- Ford Australia unveiled a Ranger Super Duty fire response vehicle.
- It was created to bridge initial emergency response gaps in cities.
- The build features solar power, high-flow and high-pressure pumps.
The Ford Ranger Super Duty is about as tough and capable as midsize pickups get right now, which makes it obvious raw material for specialized conversions. Australia just produced the latest example, a Ranger Super Duty Fire Response Unit that puts the donor truck’s payload rating and off-road hardware to work.
The project is the work of Ford Australia in collaboration with Deakin University and Ford Pro Convertor partner XL Service Bodies. The aim is to get crews to an incident far quicker than a full-size fire truck can manage, with the critical eight-minute urban emergency response benchmark in mind.
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The concept is designed as a first-response unit, allowing trained personnel to reach remote or congested sites quickly to initiate early fire suppression, conduct initial damage assessments, and establish communications while heavy-duty fire trucks are on their way.
The Hardware Bolted To It
The build starts from the Super Cab configuration of the Ranger Super Duty, chosen to maximize bed size. The chassis keeps its 4,500 kg (9,921 lbs) Gross Vehicle Mass rating, which swallows specialized tools, water supplies, and auxiliary power hardware without any aftermarket reinforcement.
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Beyond the high-contrast yellow and red graphics over black bodywork, the siren, and the emergency lights, there’s a factory snorkel and an off-road bumper with a bull bar that wraps out to the front fenders. The custom rear section carries specialized equipment across separate compartments.
The concept comes equipped with on-board high-flow and ultra-high-pressure pumps. Those are powered by a solar inverter and charging system by Zeliox Australia, eliminating the need for an auxiliary gasoline or diesel generator.
What’s Underneath
The Super Duty family sits on an upgraded chassis and suspension with wider tracks, chunkier tires, and more ground clearance than the rest of the Ranger range. Under the hood is a 3.0-liter V6 turbodiesel making 207 hp (154 kW / 209 PS) and 600 Nm (443 lb-ft) of torque, sent to all four wheels through a 10-speed automatic and a full-time 4WD system with front and rear differential locks.
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The example displayed at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is a concept demonstrating what the Ford Pro Convertor program can do, though the automaker says bespoke builds can be produced for emergency services and fleet customers at its Broadmeadows site in outer Melbourne.
