Chicago FD Places Order For New Ambulances

[FireMedic049]

Tac,

 

I can only assume from seeing all the firehouses in Chicago that the type III rigs will be slated for the smaller houses.  I know the F series rigs were really tight in many of the older single bay stations.  I'm not sure if there is more behind this, but this a just a guess from me.

I doubt that is the reason unless there was a typo regarding chassis selection.  The current ambulances look to be on the 165" WB version of the F-series models with 12' patient modules (give or take a couple inches).  The E-450 chassis has a 158" WB and patient modules typically run from 13' to 14' (give or take a couple inches).  As such, the overall length of the E-450 units would probably be very close to that of the current F-series. 

 

Assuming that the overall length is the issue with the smaller houses and the type III units ordered will actually be on the E-350 chassis (138" WB), then that might be the reason for the change.

 

Now, if width is the issue, then that could be addressed without having to switch from the F-series to the E-series chassis.

 

Regardless, the switch to E-series chassis for some units also means a switch from diesel to gas engines for those units since I'm pretty sure that diesel engines are still not available for the E-series currently.