Paramedic powerhouses: Dubai unveils Lotus Evora, Ford Mustang first-response vehicles

By Stephen Edelstein October 14, 2014

Dubai paramedic Lotus Evora — Image used with permission by copyright holder

By now, every car fan should know about the Dubai Police. The Emirati law-enforcement agency operates a fleet of exotic cars – from a Lamborghini Aventador to a Bugatti Veyron – complete with flashing lights.

Now, Dubai’s paramedics are joining in on the fun, in what seems like a more appropriate use of high-performance cars.

The paramedics will soon take delivery of a Lotus Evora and a pair of Ford Mustangs, according to the United Arab Emirates’ The National (via Car and Driver). After all, in a medical emergency, time is always of the essence.

The Evora has already been nicknamed “First Responder,” and debuted at the Gitex Technology Week show in Dubai this week. Unlike the Dubai Police cars, which are used mostly for public relations, it has a more practical purpose.

The two-seat sports car isn’t meant to serve as an ambulance, but is crammed full of an ambulance’s worth of medical equipment to help first responders stabilize patients on site. It can also send and receive patient information to nearby hospitals.

The advantage of putting all of that into a sports car is, not surprisingly, speed. The average response time for an ambulance in Dubai is around eight minutes, but officials want to cut that to four minutes for all vehicles.

A fully-loaded ambulance might have trouble meeting that goal, but with a top speed of around 160 mph, it shouldn’t be a problem for the Evora.

It’s something that seems like it could only happen in Dubai, but the concept of a rapid-response medical vehicle isn’t entirely new.

London’s Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) air ambulance uses cars to get to patients when the choppers can’t fly, or can’t land at a given site. Those cars are mostly Skoda Octavias, but HEMS has used Subaru WRXs as well.

Now if only we could have something like that in the U.S.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Ford

Stephen Edelstein

Contributing Editor

Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…

Cars

Mechanics will use Bosch’s VR tech to learn how to fix the Ford Mustang Mach-E

Ford Mustang Mach E front view

The electric Mustang Mach-E due out by the end of 2020 is Ford's most high-tech car to date, and the mechanics who will work on it will undergo a suitably futuristic training process. The company teamed up with Bosch to create a virtual reality-based training course to teach technicians how to keep the crossover in tip-top condition.

Instead of traveling to a workshop, mechanics will learn how the Mach-E's electric powertrain is put together using an Oculus Quest headset programmed with instructions. Bosch and Ford placed a major focus on the high-voltage electrical system, which was developed specifically for the model and isn't currently found in other cars. VR will teach technicians how to remove, diagnose, repair, and reinstall the lithium-ion battery pack, for example.

Cars

Most Ford Mustang Mach-E reservation holders go for extended-range battery

2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E and 2020 Ford Mustang

The Ford Mustang Mach-E is one of the most anticipated new cars of the upcoming year. Treated to a glitzy unveiling at the 2019 Los Angeles Auto Show, the First Edition of the new electric car sold out in a matter of days. Now we have more information on what the first production cars will look like, and when they will arrive.

The Mach-E First Edition was listed as sold out on Ford's website by the end of November -- shortly after order books opened November 18. Ford finally confirmed that reservations for the First Edition are full, without saying how many First Edition cars it plans to build. Customers can still place reservations for other models. However, as the name implies, First Edition models will roll off the assembly line and into customers' driveways first.

Cars

Ford could build its next Mustang-inspired electric car on Volkswagen bones

Ford Mustang Mach E front view

Ford is eager to capitalize on the Mustang Mach-E's popularity by releasing a smaller, more affordable model in the coming years. While development work is on-going, company sources hinted the yet-unnamed car will use Volkswagen parts.

Decision-makers on both sides of the Atlantic are already plotting ways to expand the Mustang family beyond the well-known two-door model and the aforementioned Mach-E crossover, according to Murat Gueler, Ford's chief designer. "Yes, we have already talked about expansion, to some sort of family," he confirmed to British magazine Auto Express.