Dubai Police get BMW i8

Middle Eastern police departments are known for their extravagant highway patrol vehicle fleets, and now one of the most lavish highway patrol forces, that of Dubai, has added a BMW i8 to its ranks.

In a video released by ArabGT.com, the BMW i8 is formally handed over to the Dubai Police force chiefs, who will no doubt appreciate the rapidity of exiting the car when chasing perps, thanks to its swing-wing doors.

Priced at $299,000 in Australia the i8 is dubbed a supercar for hipsters, as it burns fuel at a rate of just 2.1L/100km. Powered by a 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol hooked up to a synchronous electric motor, it's not slow, able to accelerate from 0-100km/h in 4.4 seconds.

Combined output is 266kW and 570Nm.

Although the Dubai Police force regularly shows of its multi-million dollar supercar fleet, it's understood that the vehicles rarely if ever engage in crime fighting duties. The expensive cop cars are instead used as tools to attract erstwhile speeders and as a way for police to engage with the community and car enthusiasts.

The NSW Police force employs a similar strategy in Australia, its Porsche 911 cop car's primary job is to connect with younger members of society who may not always be trusting of police.

Getting back to the United Arab Emirates stunning police car collection, we've listed a condensed selection of vehicles from the Dubai Police fleet:

There's a rumour the Zonda got lost in transit...

Although Australian authorities cannot match the expenditure seen in Dubai, the NSW Police force has a number of intriguing models, including a pair of Lexus hybrids – the GS and RX – while the Australian Federal Police has been spotted testing a 245kW Polstar-tuned Volvo S60.