For other uses of Urban, see Urban (disambiguation).
DLE Urban – The “Dallas Lieutenant Eve Urban.” Roarke designed this version of the “Urban” make of car and gave it to Eve as her police vehicle.
It looked ordinary from the outside, but it had more hardware than Mira’s office on the inside.[1] Peabody later summed up the vehicle with this statement: “It looks like crap, but oh, baby, she is loaded squared.”[2]
Description[]
Dull and somber gray, its lines were too practical, too ordinary for ugly, so the best that could be claimed for it was drab; though it did boast some shiny bits of chrome.[3]
Peabody looked at Eve’s new car and said, “I don’t get it. I just don’t get how come you have to pick something so ugly when you could have anything. Like the 2X-5000, or the big, burly all-terrain, or–”[4]
When Eve told Roarke, “You made it just ugly enough. Inconspicuous. Nobody looks twice,” Roarke replied that one of his designers had a breakdown - cried for an hour.[5]
In Brotherhood in Death, it was described as “unremarkable-looking.” “The DLE looked like your poky uncle's economy vehicle--and drove like a rocket.”[6]
Features[]
Equipment[]
It was loaded with state of the art internal data and communication (both primary and secondary).[3] It also had auto-nav[igation], holo-map, voice or manual controls.[5]
It had memory seats[7] and automatic seat warmers.[8]
Fuel source can be solar, noncombustible, and combustible fuel.[5]
It was programmed for her voice and print, so no codes were necessary. It was also programmed for Peabody and for Roarke.[7]
AutoChefs[]
Food and beverages were first mentioned in Thankless in Death, when Roarke “tapped and swiped on the in-dash ‘link. ‘AC mode,’ he commanded, ‘twelve-ounce protein shake, chocolate.’” Roarke explained that AC mode was “programmed into the system because my wife starves herself most days... It’s in the backseat console. Just a mini. It’ll only hold a few basics. A couple of shakes, coffee... a few protein bars as well.”[9]
By Festive in Death, it had front and rear AutoChefs - which served hot chocolate among other things. In Festive in Death, Peabody was drinking hot chocolate with whipped cream. McNab said, “Mini AutoChef back here has a full beverage menu.” He also added, “Iced squared accessories back here. You got your entertainment with vid, straight screen, tunes, books, full D and C capabilities, mapping - solo, duet, or full vehicle modes.”[10] Fizzies and Pepsi were also available from the AutoChef; Peabody got a cherry fizzy for herself and a tube of Pepsi for Eve in Echoes in Death[11]
In Dark in Death, Eve sent Peabody out to get real coffee for Morris, who had been working since the previous night and then when they were back in the vehicle programmed hot chocolate for herself and coffee for Eve.[12]
In Connections in Death, Roarke told Eve, “Knock back a protein drink from your car AC. It’ll give you a boost and clear up the headache.”[13]
In Vendetta in Death, Peabody programmed omelet pockets: toasted bread pockets with eggs, cheese, and bacon[14] after Roarke told Eve, “Get yourself and our Peabody something to eat from the AC in your car.”[15]
In Golden in Death, Eve sent Peabody out to get breakfast for Morris, who had been at the morgue all night due to protocols for the toxins in Dr. Kent Abner's body: “coffee steamed beside a plate of bacon, eggs, hash browns” delivered on a surgical tray.
Morris: “That’s real bacon. Those are actual eggs. Food fit for gods.”
Peabody: “God of the dead.”[16]
According to McNab in Shadows in Death, Eve had six varieties of chips in the AC.[17]
Eve had Peabody program some eggs for Morris, and coffee since she got him out of bed, and then added egg pockets for her and Peabody since she told Roarke she’d eat.[18]
Performance[]
It moved like a turbo, and verticalled like a jet-copter.[1] Its vertical and air were comparable to the new XS-6000 and it was capable of going from zero to sixty [almost 97 km/h] – ground or air – in under 1.3 seconds.[3] It could achieve a 15-foot [4.5 meter] vertical lift also within 1.3 seconds.[5]
Roarke had it up to 210 miles per hour (almost 338 km/h) on the straight, road and air.[19]
It was very comfortable and smooth.[1]
Safety and Security[]
It was armored and blast proof.[1] Its body was blast-proof, as were its windows; it was a tank that moved like a rocket.[5]
There was an in-dash camera with a reach of 150 yards [137 meters] in any direction.[5]
The DLE Urban was equipped with anti-theft devices. These included a “high-pitched scream” as an alarm and a “warning charge” that blasted would-be thieves off the vehicle.[2] It also had an electronics detector that would notify Eve if anyone had rigged it or attempted to.[5]
- When Eve and Peabody visited Wilkey House in Faithless in Death, they had to leave their vehicle at the security gate. Eve “figured they planned to bypass the security, do a search, try to access data from her nav system, her comm. Smiling to herself, she settled in. They were in for an unpleasant surprise.”[20] When they returned to their vehicle, “the guard came out of the gatehouse. From his scowl, [Eve] deduced he hadn’t enjoyed the theft-repellent shock that had likely knocked him off his feet when he’d tried to break into her DLE. She did a three-point turn as he opened the gate, and decided her deduction hit the mark when he shot up his middle finger.”[21]
Use as a Police Vehicle[]
It was fully equipped as a police vehicle with the alarms, lights, and sirens as required by the department, and a blast screen that could be activated between the front and back sections if she needed to transport any suspicious characters.[7]
There were no rules or regulations restricting Eve from driving her own vehicle on her official duties;[22] per regulations, as long as it met code, she had the option of using her own vehicle.[23]
History[]
Roarke gave the DLE Urban to Eve in May 2060, after her department-issued vehicle was destroyed in Promises in Death. It was intended as an anniversary gift though Roarke said he'd now have to think of something else to get her.[24]
It was the first vehicle Eve had ever owned.[19]
Mass Production[]
- When Eve and Peabody went to East Washington for interviews in Golden in Death, a black DLE was waiting for them at the shuttle exit, pre-programmed with the addresses they needed to visit and the seats conformed to their specifications when they got in.[25]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Kindred in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15595-6), p. 159
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Treachery in Death, Chapter 1
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), pp. 168-169
- ↑ Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), p. 273
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), p. 169
- ↑ Brotherhood in Death, Chapter 1
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), pp. 169-170
- ↑ Festive in Death, Chapter 2
- ↑ Thankless in Death, Chapter 15
- ↑ Festive in Death, Chapter 19
- ↑ Echoes in Death, Chapter 21
- ↑ Dark in Death, Chapter 18
- ↑ Connections in Death, Chapter 16
- ↑ Vendetta in Death, Chapter 9
- ↑ Vendetta in Death, Chapter 8
- ↑ Golden in Death, Chapter 4
- ↑ Shadows in Death, Chapter 2
- ↑ Abandoned in Death, Chapter 14
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), p. 171
- ↑ Faithless in Death, Chapter 13
- ↑ Faithless in Death, Chapter 14
- ↑ Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), p. 168
- ↑ Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), p. 227
- ↑ Promises in Death (ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2), pp. 168-169
- ↑ Golden in Death, Chapter 14