Budget cuts, calls to defund cops threaten police orders from Ford
DETROIT — Big budget cuts at some major metropolitan police departments, along with movements to defund departments, are putting a dent in orders for some law-enforcement vehicles, hitting Ford Motor Co. the hardest.
Police cars are a niche business, but it has been lucrative, especially for Ford. Ford provides about two-thirds of police vehicles in the U.S.
But according to a report by Bloomberg, the New York City Police Department bought 534 vehicles in fiscal year 2020, fewer than half of what it bought in the prior year.
The NYPD has one of the largest fleets in the country with 9,000 police vehicles, Bloomberg reported. In fiscal year 2020, it bought the smallest fraction of sport-utility vehicles since it started using the larger, pricier models. Of the 534 new vehicles it bought, just 29 were the pricey SUVs, according to department data obtained by Streetsblog and provided to Bloomberg News.
In June, the NYPD said it would cut $1 billion from its budget. The city specified savings of $5 million in deferred fleet purchases, Bloomberg said.
Ford is the segment leader of police-car manufacturers, though Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and General Motors compete for contracts too. The vehicles provide steady profits and image-related benefits.
The Police Interceptor, a highly modified Ford Explorer, is perhaps the most high-profile current vehicle. Ford expects to continue to lead in this segment.
“We see continued growth,” Tony Gratson, the company’s national government-sales manager told Bloomberg. A Ford spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ford’s domination in this sector has become controversial among some of the company’s employees in light of the Black Lives Matters protests over police abuses.
Ford delivered almost 3,000 Interceptor SUVs last month, double the June total, Bloomberg said. Ford ramped up production of the Interceptor following a coronavirus-induced production shutdown across all automakers in the spring. Ford also makes police versions of its F-150 truck and Transit van.
These larger vehicles are costly. The Atlanta Police Department paid an average of $47,654 for the Ford SUVs in its fleet as of last month compared with $27,391 for similar sedans, according to data provided by the department to Bloomberg. The Interceptor starts at $41,000.
In Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Police Department spent more than $3.8 million on pursuit-rated SUVs in the fiscal year that ended on June 30, down from almost $10 million two years ago, Bloomberg said.
Budget cuts could hasten a move toward hybrid gas-electric vehicles in departments across the country.
Ford’s new Police Interceptor Utility has the highest top speed (137 mph) and fastest acceleration from 0-100 mph among competitive police utility vehicles tested by law enforcement agencies; it also will save on fuel costs. Ford has said the first pursuit-rated hybrid police utility will save between $3,500 and $5,700 per vehicle annually in fuel costs versus the current Police Interceptor Utility. If those savings were applied to every Police Interceptor Utility sold in 2017, it would equate to between $118 million and $193 million, or more than 43 million gallons of fuel, Ford has said.
The LAPD is currently leasing 300 BMW i3 electric compact sedans for administrative use, Bloomberg said.