo driving instructors at the Varano de Melegari circuit. Several police departments have added sports cars to their fleets as stunts, but the four-door Giulia offers at least some practicality as well as performance.
The Giulia Quadrifoglio should go on sale in the U.S. relatively soon, followed by a lineup of less-expensive Giulia models. We’ll see if any police departments bite.
