RecElect
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This is a 2015 Ram SSV we completed for Washington County Colorado SO this week. Simple but effective package.
I have to give a shout out to Ram Trucks, because this truck was one of the easiest trucks to work on. We just did a couple of new Silverados and we have done 20 or so 2015 f-150s and the Ram truck is far easier to tear down, get signal access from, and has better rear seat room, this truck really was a dream to work on and I believe departments really should give it a fair look.
It is also Hemi powered and very quick. Definitely faster than the Chevy, But probably not as fast as the Eco boost off the line (although it aint no slouch either). Still the sound of the hemi V8 is a lot of fun...
Some things to note:
The total build time was around 14 hours. That includes harnesses, light mounting, bracket construction, etc.. This is 14 man hours as only 1 guy was assigned to this project. And that also included standard break times and lunch.
With the Ram SSV, with the VSIM option, the harness system is completey plug and play aside from the connection to the battery. We are able to get horn ring, ign sig, park sig, backlt sig, and a whole plethora of other signals from the VSIM. It even came with Factory wig wags and tail light flashers. (only issue is they require a low (ground) input to function so we had to relay our outputs to make them work). Not a big deal, as we build that into the harness. The lights plug into the harness via Deutch connections, the signal wires plug into the vsim, and the fuse block and siren connections are built onto the harness in the harness room.
There is a drawer that pulls out on the center dash. It is a utility drawer but the radio head fit nicely there. I am pretty sure you could get a self contained unit in that area as well. You just got to be willing to cut up the drawer front. a new drawer is under $100 when you get ready to sell it.
Lighting:
Federal signal MPS620U-RB - grill lights, mirror lights and rear under tailgate - Awesome lights. Dual color, Dual input. We have a slower pattern on the front during "in park" and a faster pattern when in 3 and drive. The grill and mirrors are synced, and the rear is synced.
Federal Signal Hideaways in the front corners. We tried a Whelen Vertex, a Feniex cannon 120, a Cannon 360 and the Federal hideaways and the federals were the brightest in this area.
Federal Signal ES100C siren speaker - There is a noticeable difference using Federals speakers than anyone elses. I don't know how, but the federal speakers have a much better range and deeper tone than even the SA315. You really notice it with a smart siren and the lower tone air horn. We had one (ssp3000) hooked to a Kerr siren speaker (which i am sure is branded as KERR but comes from someone else) and it sounded really bad, so we traded to the ES100 and noticed a big difference in sound and volume. honestly if you have only ever heard sirens through a 314, 315 or other brand, you probably wouldn't notice, but we hear them everyday through the es100 and it is so much better sounding and is louder.
Feniex cannon 120 in reverse lights. We did NOT replace the reverse light bulb because the bulb comes from the bottom up in the housing and the cannon did not do very well in that position, so we burned a hole into the back of the backup light and put them in there.
Feniex Apollo F12 Visor bar: This visor bar was one of the best fitting bars I have seen. it is low profile, bright, and fits super snug against the windshield. We still add a d-bulb weather strip to the edge just to eliminate more flash back, but we do that with Every brands light bars and it helps tremendously. Oddly enough, the truck has changed body styles twice between 2003 and 2015, but the visor bar is the same bar for all years. I was skeptical that it would fit right when I saw it listed that way, but it fit awesome.
Feniex Cobra 800 stick in the rear window. We sucked it tight against the headliner and it looks great. super bright through the 20% tint, and great flash patterns. I am not sure any other stick would fit. The rear headrests barely clear this bar when you move the seat up and down. You would have to go either a shorter stick that would go between the headrests, or back the stick up. This one sits almost on the glass.
Whelen HHS2000 hand held. In my opinion nobody make a better handheld unit. we are a much bigger Federal Signal Shop, but the Whelen hand held is our go to unit when we have a handheld request.
We mounted the HHS2000 amp and our fuse block and relays behind the rear seat. There is still access to them but they are out of the way.
Enjoy!
Oh, and i am sure someone will want more side lighting, or bigger lights, or Blah blah blah. We get it, trust me. If I had my way, there would be rocker panel lights, fender lights, rear side lights, overhead light bars, etc... But sometimes the budget and the use just doesn't allow it.
honestly, if you don't see this truck coming down the road, your not going to see it with all those additions anyway.
I have to give a shout out to Ram Trucks, because this truck was one of the easiest trucks to work on. We just did a couple of new Silverados and we have done 20 or so 2015 f-150s and the Ram truck is far easier to tear down, get signal access from, and has better rear seat room, this truck really was a dream to work on and I believe departments really should give it a fair look.
It is also Hemi powered and very quick. Definitely faster than the Chevy, But probably not as fast as the Eco boost off the line (although it aint no slouch either). Still the sound of the hemi V8 is a lot of fun...
Some things to note:
The total build time was around 14 hours. That includes harnesses, light mounting, bracket construction, etc.. This is 14 man hours as only 1 guy was assigned to this project. And that also included standard break times and lunch.
With the Ram SSV, with the VSIM option, the harness system is completey plug and play aside from the connection to the battery. We are able to get horn ring, ign sig, park sig, backlt sig, and a whole plethora of other signals from the VSIM. It even came with Factory wig wags and tail light flashers. (only issue is they require a low (ground) input to function so we had to relay our outputs to make them work). Not a big deal, as we build that into the harness. The lights plug into the harness via Deutch connections, the signal wires plug into the vsim, and the fuse block and siren connections are built onto the harness in the harness room.
There is a drawer that pulls out on the center dash. It is a utility drawer but the radio head fit nicely there. I am pretty sure you could get a self contained unit in that area as well. You just got to be willing to cut up the drawer front. a new drawer is under $100 when you get ready to sell it.
Lighting:
Federal signal MPS620U-RB - grill lights, mirror lights and rear under tailgate - Awesome lights. Dual color, Dual input. We have a slower pattern on the front during "in park" and a faster pattern when in 3 and drive. The grill and mirrors are synced, and the rear is synced.
Federal Signal Hideaways in the front corners. We tried a Whelen Vertex, a Feniex cannon 120, a Cannon 360 and the Federal hideaways and the federals were the brightest in this area.
Federal Signal ES100C siren speaker - There is a noticeable difference using Federals speakers than anyone elses. I don't know how, but the federal speakers have a much better range and deeper tone than even the SA315. You really notice it with a smart siren and the lower tone air horn. We had one (ssp3000) hooked to a Kerr siren speaker (which i am sure is branded as KERR but comes from someone else) and it sounded really bad, so we traded to the ES100 and noticed a big difference in sound and volume. honestly if you have only ever heard sirens through a 314, 315 or other brand, you probably wouldn't notice, but we hear them everyday through the es100 and it is so much better sounding and is louder.
Feniex cannon 120 in reverse lights. We did NOT replace the reverse light bulb because the bulb comes from the bottom up in the housing and the cannon did not do very well in that position, so we burned a hole into the back of the backup light and put them in there.
Feniex Apollo F12 Visor bar: This visor bar was one of the best fitting bars I have seen. it is low profile, bright, and fits super snug against the windshield. We still add a d-bulb weather strip to the edge just to eliminate more flash back, but we do that with Every brands light bars and it helps tremendously. Oddly enough, the truck has changed body styles twice between 2003 and 2015, but the visor bar is the same bar for all years. I was skeptical that it would fit right when I saw it listed that way, but it fit awesome.
Feniex Cobra 800 stick in the rear window. We sucked it tight against the headliner and it looks great. super bright through the 20% tint, and great flash patterns. I am not sure any other stick would fit. The rear headrests barely clear this bar when you move the seat up and down. You would have to go either a shorter stick that would go between the headrests, or back the stick up. This one sits almost on the glass.
Whelen HHS2000 hand held. In my opinion nobody make a better handheld unit. we are a much bigger Federal Signal Shop, but the Whelen hand held is our go to unit when we have a handheld request.
We mounted the HHS2000 amp and our fuse block and relays behind the rear seat. There is still access to them but they are out of the way.
Enjoy!
Oh, and i am sure someone will want more side lighting, or bigger lights, or Blah blah blah. We get it, trust me. If I had my way, there would be rocker panel lights, fender lights, rear side lights, overhead light bars, etc... But sometimes the budget and the use just doesn't allow it.
honestly, if you don't see this truck coming down the road, your not going to see it with all those additions anyway.
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