Also, the top chart tells you the actual answer: the price of fire trucks tracks pretty well with inflation. Fire trucks are up 860% since 1973, as measured by

Also, the top chart tells you the actual answer: the price of fire trucks tracks pretty well with inflation. Fire trucks are up 860% since 1973, as measured by one Illinois municipality. But everything else is up 620% [0], so that explains 3/4 of the price rise. Nobody thinks manufacturing in the US has got cheaper in real terms over the last fifty years. [0] https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1973?amount=1 https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1973?amount=1