Branford Police to Purchase 2 New SUVs to Replace Crown Vics

For more than one year, Chief said police departments all over the country have been scrambling to find replacement vehicles for the old standby cruiser, the Ford Crown Victoria.

In September of 2011, CNNMoney.com reported the last Crown Vics rolled off the line, never to be produced again. Since the late 1970s, CNN reports that the gas-guzzling vehicles have been the car of choice for police departments as well as taxi service companies. Due to their fuel inefficiency at 24 miles per gallon, Ford has seen a decrease and demand and decided to discontinue production of the vehicle according to CNN.

So what’s Branford to do with the $55,000* that has been approved to purchase two new Crown Vics this year?

Halloran, after review with the department, has asked the for an extra $6,000 total to purchase one Ford Expedition and one Ford Explorer. This week the Board approved the use of up to $8,000 in forfeiture funds be used to make the purchase of the new SUV vehicles in addition to the $55,000 approved for FY 2011-12.

Currently the department has one Ford Expedition and one Ford Explorer used for patrol supervisors and one Ford Explorer used for traffic. The new SUVs will be introduced to the current fleet of all Ford models as patrol vehicles.

Halloran’s main concern at the meeting was the cost associated with outfitting new vehicles to become police cars. In the past, the department could transfer equipment from Crown Vic to Crown Vic with ease. Used cages, light bars and computer mounts can not be transferred to the larger SUVs or to the smaller vehicles being considered to replace the Crown Vics for patrol cars.

Striping the cars and adding light bars, cages, computers and mounts can be as costly as purchasing the vehicles themselves. Captain Geoffrey Morgan said "the cost of the vehicle represents about 1/3 – 1/2 of the total cost for a complete patrol-ready police vehicle." He further, That’s to say that the cost of the car alone may be $20,000 and all of the add-ons may be another $30,000 if all are purchased new.'

The cost of purchasing and outfitting the two new SUVs will be under the allotted $63,000.

On average, Morgan said the department asks for four vehicles a year to rotate into the fleet.

In the future, with Crown Vics not available, the department, according to Halloran is considering the Ford Taurus and the Chevy Malibu, which start at $25,555 and $22,110 respectively. SUVs will also still be considered for purchase given Branford's climate.

*The original story stated the wrong figure for approved purchase price of vehicles; the correct amount is $55,000 with up to an extra $8,000 from forfeiture funds.