Researchers at the University of North Texas developed a drug-sniffing Ford Fusion. https://t.co/eqJsPzE9xz pic.twitter.com/Xq0125C1IH
— Autoblog.com (@therealautoblog) May 5, 2016
Walter White may never have had the time to break bad if Hank had only been driving around this modified Ford Fusion Energi. It has yet to be picked up by any law enforcement agency yet, but it could be the DEA's new best friend.
The project was headed up by Guido Verbeck, Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and at the University of North Texas. The idea was to make a portable mass spectrometer for analyzing air quality and running environmental experiments.
Very quickly, however, it became apparent that the mass spectrometer had another purpose -- detecting drugs.
"You start getting those chemical signatures before they even have to come in contact with the drug," said Verbeck. "The car could just drive by and keep moving down the road, and it'll alert the officers there’s something going on at the house."
Because the prototype of the spectrometer was bulky, Verbeck and his team decided to build it right in to a Ford Fusion for ease of transport. The latest versions are small enough to fit inside a briefcase, but we still like the idea of the car itself being able to detect chemicals in the air.
Ford has a long history of crafting police interceptors, like the iconic Crown Victoria of the 90's. Perhaps one day drug-detection will be an available feature for new Ford law enforcement vehicles. For civilian use, Ray Price Ford has a wide selection of new Ford vehicles with cutting-edge technology, like the new SYNC 3.