What is the oldest ambulance that you have worked in?

Paul Steinberg

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I post this question out of curiosity. I started in first aid/rescue service back before some of you were born. I know that I am not the oldest person on the site, so I was wondering what the oldest ambulance that you have ever worked in was. For me it was the 1953 Henny Packard. Half the time it wouldn't want to start after a run with the lights and siren, and if you were not careful backing it up at the loading dock, you would break the tail lamp lenses. I did experience the 1939 La Salle once, and that was enough!!!
 
My anniversary approaches Oct.10,1968 when I started,first call in a 1964 pontiac Bonneville identical to Steve Lichtmans I can not post pictures but did give steve a pic of ours at the hudson meet,thanks steve for my pic.in front of yours,but the oldest and you can not laugh, was a 1962 binder that my boss acquired when a local funeral home went out of business,only did a couple of calls in it,THE FRIGGIN THING WAS PINK.:wowguy:
 
my first ambulance to work out of was a 82 Collins long wheel base ford van.the other service I joined had a 79 Wayne care-o-van on a dodge chassis. the ford got totaled. the dodge is sitting in the yard of a ranch south of here. driving that dodge always felt like a monkey on a football but it got the job done. i never got to work out of a real ambulance
 
The oldest ambulance I was ever involved in was in the mid-70's and working for Superior Ambulance in Flint, MI for Brady Smith. Not sure if it was a 63 or a 64.

Similar to this:

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The 1956 Oldsmobile that now resides with Rocky. We ran it a few trips (damn few, maybe 2) out of the Fremont Speedway before deciding that it wasn't the right vehicle for the job.
 
I got my first job at Foothill Ambulance Service in the Sierra foothills,which was right across the street from my high school.
I was only 17 and not allowed to drive until I turned 18 (3 months later).
But got plenty of intimate time with the rigs (washing,detailing etc).....:clap:
When I did get to drive/work in a rig they put me in a "stand-by" rig,football games,motorcycle autocross,etc. in the oldest rig we had a 1966 PONTALAC ,I mean PONTIAC :stars: Somehow I felt slighted in that rig.....ALL the other crews had NEW 71,72 Superior HIGHTOPS......but finally a few months later I recieved my wish and got permanent assignment in a 72 Superior ..I was thrilled to be in a "State of the art" rig......:3some:
 
1964 Pontiac Superior. Even though it was a fire department ambulance it was kept black after it was purchased from an funeral home.Nice looking and of course fast.
 
First was a 1974 Dodge Van homemade conversion from a FH flower van and the second was.....ready???.... a 1976 Ford homemade conversion from an airport park-n-ride bus complete with panoramic views, inside and out :pat:
 
I ran a few runs in a 1964 Superior Pontiac Consort. It had the four bullet style corner lights, a Federal 173 Beacon, and a Q2B. We joked that the Q made the car go. When it was winding up, the car wouldn't accelerate at all. It was used as a last out rig. (out of 6 rigs)
 
My oldest would be a tie between two '62's.........a Eureka with Veterans-Prince Ambulance in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and a M-M with Winnipeg Speedway.
 

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I first received pay to make ambulance runs in September of 1973. The oldest ambulance was a 1965 Cadillac low top at Kost Ambulance in Mankato, MN. This was the third car in the fleet that also included a 1969 and 1971 Cadillac Superior's. The fourth car was a Mercury station wagon that had an insert for the back with a cot mount and a clamp on lightbar. This car was normally the car driven by the owner's wife as a station wagon and had to be reconfigured whenever we needed to use it as an ambulance.

And yes, they also ran a AAA towing service and auto repair garage. There were ten tow vehicles and three ambulances. We typically were out driving tow trucks and who ever was closest to the garage would come back and handle the ambulance calls. Tow drivers and shop mechanics were all able to make ambulance runs.

This was back in the days of American Red Cross Advanced First Aid as the minimum training required to work in the ambulance.
 

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1971 Dodge van ambulance

Oldest car I worked on was in 1978 when I was switched into a 1971 Dodge Ontario MOH conversion after the relatively new 76 Dodge van got T boned going into the Civic Hosp with me in the back with a patient in seizure. The 71 Had an M tank standing vertical in the back corner sticking out of a hole in the plywood equipment cupboard that ran the length of the back on the pt side. Nothing holding it in but gravity..must have seemed like a good idea at the time. It had a hole in the side we patched with white bandage tape before the MOH inspectors came by...
 
oldest pro car rig

A 1956 Miller. About 48". No air, only a fan in back. 4 tunnels, 175 up on top, and a B&M under the hood. No problems..worked great! The a 59 Superior Hi Boy, a 62,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,74,75,76,77 Superior's. Hated pontiac's, they wer so un reliable, over heated alot. They were also rattle traps..not sure why.. nature of the beast i suppose!:blahblah:
 
It seems like 1000 years ago!

Started out riding along on a rig in 1966 (I was 15 yrs old) First rig i rode in was a 1960 Miller caddy.Company also owned a 1957 Dodge Memphian.Yes,red cross first aid training was all you needed!

After i turned 16,my first call was in the 60 Miller meteor.Company then bought a 1963 superior limo style lowboy combo with only 20 k on it. our competition ran only superior pontiacs,a 59 lowboy& a 62 hightop. that was really back in the good old days:specool:
 
1977

Started in 1977 at Acadian Ambulance here in Lafayette, LA in a Modulance on a Chevy Chassis with 454 CID engine. Drank gas, but ran like a stung cat! Never got to work on a Pro-Car, but guess I took care of that with my '72 Pontiac!
 
A 1969 Pontiac that I rode in as an observer. First one I worked in was a 1970 Olds Cotner Bevington that I do have pictures of but can't post them.
 
This 4 wheel drive 74 Yankee Coach Suburban...
 

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