The year 1932 was important both to fire fighting services and to the automotive world. Henry Ford, the man who had given the world the Model T, unveiled his flathead V-8 engines which were easy to produce, uncomplicated in design, economical to operate and affordable. Like the Model-T itself, Ford's greatest feat was putting the V-8 engine within reach of the common man. Yet, 1932 was also the depth of the Depression, and, for Fire Departments, funds were scarce. Truck production was down to a quarter of the 1929 level, and many communities were forced to rig their own vehicles using inexpensive truck chassis and fitting them with customized fire apparatus. The result was a minor "boom-business" in fire apparatus equipment. And, with the abundance of labor and shortage of cash, the custom-made vehicle seemed the reasonable way to go. One of the more popular trucks outfitted for fire fighting duty was Ford's Model AA which, by 1932, was available with Ford's innovative V-8 engine, an attractive proposal for a fire fighting department. Rigged with a pump that could deliver 400 gallons per minute and powered by the Ford V-8, the Ford Model AA Fire Engine was a formidable weapon in fire fighting. Indeed, so reliable was this fire engine that its design was copied by the Russians who used a similar model for many years afterwards. Now, the legendary 1932 Ford Model AA Fire Engine is recreated in a precision-engineered die-cast model produced by - and available only from - Matchbox Collectibles.

Ford trademarks used under license from Ford Motor Company.

(1999)

Scale: 1:43