There will soon be lots of shiny red toy fire trucks on sale for the holidays, but for those who want to go big and grand, there’s a real fire engine up for auction in Connecticut.
Friday is the deadline to bid online for a 1991 pumper truck owned by the town of Montville that requires a baseline bid of $5,000.
So far there are no takers, but bids often come in it at the last minute, said Greg Barry, CEO of Municibid, the company running the 24/7 online auction.
The used fire truck is likely too old to be certified to fight fires, but people around the country make use of the equipment in creative ways, Barry said .
They buy them for display, to add to collections, to use in parades and even repurpose them into recreational vehicles or campers, Barry said.
Farmers also use the trucks for watering from a pond on their property or by using a second truck in conjunction, he said. Sometimes people even ship the old trucks overseas where the certification standards are lower.
If the truck doesn’t sell, it’s up to Montville what the next move will be, Barry said. If the truck does sell, the town gets every penny and can spend it however they want. There is an extra 9 percent charge to pay Municibid.
Barry said there are lots of trucks and fire apparatus on the market now and low demand.
Here are the specs on the 1991 KME Spartan Engine truck: It has 38,848 miles and features a 350 HP Diesel Engine, automatic transmission, a 1000-gallon poly water tank, and 1,500 gallon per minute top mount pump. The fire truck seats six and also has updated LED emergency and scene lights, a booster reel with hose in the rear compartment, large diameter rear intake, and large diameter front bumper suction. It holds approximately 2000 feet of 5-inch hose and 800 feet of 3-inch hose in the bed.
The online auction is open to the public at Municibid.com and ends Friday, October 17. In this case, the truck has no title.
Barry said his company has auctioned off all kinds of interesting items owned by municipalities, including boats, airplanes, 1990s era arcade games, a diamond ring of more than 2 carats, wood carvings, a knights body armor.

