[JimmyEV]

The photo of the R1Ts and the fire trucks is a sweet shot. I wonder if they're going to have any decals or if they're going to keep them red.

 

[camaroz1985]

The photo of the R1Ts and the fire trucks is a sweet shot. I wonder if they're going to have any decals or if they're going to keep them red.

View attachment 8296

Also does a good job illustrating the dynamic nature of the color. They look like two different paint colors parked mere feet apart. It all comes down to the angle of light.

 

[eHauler]

The photo of the R1Ts and the fire trucks is a sweet shot. I wonder if they're going to have any decals or if they're going to keep them red.

View attachment 8296

I hope they add decals, lighting package and all the usual first responder stuff. Would be cool seeing them fly by with full lights and sirens on.

 

[eHauler]

Also does a good job illustrating the dynamic nature of the color. They look like two different paint colors parked mere feet apart. It all comes down to the angle of light.

It sure does and makes me appreciate Red Canyon even more.

I love how it looks here:

 

[camaroz1985]

It sure does and makes me appreciate Red Canyon even more.

I love how it looks here:
View attachment 8298

I'm not sure I have ever seen mine look like that. Usually a little more muted and orange tinted, sometimes very orange.

 

[ERivTruck]

Must have a wonderful budget for the FD in Costa County to afford to purchase nearly $200K in "Chief" vehicles.

 

[camaroz1985]

Must have a wonderful budget for the FD in Costa County to afford to purchase nearly $200K in "Chief" vehicles.

I was thinking the same. If I was a taxpayer in that area I would be a little upset. I'm sure there will be additional expenses for adding equipment even for just chief vehicles (or training/fire prevention as they state).

 

[RIVBOBBY]

Must have a wonderful budget for the FD in Costa County to afford to purchase nearly $200K in "Chief" vehicles.

they may looking for to save very good amount of money in GAS... as GAS price is very high in that area... ($6 per Gal). they may be spending at least 100 to 150 Gal per month and cost of gas will cover cost of the truck...

 

[Yellow Buddy]

they may looking for to save very good amount of money in GAS... as GAS price is very high in that area... ($6 per Gal).

Or if they ordered it from the onset w/ pre-price hike pricing - or got it in part as a charitable contribution from Rivian, etc.

People also tend to forget that a GMC Yukon would start at $60k anyway, so this isn't really far off.

 

[Nexus]

Or they have a surplus in the budget and, you know, "use it or lose it"

 

[O. horridus]

Must have a wonderful budget for the FD in Costa County to afford to purchase nearly $200K in "Chief" vehicles.

You're making a lot of assumptions. First is that they're paying $100k each. Mine was $73k, and I had to pay 10% tax on top of that so a little over $80k. And the fire department is exempt from sales tax, so their total cost is more like $150k. And it's likely that they got some deal from Rivian. At minimum, you over-estimated by like 30%.

Then there's the question of how much would it cost for them to buy a comparable well-equipped ICE vehicle. Like @Yellow Buddy said, this could easily be $60k or more.

Then there's the cost of gas and oil changes. These are going to be high-mileage vehicles, and gas is expensive, especially in California. And if they already have solar on the fire station, their electricity may even be free. The savings after a few years could easily cover the additional up-front price.

Then there's the added value of having an electric vehicle in the fleet for training in how to deal with electric vehicle fire and rescue. Having an actual vehicle available to look at is way better than reading a manual.

The real question is what is the total cost of ownership, and how does that compare to the alternatives. I actually think that in this case they're probably saving money. Posting a knee-jerk rant about a waste of taxpayer dollars without doing your homework isn't helping anything - you should expect responsible management of the department budget but that's probably what you're getting because every dollar spent on a vehicle means fewer dollars for other gear. Especially in the West, most fire departments are underfunded and over worked these days, so assuming they're being profligate with their funding is probably a bad assumption.

 

[JonW]

I would be interested to see if/how they mount emergency lights. The physical mounting (I'm guessing no roof mounts..) and how they tie into the 12v electrical system and how they install control switches in the cab.

 

[eHauler]

I would be interested to see if/how they mount emergency lights. The physical mounting (I'm guessing no roof mounts..) and how they tie into the 12v electrical system and how they install control switches in the cab.

I've seen no-drill light bars with suction cups or magnets to keep it secured.