The body of this engine was fabricated entirely of aluminum. It had an integral foam tank, and the old portable foam eductor was finally retired. The foam was pre-piped to one of the speedlays. There were two of these, in addition to the two Mattydale-style crosslays. The third speedlay slot was not preconnected, but held the high-rise apartment pack. As delivered, the vehicle was painted a darker red than its Bower Hill contemporaries, and this new shade would be adopted on all subsequent vehicles. This was also the first BHVFD vehicle since 1957 to be lettered in something other than gold leaf. The original Gothic lettering had a rather commercial look.


The commercial lettering was not well received by the department members or the residents. When BHVFD adopted a new department emblem, it relettered the vehicle. The style was "Egyptian," like the lettering on the 1977 American LaFrance and the ambulance. This engine had assumed the "Engine 4-A" call sign of the 1973 mini-pumper that was sold along with the 1970 pumper just before this new engine arrived.