Everyone loves a completely impractical police cruiser. From the Isle of Man's BAC Mono to Milan's Ferrari 458 Spider to Dubai's Bugatti Veyron, there's something about dressing up a car that normally encourages law-breaking behavior in police livery. It should be an unworkable combination, but it's undeniably cool. So cool, in fact, that even a level-headed country like Austria can't resist when they're given the keys to a Porsche 911 Carrera police car.
Today, Porsche officially handed the Austrian Federal Police a fully-kitted 911 Carrera equipped with the force's color scheme, a real standard-issue light bar, and a police radio system. According to Konrad Kogler, Austria's General Director for Public Security, officers will use the P-car to "demonstrate that you can drive responsibly and carefully even in a powerful sports car."
Hard as that may sound, the Austrian police have some practice in that regard. They used more than a few Porsche 911 Targas as patrol cars back in the 1960s and 70s, as well as a 997 back in 2006.
For anyone planning a high-speed jaunt to Vienna, the 911 cruiser will only be on free loan until October. No word on what Porsche will do with it then, though if they're smart they'll just give another country a turn at the wheel and keep reaping the good publicity. Or maybe a certain group of automotive journalists, who definitely don't mind re-gifting, and who promise to use it for our own road safety demonstrations...