Dennis RS series
Encyclopedia
Dennis Specialist Vehicles
Dennis Specialist Vehicles is a major British coachbuilder and manufacturer of specialised commercial vehicles based in Guildford, England...
, produced from 1978 until early 1990s.
Features
Its new all-steel cab, designed by Ogle of London, replaced the older fibreglass and wood construction of the previous appliances it succeeded, such as the Dennis D and Dennis R.The first of the Dennis RS fire appliances were fitted with Perkins V8 diesel engines, either the V8-540 (8.8 litre) or the V8-640 (10.6 litre), with or without turbocharger
Turbocharger
A turbocharger, or turbo , from the Greek "τύρβη" is a centrifugal compressor powered by a turbine that is driven by an engine's exhaust gases. Its benefit lies with the compressor increasing the mass of air entering the engine , thereby resulting in greater performance...
s. The all-welded steel cab provided the maximum protection possible to the crew, and had an edge over other commercial trucks, as the RS was a purpose built fire appliance and was not used for any other application. The Dennis RS could be fitted with a variety of bodies by Dennis/JDC, Carmichael, Fulton Wylie, etc.
Even though the cab design of the RS dates from 1978, they are seen to this day in fire brigades all over the world, with many still in front-line use to this day. In the later years the RS and SS series appliances were dogged with door corrosion
Corrosion
Corrosion is the disintegration of an engineered material into its constituent atoms due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the most common use of the word, this means electrochemical oxidation of metals in reaction with an oxidant such as oxygen...
, aptly known as "Dennis Disease" as almost every single RS appliance suffered from rotten cab doors at some stage in their lives.
Variants
- RS130 - Perkins V8-540 engine with Turner T5.400 manual gearbox
- RS131 - Perkins V8-540 engine with Allison MT643 automatic gearbox
- RS132 - Perkins V8-540 engine with ZF S6.65 manual gearbox
- RS133 - Perkins V8-640 engine with Allison MT643 automatic gearbox
- RS134 - Perkins TV8-540 engine with ZF S6.65 manual gearbox
- RS135 - Perkins TV8-540 engine with Allison MT643 automatic gearbox
- RS137 - Perkins V8-540 engine with Allison MT643 automatic gearbox
Most appliances had Kirkstall & Eaton axles fitted, front and rear respectively, and some with limited-slip differentials, all chassis came with a choice of a 500gpm or 1,000gpm two-stage Godiva UMPX fire pump, depending on application.
Significant users
- Hong Kong Fire Service, HK
- Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue ServiceGreater Manchester Fire and Rescue ServiceGreater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory emergency fire and rescue service for the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, England.Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service covers an area of approximately...
, UK - Merseyside Fire and Rescue ServiceMerseyside Fire and Rescue ServiceMerseyside Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service covering the county of Merseyside in north-west England and is the statutory firefighting and rescue service responsible for all 999 fire brigade calls in Sefton, Knowsley, St. Helens, Liverpool and Wirral.-History:The fire...
, UK - Dublin Fire BrigadeDublin Fire BrigadeThe Dublin Fire Brigade is the local authority fire and rescue service for Dublin City and the majority of the Greater Dublin Area. It is a branch of Dublin City Council. There are currently 14 fire stations manned by DFB, 12 of which are full-time, the other 2 are part-time or "retained"....
, Ireland - Northern Ireland Fire Brigade, Northern Ireland
- Staffordshire Fire and Rescue ServiceStaffordshire Fire and Rescue ServiceStaffordshire Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service responsible for fire protection, prevention, intervention and emergency rescue in the county of Staffordshire and unitary area of Stoke on Trent....
UK - West Midlands Fire ServiceWest Midlands Fire ServiceWest Midlands Fire Service is the statutory fire and rescue service responsible for fire protection, prevention, intervention and emergency rescue in the county of the West Midlands in England....
, UK - Essex County Fire and Rescue ServiceEssex County Fire and Rescue ServiceEssex County Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of Essex in the east of England, and is one of the largest fire services in the country, covering an area of almost 400,000 hectares and a population of over 1.7 million people.The service attends an...
, UK - Civil Defence IrelandCivil Defence IrelandCivil Defence Ireland is the national civil defence organisation of the Republic of Ireland. It is operated at local authority level in conjunction with the Department of Defence....