What started out as a 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor ambulance quickly became a movie legend when chosen by the producers of Ghostbusters for the 1984 movie.
Although much has been written of the film, such as the fact that the roles of Louis Tully and Peter Venkman were originally penned for John Candy and John Belushi, there’s not a great deal of information available on the actual Ghostbusters vehicle, the Ectomobile or Ecto-1 for short. I find this surprising in considering that just about every child of the ’80s probably owned a toy model of the vehicle!
Miller-Meteor was a combination of early car manufacturers Miller & Meteor, which eventually became part of the Wayne Corporation, a large manufacturer of buses and other vehicles branded with the trade name “Wayne." The corporate headquarters of Wayne were in Richmond, Indiana, and at one point they were the leading producer of school buses in North America. Its involvement with Miller-Meteor was designed to expand the company’s product line into other areas of transportation, including specialty vehicles such as ambulances and hearses.
Known for its size and luxurious ride qualities, the Miller-Meteor ambulance was perfect in so many ways for the Ghostbusters, as it not only transported the entire team but also their rather bulky ghost-catching proton packs. The Cadillac powertrain supplied plenty of get up and go, the emergency lighting system helped clear the path, and the team looked totally cool upon arrival at every ghost sighting.
The toy industry had a field day with the Ghostbusters franchise and the Ecto-1 was later joined by a fleet of other Ghostbusters cars, helicopters and even an airplane.
Sadly, the downsizing of vehicles such as the Cadillac and the industry’s move to van-based ambulances put the writing on the wall for vehicles like the Miller-Meteor, but it lives on in history as one of the coolest movie cars of all time!
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| Photo: General Motors |
Although much has been written of the film, such as the fact that the roles of Louis Tully and Peter Venkman were originally penned for John Candy and John Belushi, there’s not a great deal of information available on the actual Ghostbusters vehicle, the Ectomobile or Ecto-1 for short. I find this surprising in considering that just about every child of the ’80s probably owned a toy model of the vehicle!
Miller-Meteor was a combination of early car manufacturers Miller & Meteor, which eventually became part of the Wayne Corporation, a large manufacturer of buses and other vehicles branded with the trade name “Wayne." The corporate headquarters of Wayne were in Richmond, Indiana, and at one point they were the leading producer of school buses in North America. Its involvement with Miller-Meteor was designed to expand the company’s product line into other areas of transportation, including specialty vehicles such as ambulances and hearses.
Known for its size and luxurious ride qualities, the Miller-Meteor ambulance was perfect in so many ways for the Ghostbusters, as it not only transported the entire team but also their rather bulky ghost-catching proton packs. The Cadillac powertrain supplied plenty of get up and go, the emergency lighting system helped clear the path, and the team looked totally cool upon arrival at every ghost sighting.
The toy industry had a field day with the Ghostbusters franchise and the Ecto-1 was later joined by a fleet of other Ghostbusters cars, helicopters and even an airplane.
Sadly, the downsizing of vehicles such as the Cadillac and the industry’s move to van-based ambulances put the writing on the wall for vehicles like the Miller-Meteor, but it lives on in history as one of the coolest movie cars of all time!
 |
| Photo: General Motors |