ICE Bought Thousands Of Flashy Patrol Cars And Agents Don’t Want To Drive Them

  • ICE bought thousands of branded vehicles agents say are useless.
  • Marked trucks and SUVs allegedly tip off suspects in raids.
  • Agency says the vehicles are used to support operations nationwide.

After spending millions on a fleet of vehicles that looks like it was styled by a campaign merch team with access to a wrap shop, President Trump‘s ICE agency now finds itself with a very awkward problem: agents reportedly don’t want to drive the things and have hidden them in a parking lot.

ICE ordered roughly 2,500 marked vehicles in the second half of 2025, ditching its long-standing reliance on unmarked cars for something far less discreet. The new look featured dark navy paint, red and white striping, gold logos, and the slogan “Defend the Homeland” splashed down the sides.

Some even wore “President Donald J. Trump” in gold lettering on the rear window, the livery itself having reportedly been inspired by Trump’s private jet.

More: An $8.21 Gas Price In LA Shows Just How Fast Fuel Costs Are Rising After Iran Attack

The order was placed by 28-year-old now-former ICE deputy director Madison Sheahan, who awarded a no-bid $2.25 million contract to a motorsports company run by a Republican donor for 25 branded Chevy Tahoes meant for recruitment use. ICE also spent more than $120,000 on a pair of Ford Mustang GT fastbacks and awarded three separate contracts worth between $174,000 and $230,000 to wrap vehicles in the distinctive new branding.

Rather Be Stealthy

The agency proudly showed off its fleet’s new look last August in a series of photos taken against historic Washington backdrops, and even in a cringey video set to a hiphop soundtrack. The problem is that unlike cops, ICE officers don’t actually want marked vehicles for core enforcement work because shouty stickers announce exactly who’s in them are and what they’re doing.

ICE Bought Thousands Of Flashy Patrol Cars And Agents Don’t Want To Drive Them
DHS

“ICE has never had marked vehicles,” a source familiar with the purchase of the cars told the Washington Examiner. Another described the idea as “ridiculous,” arguing that driving clearly marked cars defeats the point because “you don’t want to advertise what you’re doing.” A third source said the vehicles are effectively sidelined, claiming they are “just hiding them in a parking garage somewhere because we don’t want to drive them.”

ICE Pushes Back On Claims

ICE denies that, insisting the claims are false and saying the branded vehicles are supplementing the existing fleet and supporting operations across the US.

Also: Trump’s FBI Director Ditches Chevy Fleet For “Less Conspicuous” BMWs

“Any allegation that these ICE vehicles are not being used is FALSE,” an ICE spokesperson told The Independent. “ICE is a law enforcement agency, and like all other law enforcement agencies, it maintains a fleet of vehicles that includes some with ICE branding.”

“These specific vehicles are supplementing the existing ICE fleet and support operations across the country,” they added. “The safety and security of our brave men and women is, and always has been, our priority, and suggestions that law enforcement branded vehicles, no different from police vehicles, will jeopardize that is simply not the case.”

Still, headquarters is reportedly trying to amend remaining orders so future deliveries arrive without the wraps, so we’ll leave you to draw your own conclusions.

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Photos ICE / DHS


The Auto World

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