New Look Coming for Brick Police Cars

Like many police departments around the country, the Brick Township Police Department has long used the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor for its daily workload.

They served the law enforcement community well, but Ford is no longer making the durable line of fleet vehicles. That has left departments nationwide searching for a new police car, and in Brick, the choice is the Dodge Charger.

Six Chargers will join the Brick department's fleet and hit the road next week, according to Chief Nils R. Bergquist.

"Patrol Division is going retro by using Dodge again," said Capt. Robert Mazza.

The last time Brick police used Dodge vehicles was in 1989, when the department was using Diplomats, Mazza said.

The new Chargers will be a bit more technologically focused, however. The car features better handling than past models, and its engine has the ability to adapt from using all eight cylinders during heavy acceleration to four cylinders while cruising slowly in order to save fuel. The Charger also has more interior room than the Crown Victoria.

Mazza said the process of choosing a new car took over a year, as a committee of officers test drove several models before choosing the Charger.

"The final decision was based on many factors, including handling and performance, but one of the most important was the vehicle’s safety rating," said Mazza.

The Charger Pursuit model, he said, has received the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s highest safety rating.

The new cars will also sport a new look.

Keeping with the "retro" Dodge decision, a black and white design by Traffic Safety Officer Scott Dierking was chosen out of about 30 that were submitted.