GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – The Green Bay Police Department is in the process of changing out its squad cars.

The classic look is changing to a new design. Believe it or not, that small change alone will end up saving the department thousands of dollars.

“I think the first thing people notice is that it’s not your typical black and white Green Bay squad car,” said Captain Clint Beguhn.

Those white doors on the current squad cars are painted, and it’s getting pricey.

“Paint prices went up for us just to paint the doors on the new squad cars,” said Capt. Beguhn. “It went up about 45 percent, so we were paying $1,200 for every squad car we were painting.”

Those doors end up getting painted back to black when the cars go out of service. Multiply that times dozens of cars, and it adds up.

“We’re saving quite a bit of money on the paint scheme. I know there’s a lot of traditionalists out there that like the look, but we’re trying to be the best stewards of the taxpayer’s money that we can,” added Capt. Beguhn.

Another change to the fleet will have you seeing Ford F150s on the road. Those will be driven by supervisors in the department.

“Explorers are really hard to get right now. They are actually more expensive than the Ford F-150s,” explained Capt, Beguhn. “We’re saving about $3,100 in initial purchase price, and we’re actually projected to make more money when we sell them at the end.”

Police add that F150s remain a hot ticket item in the resale market because of how many people use those trucks for work.

You’ll also notice a new look for the police out on Green Bay’s streets. The cars have subtle black and blue lettering. It’s a bit more discreet than its current design.

“We came up with a couple of different designs internally, sent it out, let the officers vote on what they wanted, and this is what they picked,” said Capt. Beguhn.

A sleeker style that will end up saving the department thousands in the process.

Green Bay police say, on average, officers put around 35,000 miles a year on the vehicle. In a perfect world, that’s why the cars end up being swapped out every three years.