Half a decade ago, a small town police force went Tesla...

[Ws6]

And this is how it's playing out:

Bargersville started with its first Tesla police car in 2019. Since then, the town has added a dozen more Teslas to its fleet of police vehicles. The police chief noted that going for Teslas was evidently a risk in the beginning, but it has paid off. This was highlighted by the fact that the fuel savings for the Teslas were so notable that the town was able to pay for two more officers, as noted in a WRTV report.

Tesla police fleet is saving taxpayers $80k per year on fuel costs: report

A fleet of Tesla police cars are proving themselves superior to their combustion-powered counterparts at the town of Bargersville.

www.teslarati.com

 

[Danno]

Amazing that there were no negatives included as part of the story. Read almost like a paid ad.
Sure would like to see a side by side on total fleet costs before and after, all costs in. No mention of that in the article.

 

[JavierH19]

I'm sure the fuel savings from idling are big but there's more to this.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Amazing that there were no negatives included as part of the story. Read almost like a paid ad.
Sure would like to see a side by side on total fleet costs before and after, all costs in. No mention of that in the article.

How is it relevant? The article stated that they could hire two officers due to the total cost savings from having Tesla's in their fleet.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

I'm sure the fuel savings from idling are big but there's more to this.

Sure such as being used in a town of 10,000 people.

 

[JeffKeryk]

I am not sure what the maintenance schedule is for their ICE cars, but Teslas do save time and $$ on services. Now, depending on use, the Teslas may be down longer for fueling. Plus, they aren't cheap to buy.

Another plus is, if people are interested in the cars, the community may interface with the Police Officers more. Police Departments have been buying Corvettes and Camaros for years, just for the interest.

The devil is usually in the details.

 

[bullwinkle]

I've been waiting for results on Amazon's big Rivian cargo van experiment, they bought a BUNCH of them here.

 

[Danno]

How is it relevant? The article stated that they could hire two officers due to the total cost savings from having Tesla's in their fleet.

They specifically stated, they funded the 2 officers from fuel savings. Seems disingenuous at best, when the total cost picture is not discussed.
Coming from managing a major fleet of 1400 vehicles where Capex requests were not considered without at most a 3 year payback with 20 percent ROI.
I tend to question most of these feel good stories.

 

[Kira]

WHAT? Fleet data? actual thinking? NO, no, no.
The EV discussion has to be incomplete sentences, all of which are laced with political carp talk.
That's the American way!

 

[Zee09]

I guess the electric is free?

 

[MolaKule]

And this is how it's playing out:

Tesla police fleet is saving taxpayers $80k per year on fuel costs: report

A fleet of Tesla police cars are proving themselves superior to their combustion-powered counterparts at the town of Bargersville.

www.teslarati.com

I did not see any reporting of figures on the increased electricity costs for the town nor the added cost of installing electric chargers.

Another factor is availability of a vehicle for emergencies. If it's charging, you may have to pull the plug and leave quick but your service time will be reduced, because police vehicles have an array of additional electronic equipment.

 

[PandaBear]

And this is how it's playing out:

Tesla police fleet is saving taxpayers $80k per year on fuel costs: report

A fleet of Tesla police cars are proving themselves superior to their combustion-powered counterparts at the town of Bargersville.

www.teslarati.com

Something doesn't add up. Saving 80k in fuel cost a year, assuming you already include additional cost for the Tesla or electricity in charging, is enough to pay for 2 additional officers?

Do officers only cost 40k a year? That's like they get paid 30-35k a year.

 

[PandaBear]

I did not see any reporting of figures on the increased electricity costs for the town nor the added cost of installing electric chargers.

Another factor is availability of a vehicle for emergencies. If it's charging, you may have to pull the plug and leave quick but your service time will be reduced, because police vehicles have an array of additional electronic equipment.

That could be outside funding they can tap into and "free money" to the town's police department.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Something doesn't add up. Saving 80k in fuel cost a year, assuming you already include additional cost for the Tesla or electricity in charging, is enough to pay for 2 additional officers?

Do officers only cost 40k a year? That's like they get paid 30-35k a year.

The small Indiana town has a population of 10k.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

I did not see any reporting of figures on the increased electricity costs for the town nor the added cost of installing electric chargers.

Another factor is availability of a vehicle for emergencies. If it's charging, you may have to pull the plug and leave quick but your service time will be reduced, because police vehicles have an array of additional electronic equipment.

It's a laypersons article. Take it for what it is.

"The Bargersville police department still operates six combustion-powered vehicles in its fleet, which consume $2,900 in gas every month. In comparison, the 13 Teslas that the police department operates cost about $600 per month to charge. “It’s working, it saves a lot of money,” Bertram noted."

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

WHAT? Fleet data? actual thinking? NO, no, no.
The EV discussion has to be incomplete sentences, all of which are laced with political carp talk.
That's the American way!

People desperately need to adjust their expectations. Not every article is meant to be nor needs to be a detailed multi-page analysis.

 

[97K15004WD]

If you are really interested in this, file a FOIA with the town. The cost will be worth what you find out, if you are so inclined.

 

[JeffKeryk]

I did not see any reporting of figures on the increased electricity costs for the town nor the added cost of installing electric chargers.

Another factor is availability of a vehicle for emergencies. If it's charging, you may have to pull the plug and leave quick but your service time will be reduced, because police vehicles have an array of additional electronic equipment.

As an owner, I have considered the need to use the car when the charge is low (after a trip, etc.) I charge at 28 to 30 MPH at home; waiting an hour may not be an option. 10 minutes at a Supercharger may not work either. Having other vehicle(s) is key.

One would guess they have a charging schedule to mitigate emergency use. It is likely they have other vehicles available, vehicles for specific use, etc.
But yes, the devil is in the details.

 

[cptbarkey]

How is it relevant? The article stated that they could hire two officers due to the total cost savings from having Tesla's in their fleet.

That is laughable in itself.

 

[y_p_w]

I did not see any reporting of figures on the increased electricity costs for the town nor the added cost of installing electric chargers.

Another factor is availability of a vehicle for emergencies. If it's charging, you may have to pull the plug and leave quick but your service time will be reduced, because police vehicles have an array of additional electronic equipment.

The city is six miles wide. If they can't start off the day (and yeah I know some police vehicles are used for more than one shift) and survive one day on whatever charge, then it's a failure in logistics to keep them charged. Even with all the accessory equipment.

One thing the article noted was resale value. I suppose one issue in resale is whether or not someone really wants to buy a used police-package Dodge Charger vs a Tesla Model Y. The Charger is still one heck of a gas guzzler.