Clever contraption. Some $5000 each, I understand.

They work wonders and the 5-7K they cost is more than covered by the reduced number of chase related accidents.

Would be interesting to see how it handles something with more power like a TRX/Raptor/Diesel DRW truck.

It looks like it’s long enough to reach the rear wheels:



I’m thinking that with an open differential, that if you tangle one rear wheel such that it stops spinning, the other rear wheel gets all of the torque. There’s only 1,650 pounds over that wheel and the police vehicle is spreading its braking force across 4,000+ pounds spread over four wheels, so I believe my one wheel would lose traction and I’d come to a stop. However, if I were in 4wd, we might get to play crack the whip.

I’d be curious what happens if you have a limited slip differential. I’m thinking when one wheel is wrapped up and can’t turn, the other wheel stops turning as well and some part of the drivetrain breaks.

Not that you see a ton of Raptors & TRX in high speed chases, but those are full time 4wd IIRC. So snag a rear wheel & what happens?

The 2023 Raptor is listed at 5,700lbs and says it has an electronic locking differential. Same type of differential I have. It’s open until you turn it on, then the two rear axles are locked. It automatically turns off above 20mph. Assuming a 60/40 front to rear weight distribution that leaves 4,560 pounds over three tires on the Raptor. I didn’t think about it in my previous post, but I think you would add the weight on the snagged rear wheel to the police vehicle. It is dead weight since that tire isn’t pulling its weight. That’s 1,140 pounds added to the 4,000+ of the police vehicle and I don’t think a Raptor would have enough traction to pull the police vehicle.

The TRX also has an electronic locking rear differential, but specific to the TRX, it does not disengage automatically above a certain speed. Chances are it won’t be engaged on dry pavement, so I don’t think the TRX would fair any better than the Raptor. With it locked, it wouldn’t have a chance as both rear wheel would be carrying dead weight.

I’m focusing on the tires because traction is going to determine which vehicle wins. I can put 860ftlb of torque to one rear wheel on my truck, but there’s no way the tire with only 1,600 pounds on it will have enough traction to pull the police vehicle with its brakes on especially when you add the 1,600 pounds from the other side of the truck over the non-turning snagged tire.

I could be wrong. Differentials bother me even when I make them out of Legos and can see what’s going on.

Good points, and I agree that the snagged wheel would probably add some weight to the front of the pursuit vehicle.

Would be interesting to see some testing on this rig with some high performance/oddball vehicles.

Judging from the police chase thread on here, 99% of the vehicles being pursued likely wouldn't pose much threat to this concept.

Also looks like it's reusable after deployment, which is a big plus.

At 5K per unit, dont look to see it in wide usage anytime soon.

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
At 5K per unit, dont look to see it in wide usage anytime soon.

I don't know - 5K is probably less than the cost to fix or replace a damaged cruiser.
Sometimes they get smashed up pretty bad in chases.

quote:

Originally posted by WaterburyBob:

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
At 5K per unit, dont look to see it in wide usage anytime soon.

I don't know - 5K is probably less than the cost to fix or replace a damaged cruiser.
Sometimes they get smashed up pretty bad in chases.

You’re right, but you may or may not have a chase that results in a smashed cruiser. If you buy one of these, you are spending the money. I’d guess that a jurisdiction that is “active” with car chases daily and twice on Sunday would more eager buyers than a jurisdiction that fancied itself Mayberry where most folks can’t remember when the last chase was.

I'd like to see them deploy the ESD Harpoon Launcher, disable the vehicles electronics and let it roll to a stop.

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