Its features include a special pull-out rack utilizing the old ambulance's gurney in the rear containing the staff's proton packs.

Earlier versions of scripts written by Aykroyd for the first Ghostbusters also includes mentions of the Ectomobile having the power of interdimensional travel.

Dr. Ray Stantz found the vehicle in 1984, shortly after he mortgaged a house left to him by his parents in order to buy and remodel a dilapidated firehouse for use as the team's headquarters.

It was painted white with red trim, marked with the company logo on the sides and rear, and fitted with an array of equipment on the roof, and became a well-recognized symbol for the Ghostbusters franchise.

The interior was modified to allow easy access to the team's equipment (Proton Packs, ghost traps, etc.)

After the Ghostbusters were shut down, Stantz and Winston Zeddemore kept Ecto-1 and used it for transport to and from events for which they had been hired to provide entertainment, such as children's birthday parties.

Following the Ghostbusters' return to business in 1989, Ecto-1 was overhauled and renamed Ecto-1a, but a running fan theory is that the team acquired a replacement car and outfitted it for service.

An extendable gunner seat was added to the right rear passenger area and the corresponding door was modified to fold flat against the vehicle body, allowing a team member to fire a Proton Pack without having to lean out a window.

When his colleagues refused to believe his warnings of Gozer's potential return, Egon Spengler stole all of the team's equipment, including Ecto-1, and relocated to a farmhouse in Summerville, Oklahoma.

During the confrontation with Gozer, Mini-Pufts sneaked onto Ecto-1 and attempted to sabotage the vehicle's equipment, but Podcast eventually repelled them with a taser.

After the Ghostbusters restarted their business, Ecto-1 was given a few upgrades, including the ability to deploy an air drone equipped with a ghost trap from its roof, along with a new RTV.