Sourcewell Provider Cruise Car Solves Orlando’s Low-Speed Vehicle Problems

When the city of Orlando struggled to fill a long-vacant niche, it turned to a Sourcewell-awarded contract and found exactly what it was looking for and more.

Like many big cities, Orlando has a large fleet of vehicles needed for a wide variety of tasks. But one area it was struggling to fill was the street-legal, golf-cart type vehicle used in a multitude of operations throughout city government.

“A lot of the carts we were purchasing were from overseas,” said Jonathan Ford, fleet manager for the city of Orlando. “They weren’t reliable enough and parts took a long time to get.”

Ford turned to Sourcewell in his search for cost-effective alternatives. Through a Sourcewell-awarded contract, Ford explored options with Sarasota-based Cruise Car, Inc.

“Before we switched over to Cruise Car, we were having a real problem with various other makes,” Ford said. “Cruise Car’s parts availability and responsiveness is really good. We’ve purchased several different models from them; pretty much every style of golf cart they have.”

Ford said the city of Orlando has also used Cruise Car in driving its Greenworks Initiative by procuring low-speed vehicles with solar arrays.

“We are thrilled to be able to meet the city of Orlando’s ongoing needs, as we are doing with other municipalities and organizations,” said Nathan Kalin, president of Cruise Car.

Cruise Car builds more than 100 models of street-legal, low-speed vehicles currently used at more than 1,000 flagship properties throughout all 50 states and in more than 40 countries. As one of the largest customization shops in the country, each vehicle is built to order and includes a 17-digit VIN. Cruise Car sells electric, solar-electric, and gas-powered vehicles.

“They’re actually a pleasure to work with,” Ford said of the Cruise Car staff. “At any given time, I call them or send them an email, and they get back to me in a short time, usually within a few hours or the next morning. We’ll definitely keep purchasing vehicles from them.”

As for Cruise Car, being named a Sourcewell provider is seen as an honor and a reward for the cost-effective quality of the company’s products.

“Cruise Car is proud to be included as a vendor on the prestigious Sourcewell contract,” Kalin said. “We strive to meet the standards and cost-effectiveness that is expected of companies in the Sourcewell network.”

For additional details on Cruise Car’s awarded contract visit sourcewell-mn.gov/cooperative-purchasing/051717-cci.