The Dennis RS/SS series was a range of fire engine chassis built by Hestair Dennis between 1978 until the early 1990s. The RS model, as seen here, had an all-steel cab which superseded the older fibreglass and wooden vehicles and was of course much stronger should it be in an accident. The early Dennis RS appliances were bodied in house at the Dennis Woodbridge factory but this ended in 1985 when they were outsourced to other coachbuilders.

Oxford’s latest release on the Dennis RS is registered FKU 898V from 1979, the first year of its introduction, so would certainly have been built at Woodbridge in Suffolk. Painted with the usual bright red with white roof and white lower cab sides, the shuttering is masked silver. The South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service crest and the White Rose of York are printed between the crew cab windows and you can see from the yellow panel above the rear wheel arch that our fire engine was based in Barnsley.  The cab doors also carry the slogan Serving the Community in white lettering. A yellow band runs right round the waist of the vehicle within a very fine matt black line-out. The Dennis name features in silver above the radiator grille and two blue roof beacons are positioned on the front of the roof.  The extensive ladders and other external trim features are finished in chrome; bumpers and mudguards are white; and the cab interior is moulded in black.

Over 1750 Dennis RS/SS fire engines were produced and were used by nearly all the fire brigades throughout the UK well as being sold to various fire brigades worldwide.