Ford F-550 Super Duty First Responder Truck Reveals it’s Soft Side

One of the behemoths at the 2009 LA Auto Show was the Ford F-550 Super Duty First Responder Truck. With the all new Ford-designed, engineered, and manufactured 6.7 liter PowerStroke® V-8 turbo-charged diesel engine (try saying that 10 times), this baby roars to life. This motor, however, was not designed to frighten, but to save lives.

The truck you see here is an F-550 outfitted to be a fire department first responder vehicle. It really is designed with the fire-fighter’s needs in mind. To put it all into perspective, the chassis cab includes:
• A 300-gallon water tank
• An 8-gallon foam cell
• Two pumps
• An electric rewind hose reel with 150 feet of hose
• A three-stage winch with 8,000-pound capacity
• 100 feet of wire rope
Diesel customers also have the option of including Ford’s Live Drive Power Take Off (PTO) feature. This allows the F-550’s transmission to power its auxiliary equipment as long as the engine is running. It is the first time this particular feature is available in the heavy duty truck segment. Making the F-550 perfectly equipped to be the first to answer those emergency calls.

This vehicle won’t be available until spring, but that doesn’t keep it from lending a hand. For every person that visits the Ford F-550 Super Duty First Responder Truck on display at the LA Auto Show, Ford will donate $10 to the L.A. County Firefighters Widows and Orphans Fund. If after checking out the cool Ford vehicles on display you decide you want to test-drive one, Ford will donate $20 per test-drive to the fund. So, if you haven’t gotten over to this year’s LA Auto Show make sure you head over soon (it’ll only be there until December 13th) and stop by the Ford display.