In 1969, the California Highway Patrol initiated the project under Inspector David S Luethje to investigate the feasibility of using steam engined cars. Initially General Motors had agreed to pay a selected vendor $20,000 toward the cost of developing a Rankine cycle engine, and up to $100,000 for outfitting six Oldsmobile Delmont 88s as operational patrol vehicles. This deal fell through because the Rankine engine manufacturers rejected the General Motors offer.[17]