Gulfport Police ran into supply chain issues when trying to buy two new cars.
Cathy Salustri
The Gulfport Police Department vehicle saga continues.
In January, Gulfport City Council voted to buy gas-powered Dodge Chargers but, due to supply chain issues, the dealership the City uses told GPD they wouldn’t accept new orders until 2023. In March, Council reversed its decision and agreed to purchase two hybrid police vehicles, voting to spend no more than $80,000 on two vehicles.
But like the Chargers, the Ford hybrids are not available, GPD Chief Rob Vincent said.
Vincent said GPD will instead purchase non-hybrid Ford Interceptor SUVS.
The two new Dodge Chargers would have cost the City $33,937 each; the hybrid Ford Interceptors would have cost $33,338 each.
“Following the council meeting, I reached out to our designated dealer, and they said they were unable to get any hybrids until next year. We are, therefore, ordering non-hybrid versions of the Ford PIU,” Vincent said.
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