http://www.news-press.com/article/20120 ... |text|HomeThe streets of Cape Coral will be dotted with police cruisers of a new design in about six to eight weeks when a shipment of 40 police vehicles will start their tenure.
The vehicles were recently approved by City Council at a cost of about $1.5 million. They will replace cars with 100,000 miles or more. As of January, 38 of the department’s 300 patrol vehicles had passed the century mark.
Police Chief Jay Murphy announced the department was looking for a new design for its cars in June of last year. The updated look is part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to rebrand itself, which also included major efforts to reach out to residents via social media.
The design was voted on by officers, who chose between a handful of options, Murphy said. The winning version hasn’t been announced to officers yet and the department has denied requests for images of the ones considered.
Murphy did, however, describe the design: traditional black and white with blue and silver embellishments.
“It’s got a design on it to soften it up a bit,” he said.
The vehicles will be Dodge Chargers, instead of the traditional Ford Crown Victoria, which has been discontinued.
They will also have V6 engines instead of the typical V8, providing the same level of performance with better gas mileage, Murphy said.
The vehicle settings will also cap the speed at 135 mph. “I don’t think we need to be doing 165 (mph) in Cape Coral,” Murphy said.
Finance Director Victoria Bateman also announced this week the city is exploring the possibility of supplementing the new vehicles with a contingent of used ones from Fuccillo Kia of Cape Coral.
“(Murphy’s) looking to get 28 cars from Mr. Huge that are used for $10,000 a piece,” Bateman said. “That’s good, because it probably means we can get an extra firetruck next year.”
Murphy said nothing is set in stone just yet and that he’s considering several area dealerships. He said the vehicles would likely have about 10,000 miles on them and still be under warranty.
Plainclothes officers, such as detectives and administrative staff, would receive those vehicles to replace the highest-mileage members of their aging fleet.
http://www.news-press.com/article/20120527/NEWS0101/305270053/Cape-Coral-police-cars-change-look?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Home
The streets of Cape Coral will be dotted with police cruisers of a new design in about six to eight weeks when a shipment of 40 police vehicles will start their tenure.
The vehicles were recently approved by City Council at a cost of about $1.5 million. They will replace cars with 100,000 miles or more. As of January, 38 of the department’s 300 patrol vehicles had passed the century mark.
Police Chief Jay Murphy announced the department was looking for a new design for its cars in June of last year. The updated look is part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to rebrand itself, which also included major efforts to reach out to residents via social media.
The design was voted on by officers, who chose between a handful of options, Murphy said. The winning version hasn’t been announced to officers yet and the department has denied requests for images of the ones considered.
Murphy did, however, describe the design: traditional black and white with blue and silver embellishments.
“It’s got a design on it to soften it up a bit,” he said.
The vehicles will be Dodge Chargers, instead of the traditional Ford Crown Victoria, which has been discontinued.
They will also have V6 engines instead of the typical V8, providing the same level of performance with better gas mileage, Murphy said.
The vehicle settings will also cap the speed at 135 mph. “I don’t think we need to be doing 165 (mph) in Cape Coral,” Murphy said.
Finance Director Victoria Bateman also announced this week the city is exploring the possibility of supplementing the new vehicles with a contingent of used ones from Fuccillo Kia of Cape Coral.
“(Murphy’s) looking to get 28 cars from Mr. Huge that are used for $10,000 a piece,” Bateman said. “That’s good, because it probably means we can get an extra firetruck next year.”
Murphy said nothing is set in stone just yet and that he’s considering several area dealerships. He said the vehicles would likely have about 10,000 miles on them and still be under warranty.
Plainclothes officers, such as detectives and administrative staff, would receive those vehicles to replace the highest-mileage members of their aging fleet.