Dennis RS/SS series

Last updated

Dennis RS/SS series
Devon Fire E995VTA.jpg
Overview
Type Fire engine
Manufacturer Hestair Dennis
Production1978-1994
AssemblyWoodbridge, Guildford
Designer Ogle Design
Body and chassis
Body style Cab over engine
Related
Powertrain
Engine
  • Perkins V8-540
  • Perkins TV8-540
  • Perkins V8-640
  • Perkins T6.354.4
  • Perkins Phaser
  • Cummins 6CT
  • Cummins 6CTA
Transmission
  • Turner T5-400 five-speed manual
  • ZF S6-65 manual
  • Allison MT643 automatic
  • ZF 5HP500 automatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase 3,800 mm (149.6 in)
Length7,334 mm (288.7 in)
Width2,286 mm (90.0 in)
Height3,072 mm (120.9 in)
Kerb weight 11,700 kg (25,794 lb) [1]
Chronology
Successor

The Dennis RS/SS series was a range of fire engine chassis built by Hestair Dennis (later Dennis Specialist Vehicles), produced from 1978 until the early 1990s.

Contents

Features

Internally codenamed Retained, Steel, the Dennis RS series was first launched in 1979, initially not offered with a tilting cab due to a belief that few fire stations at the time could accommodate a tilting cab. A lower-cost alternative named the Standard Specification, or SS series, was launched shortly afterwards, however at the request of the London Fire Brigade, this would be fitted with a tilting front cab as standard to improve ease of maintenance. [1] The all-steel cab, designed by Ogle Design, [2] replaced the older fibreglass and wood construction of the previous appliances it succeeded, such as the Dennis D and Dennis R, increasing the strength of the cab overall in the event of a collision.

The first of the Dennis RS/SS fire appliances were fitted with Perkins V8 diesel engines, either the V8-540 or the V8-640, with or without turbochargers; by 1987, the RS and SS could be specified with Cummins C-series engines. [1] [3] Early appliances were bodied in-house by Dennis at their Woodbridge factory, but when in-house fire engine bodying was discontinued in 1985, the bodying of the Dennis RS/SS series and derivative products was outsourced to other coachbuilders, primarily to Carmichael Fire. [4] The RS could also be fitted with a variety of bodies by other coachbuilders including HCB Angus, [5] Fulton Wylie and Saxon Specialist Vehicles.

Over 1,750 Dennis RS/SS fire engines would be produced, being sold to nearly all fire brigades across the United Kingdom as well as being exported to various fire brigades worldwide. [6] As the appliances aged, RS and SS series appliances were known to suffer from corrosion particularly around the cab doors, nicknamed "Dennis Disease" by mechanics.[ citation needed ]

Variants

All chassis came with a choice of a 500gpm or 1,000gpm two-stage Godiva fire pump, depending on application, and a 400 imperial gallons (1,800 L) emergency water tank. [1]

Significant operators

A preserved Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service Dennis SS pump escape Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service A253 HPE.JPG
A preserved Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service Dennis SS pump escape

United Kingdom

Republic of Ireland

Elsewhere

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Specialist Vehicles</span> Manufacturer

Dennis Specialist Vehicles was an English manufacturer of commercial vehicles based in Guildford, building buses, fire engines, lorries (trucks) and municipal vehicles such as dustcarts. All vehicles were made to order to the customer's requirements and more strongly built than mass production equivalents. For most of the 20th century the Dennis company was Guildford's main employer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Dart</span> British rear-engined single-decker midibus

The Dennis Dart is a rear-engined single-decker midibus chassis that was introduced by Dennis of Guildford, England in 1989, replacing the Dennis Domino. Initially built as a high-floor design, in 1996 the low-floor second generation Dennis Dart SLF was launched. In 2001, production of the Dart SLF passed to TransBus International, during which time it was sold as the TransBus Dart SLF; Alexander Dennis took over production in 2004, renaming the product as the Alexander Dennis Dart SLF.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Dominator</span> Motor vehicle

The Dennis Dominator was Dennis's first rear-engined double-decker bus chassis, it was launched in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seddon Atkinson</span> Company

Seddon Atkinson Vehicles Limited, a manufacturer of large goods vehicles based in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, was formed after the acquisition in 1970 of Atkinson Vehicles Limited of Preston by Seddon Diesel Vehicles Limited of Oldham. In 1974, the firm was acquired by International Harvester, which sold it in March 1984 to the Spanish group Enasa which made it a subsidiary of Pegaso. In 1990, it became part of Iveco which used the brand for various types of specialised vehicles in the United Kingdom. The range of models produced included EuroMover, Pacer and Strato, which are aimed at refuse collection, recycling and construction operators.

Scammell Lorries Limited was a British manufacturer of trucks, particularly specialist and military off-highway vehicles, between 1921 and 1988. From 1955 Scammell was part of Leyland Motors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ERF (truck manufacturer)</span> British truck manufacturer

ERF was a British truck manufacturer established in 1933 by Edwin Richard Foden, from whose initials the company was named. Its factory in Middlewich closed in 2002, and it was discontinued as a marque by owner MAN in 2007.

Allison Transmission is an American manufacturer of commercial duty automatic transmissions and hybrid propulsion systems. Allison products are specified by over 250 vehicle manufacturers and are used in many market sectors, including bus, refuse, fire, construction, distribution, military, and specialty applications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevrolet Kodiak</span> Motor vehicle

The Chevrolet Kodiak and GMC TopKick are a range of medium duty trucks that were produced by the Chevrolet and GMC divisions of General Motors from 1980 to 2009. Introduced as a variant of the medium-duty C/K truck line, three generations were produced. Slotted between the C/K trucks and the GMC Brigadier Class 8 conventional, the Kodiak/TopKick were developed as a basis for vocationally-oriented trucks, including cargo haulers, dump trucks, and similar vehicles; on later generations, both cutaway and cowled-chassis variants were produced for bus use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TVAC</span>

TVAC (The Vehicle Application Centre) was a British company based in Leyland, Lancashire that performed chassis conversions and assembled bodies for commercial vehicles, refuse trucks and fire engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avon Fire and Rescue Service</span> Fire and rescue service in South West England

Avon Fire & Rescue Service (AF&RS) is the fire and rescue service covering the unitary authorities of Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire in South West England.

Dennis Eagle Limited is a UK-based bin lorry manufacturer owned by Terberg Environmental.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Dagger</span> Motor vehicle

The Dennis Dagger is a compact fire engine manufactured by Dennis Specialist Vehicles from 1998 to 2007. It was built for fire brigades operating in narrow rural areas unsuitable for full-size fire engines, a market previously explored by the Dennis DS series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Sabre</span> Motor vehicle

The Dennis Sabre is a purpose-built fire engine produced by Dennis Specialist Vehicles of Guildford, Surrey, England from 1995 to 2007. It was the last full-size fire appliance produced by the company before its closure in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International 3000</span> Bus chassis manufactured by Navistar International

The International 3000 Series is a transit-style bus chassis manufactured by Navistar International, used for school bus and commercial bus applications. In production since 1990, it has been produced in both front and rear-engine configurations.

Godiva Fire Pumps was an offshoot from Coventry Climax, directed by Charles Pelham Lee, son of Leonard Pelham Lee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis DS series</span> Motor vehicle

The Dennis DS series was a compact fire engine with a tilting cab built by Dennis Specialist Vehicles from 1979 to the early 1990s. It was almost visually and mechanically identical in construction to the Dennis RS/SS series with the exception of a shorter wheelbase, aimed at fire brigades which may operate in tight rural areas unsuitable for full-size fire engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penrith Museum of Fire</span> Firefighting museums in New South Wales, Australia

The Penrith Museum of Fire is an Australian firefighting museum that contains heritage-listed former operating and stored for preservation fire service vehicles located in Penrith, Sydney, Australia. The provenance of the firefighting vehicles date from 1841 to 1998. The fleet of vehicles was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 25 February 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis Rapier</span> Motor vehicle

The Dennis Rapier is a purpose-built fire engine produced by Dennis Specialist Vehicles of Guildford, Surrey, England from 1991 to the early 2000s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dennis DF series</span> Motor vehicle

The Dennis DF series was a range of heavy-duty fire engine chassis produced by Hestair Dennis from 1979 to the early 1990s. Based on the Dennis RS/SS series, the DF has a 16,260 kg (35,850 lb) gross vehicle weight, and was produced primarily as a base for turntable ladder appliances or tanker units carrying either foam or water.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Goundry, Andy (23 March 2020). Dennis Buses and Other Vehicles. Crowood. pp. 106–108. ISBN   978-1-78500-708-8 . Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  2. "If it's a handsome cab, chances are it's Ogle's". Commercial Motor . Temple Press. 3 December 1983. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 "Hestair launch new custom fire-engine". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 22 June 1979. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  4. "Dennis moves". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 23 March 1985. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  5. Fisher, Aidan (15 April 2012). HCB Angus Fire Engine Builders. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN   978-1-4456-1119-8 . Retrieved 9 August 2021. ...during the 1980s some 40 DS and RS chassis were bodied by [Angus], mostly as water tender ladders.
  6. Baker, Eddie (23 August 2018). Fire Engines. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN   978-1-78442-299-8 . Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  7. "£1m Dennis order". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 17 August 1989. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  8. "Skidchek goes East". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 21 August 1982. Retrieved 20 July 2021.