MFD sells last of 3 lemons
The Maricopa City Council approved tonight the sale of a fire engine for $211,000 to the community of Sooke, British Columbia, Canada.
The truck is the last of three E-One fire engines purchased by the Maricopa Fire District in 2006 for $432,352 each through a dealer called Frontier Emergency Products.
The first two E-One rescue pumpers were sold in June to the Bristol Bay borough in Alaska, and the council approved the purchase of two new Pierce fire rescue pumpers for $768,000 at its July 19 regular meeting. Fire Chief Wade Brannon said tonight the department plans to buy a third fire truck next year.
Wade said the E-Ones had a good design, but were prone to break downs because of the dust and heat.
He said they should run fine in Canada and Alaska, where the weather is much cooler.
Brannon added the city was lucky to sell them, because there is not much of a market for used fire trucks.
Within three years of their delivery to the Maricopa Fire Department in 2007, the engines failed in all three of E-one trucks.
The trucks were bought with a lease-to-own finance agreement, and the city still owes $207,800 on the remaining truck.
As part of the E-One's sale to Sooke, the city must pay a broker fee of 3.8 percent, or $8,026.
Though the city will take a $4,600 loss on the sale, the difference will be paid from the $39,320 that is budgeted annually on the 10-year lease agreement.
One year after the trucks were purchased, Frontier severed its relationship with E-One, leaving E-One without a local warranty service center or manufacturer’s representative until 2008.
Thirteen months after the trucks were delivered, the first Cummins diesel motor failed from dust and dirt that got in through the air filtration system. The motor had only 16,000 miles but required a complete overhaul.
Left without local dealer support, the MFD was forced to work with a local Cummins dealer and the E-One warranty service representatives in Ocala, Fla.
After several months of discussion, MFD proved the engine had been properly maintained and Cummins paid the claim.
About 18 months after the first engine failed, a second Cummins diesel motor failed at 29,000 miles.
Though Cummins and E-One agreed MFD was not responsible for the breakdown, both companies blamed each other for the engine failure and refused to pay the claim.
After several months Cummins proposed a settlement agreement that divided payment of the $14,000 claim between itself, E-One and the city. The city, however, refused to agree to the settlement because it would have required waiving its right to future claims against Cummins and did not address the underlying cause of the engine failures.
E-one Fire Trucks - News
The Maricopa City Council approved tonight the sale of a $211000 fire engine to the community of Sooke, British Columbia, Canada. The truck is the last of three E-One fire engines purchased by the city in 2006 for $432352 each through a dealer called
The supplier of 10 of the fire trucks (E-ONE) has accused it of an attempt to sabotage its brand name, the Nigerian Aviation Fire and Safety Association (NAFSA) has asked the FAAN to complete the training of its fire fighters. Air crashes in Nigeria in
It seems there's a growing trend within the fire apparatus industry to build multi-purpose vehicles that are suitable for different conditions and responses. The E-One wildland vehicle is constructed of stainless steel subframe and painted composite
The trucks were ordered from E-One, a fire rescue vehicle designer and manufacturer based in Florida, through Greenwood Emergency Vehicles, a sales company in Attleboro, Mass. Because fire departments have different needs, fire trucks are designed to
Dust inside the engines allegedly led to the need to rebuild each of the engines. The council unanimously approved a contract earlier this year for the fire department to hire a marketing and brokerage firm to help the city sell three E-One fire trucks
Sooke Fire Department buys “LEMON” fire truck from Arizona - Sooke ...
Breaking news….SRRG has got access to a news story out of Maricopa, Arizona titled “MFD sells last of 3 lemons”
Seems like someone has some explaining to do. In an article dated August 2, 2011 out of Maricopa, Arizona, the story writes that the city has finally got rid of the last of its “LEMON” fire trucks to Sooke B.C for the price of $211,000. The trucks apparently suffered from engine failure due to dust and heat, and the truck that the Sooke taxpayers have bought, comes without any warranty and is sold “as-is”
MFD fire chief said they should run fine in Canada and Alaska, where the weather is much cooler. Chief Brannon added the city was lucky to sell them, because there is not much of a market for used fire trucks.
So, there is allot of contradiction here. Sooke fire chief Steve Sorensen, stated in his report to council justifying the up to $250,000 purchase was that it was newer, came with a limited warranty and was to be had for for a fire sale price. We were also told we had to act fast, as trucks like this don’t come up too often. The cheaper option of $29,000 was made less attractive by adding that it only has a “short 30 day warranty”
Here is the excerpt from his report to council…..
“Option 5a: Purchase a used (2006) pumper truck. Finding a late model used pumper truck is not an easy task as there are
Sounds like he fell victim to a great salesman, or is just trying to say whatever it takes to get what he wants and not doing the research.
Once again, we call on our elected officials for a full inquiry into the dealings on the reason behind this truck purchase, the contradicting stories, and now the fact that apparently Sooke is spending $250,00o on a “LEMON” with no warranty. Perhaps we could have paid ALLOT less for this truck that MFD was lucky to sell. Would our council have been so eager to spend $250,000 that wasn’t budgeted for to buy a vehicle known locally as a “LEMON” that was sold “as-is” and pay for the chief to fly to Arizona to check it out? Someone needs to be held accountable for this massive blunder that may see the taxpayers of Sooke spending thousands of dollars on a “LEMON” truck in the future.
Responsible Governance???????????????
Editor SRRG
Click here for the full article
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