[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by abhishek46

They look like regular LXI variants.

Have a look at the Interiors here (Source: TOI)

Attachment 1516313

Tachometer gives a hint these are VXi.

[i_see]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/photo/52671427.cms

Do I see DDIS badge on front fender in this photo?
Bangalore police department seems to have bought VDi Ertigas.

Edit- Also according to this report in Economic Times, even the seating arrangement is different ! 3rd row seems to have been replaced by jump seats !
This photo also rules out that the cars are LPG/ CNG powered
http://tech.economictimes.indiatimes...-room/52665624

[IshaanIan]

Ertiga is not a good replacement for the tough as nails Bolero IMO. Sure t-bhp users can add that the Ertiga has been fine for them in most situations but the point is one does not have to care about nannying a Bolero across rough terrain (which frankly Bangalore has a lot of) and the same cannot be said of the Ertiga. Hyderabad's fleet switched over from Sumos to Innovas and I feel that is a far more appropriate upgrade.

[Sherlocked]

Originally Posted by abhishek46

They look like regular LXI variants.

Originally Posted by paragsachania

Tachometer gives a hint these are VXi.

Numbers in the tacho gives hint it's a VDI, since its limited to 6000 rpm only.

[bigron]

The Chandigarh Traffic police have replaced their old gypsies with Ertigas as mobile PCR's sometime back. I personally think Gypsy did a better job but then Ertiga presumably is a far more modern city car than a gypsy.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by Sherlocked

Numbers in the tacho gives hint it's a VDI, since its limited to 6000 rpm only.

And what surprises me is the missing Steering Audio and Bluetooth Controls then. From what I recall, these are Standard from VXi/VDi and above.

Wondering is these are customised for the Police Department then? Or, am I missing something here Or could be a fact that the image depicted is for representational purpose only!

[volkman10]

Bengaluru City Police’s mobile squads will be capable of faster response thanks to new tablets being installed in their vehicles. Called Hoysalas, Banglalore City Police’s patrol vehicles today consist of 222 units of Maruti Suzuki Ertiga’s.

The Home Department has now fitted all the 222 Maruti Suzuki Ertigas with 7”, all weather tablets that will interface patrol vehicles with Police control room more efficiently than ever before.

As was seen earlier, Hoysalas had to be continuously on the move, while introduction of tablets will see these vehicles now stationed at designated locations. 1,600 locations have been detailed with tablets signalling to them where an emergency has occurred which requires police intervention

The tablets installed are Panasonic Touchpad FZ-B2 tablets. These are placed on the dashboard of each Bengaluru Hoysala patrol vehicles. The tablets are waterproof, shockproof and dustproof. Police control room will send a call for emergency to the tablets after it receives a call. All necessary details with regard to the crime, priority level and location will be relayed to the tablet in the vehicle while the officer will have to tap ‘On Action’ button signaling that the patrol squad is on its way while the ‘Scene’ button signals that the squad has arrived at scene of crime

Bengaluru Hoysala patrol vehicles will then return to its designated position where it will await another call from the police control room. Details of the crime, photos and other details can be uploaded on the tablet which can be stored in the case filing system.

http://www.rushlane.com/maruti-ertig...-12198527.html

[Sherlocked]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

And what surprises me is the missing Steering Audio and Bluetooth Controls then. From what I recall, these are Standard from VXi/VDi and above.

Wondering is these are customised for the Police Department then? Or, am I missing something here Or could be a fact that the image depicted is for representational purpose only!

Exactly my thoughts. Even checked the Ertiga's official website to check the specs for LDI/VDI.
Tachometer is offered in VDI and above but also has integrated stereo with steering mounted controls. Now understandably to access the police radio the HU is different in police cars and since the steering mounted controls will be of no use then, they possibly have removed them from the factory itself.

Also as per the image from this TOI link dated today, which mentions that Hoysalas (mobile squads) have been provided with tablet-equipped Maruti Suzuki Ertigas, this 'Hoysalas' stamped Ertiga in the image below doesn't have body colored ORVMs and door handles and no wheel caps either, which too are standard part of VDI and above.


So the cars are definitely customised specially for Bangaluru Police and images as it seems are not for representation purpose only but actual images of the car since it has Hoysala stamping on the car which matches with the TOI article and also the tablet can be seen inside the dashboard.

[GTO]

IMHO, police departments (and the Army) should stick to body-on-frame vehicles only. Reasons:

- They cannot be easily immobilised in a crash.

- Overload friendly. Police cars are overloaded frequently. Can't even imagine that poor Ertiga with 15 people onboard.

- More suited to protection guards, grilles & armoury.

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by Skyline_GT

Am pretty sure our governments could never afford running police cars on petrol!

I don't think (and later posts suggests the same) that vehicles are petrol variants. I guess the confusion came up since someone mentioned PATROL cars and a member read it as PETROL.

Originally Posted by chncar

Transporting arrested people
Chasing and stopping rogue vehicles at high speed

Very true.

[*]To annoy people and perhaps cause seizures in epileptic people by idiotically keeping the strobe lights on without any reason,
With that said, probably a Nano would be more than enough for most cops, and a bike would actually be most practical for city cops who need to go into small lanes etc.

I notice that you are located in Chennai. Last month, while reversing my car out of my in-laws house in Chennai was confronted by a Gypsy with flashing (LED?) lights around 04:00 AM. I can very much relate to the seizure part. That said, Chennai police has a very visible force projection plan I guess. All the vehicles parked alongside the roads have lights always ON. Also, compared to Bangalore I guess Chennai police has more number of vehicles.

However, even in Chennai police Innovas / Sumo's or in Bangalore police's Bolero you dont find more than 4 people usually. Due to that also for the reason that it is tougher to navigate narrow roads it would have been better to get smaller hatches for the regular patrol duty. AT Nano?

Originally Posted by Sherlocked

So the cars are definitely customised specially for Bangaluru Police and images as it seems are not for representation purpose only but actual images of the car

Bulk government orders are usually taken care by manufactures directly and not at dealer level. Based on requirement manufactures would tweak the specification. I had seen Tavera and Innova purchased by Kerala police earlier, they came fitted with emergency lights from manufacturer.

However, in this case it would be interesting to know the specifications. ABS and power steering is available in LDi also, so what would be the reason for going for a stripped out VDi.

[chncar]

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

I notice that you are located in Chennai. Last month, while reversing my car out of my in-laws house in Chennai was confronted by a Gypsy with flashing (LED?) lights around 04:00 AM. I can very much relate to the seizure part. That said, Chennai police has a very visible force projection plan I guess. All the vehicles parked alongside the roads have lights always ON. Also, compared to Bangalore I guess Chennai police has more number of vehicles.

However, even in Chennai police Innovas / Sumo's or in Bangalore police's Bolero you dont find more than 4 people usually. Due to that also for the reason that it is tougher to navigate narrow roads it would have been better to get smaller hatches for the regular patrol duty. AT Nano?

Actually Chennai police do a relatively good job, and you are right they have a very visible presence (at least in the wealthier areas) that acts as an effective deterrent to some extent.

My post was largely in a lighter vein, however all those points are still true.

Keeping the strobe lights on unnecessarily, is especially annoying, for multiple reasons:

1. It shows lack of training and discipline
2. Use of it without cause just makes it useless, since you can't tell whether there is a genuine emergency
3. In traffic, from a distance and especially in the rear view mirror, it is hard to tell whether it is an Ambulance that needs to let through or some cop taking his family to the movies
4. Its extremely distracting and annoying at night, as if the horns and high beams from 90% of the vehcles were not enough

[Sherlocked]

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

However, in this case it would be interesting to know the specifications. ABS and power steering is available in LDi also, so what would be the reason for going for a stripped out VDi.

Only prominent feature which comes to mind is Second Row AC as it is there in VDI onwards only and not in the LDI. However the below low resolution pic doesn't say much whether it has roof ac vents or not.

Or MAYBE they specifically asked for a tachometer in a LDI to stay right in the turbo zone.

Pic Source

[shaggydogg]

Each of the Ertiga's procured are of the LDi trim with SVHS technology. The modifications include removal of the last row of seats to put two jump seats in place of the forward facing seats - as seen in the photos. This will provide for easy egress through the back in case of emergencies and is definitely more practical. I believe there are also some modifications to the placement of the spare wheel.

The cars are air conditioned but do not have the second row blowers (as is the case with the LDi trim) and do not have power windows or music systems.

Currently there are roughly 120 operational Hoysalas in the city - this does not reflect the total strength because a number of vehicles are in-operational due to reasons of age/maintenance. With the introduction of 225 of these Ertigas, some of the older Boleros will be phased out, leaving ~300 Hoysalas on the road which is a significant increase in strength - hopefully they introduce more of these at a later stage!

[NPV]

Another print media report of the Ertigas that will be used as Hoysala Patrol vehicles by Bangalore city traffic police.

Source:Hoysala Gets Tech-savvy and How!

[sam_sant2005]

Originally Posted by GTO

IMHO, police departments (and the Army) should stick to body-on-frame vehicles only. Reasons:

- They cannot be easily immobilised in a crash.

- Overload friendly. Police cars are overloaded frequently. Can't even imagine that poor Ertiga with 15 people onboard.

- More suited to protection guards, grilles & armoury.

Good points GTO. I have tried upto 9 adults + 2 kids on my Ertiga ZDi and she was fine with it for a short trip

However if we try to weigh the positives of using Ertiga over Bolero/Tavera/Old Innova, Ertiga might be a overall better decision IMHO for use in city (not on rugged terrains, we are talking just about Bangalore City). Reasons being :-

1) Far better fuel efficiency that the competition (Will save Govt lacs of Rs) Police walahs generally dont use A/c so I feel she should return a handsome 15+ in City.

2) Far better 0-100 figures than the competition (chases may not happen in real world but still good to catch a biker upto 300cc).

Ertiga may not be as robust as the others but I feel she should do the job for the police dept if maintained well and used inside City.