Police has officially unveiled its next-generation frontline patrol car, revealing a heavily modified version of the latest Skoda Superb “Prime One” car that will begin appearing on New Zealand roads soon.

The new vehicle continues Police’s partnership with Skoda New Zealand, which has now been extended following a fresh procurement process that evaluated multiple potential replacements.

While it looks similar to the Skoda Superb station wagon sold in local dealerships, the new patrol car is the result of a two-year development programme designed to make the cars better suited to modern police work compared with the current model.

Police national fleet manager Leighton Hamlin says Police’s version is extensively re-engineered to cope with frontline work.

“The car that the average person will buy is not the Skoda Superb you see here today,” Leighton tells CarExpert. “We make a lot of changes to the chassis and the vehicle – including things like suspension and brakes – to make sure it’s fit for purpose for our frontline staff.”

One component that is carried over is the drivetrain. The new Superb patrol car has a 2-litre turbocharged engine producing 195kW, sending power through a seven-speed gearbox and to all four wheels via an all-wheel-drive system.

When police need full performance, the Superb can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.7 seconds.

The latest patrol car is based on the fourth-generation Superb, which is larger than before and provides more interior space for officers and equipment.

Skoda New Zealand product and planning manager Matthew Markby says the larger cabin provides about 80mm more rear legroom, creating additional workspace for officers and room for operational equipment.

The latest car also adopts a more utilitarian appearance, with matte black exterior trim replacing some of the chrome finishes fitted to retail models.

Primed for replacement

Police says the vehicles will primarily replace the existing “Prime One” frontline patrol Superbs used by highway patrol and community policing teams.

Along with the new Superb, prototype versions of the next Skoda Kodiaq Police vehicle – expected to be deployed in areas that require more ground clearance – and a new dedicated dog-unit vehicle are also under development.

The new agreement follows an extensive procurement process rather than a simple contract extension.

Instead of a traditional open tender, Police established a specialist vehicle category through the All-of-Government procurement catalogue with the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment, allowing manufacturers to submit suitable vehicles for ongoing evaluation.

Vehicles first had to satisfy Police’s baseline engineering requirements before progressing to months of real-world and track testing.

Skoda says the original switch from Opel-based Holden Commodores to the Superb reduced fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions by about 20% across comparable frontline vehicles.

The company says it has now supplied about 2000 Police vehicles since the partnership began, while fit-out specialist Wade Group has completed roughly 5500 NZ Police vehicles over the past 11 years.

The first new-generation Skoda Superb patrol cars are due to roll out in September.