Ford wants a £2 billion British Army contract. To get it, the company partnered with General Dynamics Land Systems UK and engineering firm Ricardo to pitch a range of military-converted Ford Rangers — including a Ford Ranger six wheel prototype that Ricardo calls the HEX 6×6.
The UK Ministry of Defence opened its Light Mobility Vehicle Programme to replace an aging fleet of Land Rovers and Pinzgauers. Ford confirmed its bid on September 2, 2026. The contract winner gets the job of supplying the British Army’s next generation of light tactical vehicles. Initial deliveries are valued at approximately £750 million — $1 billion — with the full programme worth around £2 billion. A decision is expected in 2027.
What the Ford Ranger Six Wheel Actually Is
The Ford Ranger six wheel variant — officially called the HEX 6×6 — is Ricardo’s work. Ricardo first showed it in 2023 before Ford’s involvement in the UK military bid. Now it’s part of the formal pitch to the Ministry of Defence.
What makes the HEX 6×6 different from most six-wheel conversions is how the third axle gets added. Most 6×6 conversions require cutting and extending the vehicle’s bed or frame to accommodate the extra axle. Ricardo’s system is a bolt-on overlay — it attaches to the Ranger’s chassis cab variant without any structural modifications to the vehicle itself. The chassis cab comes without a bed from the factory, which gives Ricardo the space to mount the third axle and a tray bed over the rear two axles without permanent alterations to the base truck.
The result is a crew cab pickup with a tray bed sitting over a third axle — a six-wheel-drive configuration built on a commercial truck platform that Ford sells across 180 markets worldwide.
The Base Vehicle — Ranger Super Duty
The Ford Ranger six wheel conversion starts with the Ranger Super Duty — a version of the Ranger that Ford sells outside the US and which American buyers have never had access to. It’s heavier-duty than the standard Ranger, with a 9,921-pound maximum tow rating and 4,370 pounds of payload capacity.
Those numbers put it ahead of the US-spec Ford F-150 on payload. The F-150 maxes out at 2,440 pounds of bed capacity. The Ranger Super Duty carries nearly twice that without the military conversion — 4,370 pounds against the F-150’s 2,440. That’s part of why Ford doesn’t offer the Ranger Super Duty in the United States. A Ranger that out-carries an F-150 in the bed would pull buyers away from Ford’s highest-margin truck.
The engine is a 3.0-liter diesel V-6 producing 443 pound-feet of torque. Ford manufactures that engine at its Dagenham plant in England — a detail the company highlighted in its bid announcement, given the Ministry of Defence’s preference for proposals that support UK industrial jobs. The conversion work takes place in South Wales.
The Full Range of Military Variants
The Ford Ranger six wheel is the most dramatic of the variants Ford, Ricardo, and General Dynamics put forward — but it’s not the only one. The full proposal covers multiple mission types, each built on either the standard Ranger or the Ranger Super Duty.
The lineup includes a general purpose vehicle, a troop carrier, an equipment support vehicle, an enhanced protection vehicle with an armored body, a utility vehicle, a battlefield ambulance, a mission systems vehicle, and a light tactical vehicle in an open-air configuration. The six-wheel variants include a crew cab with tray bed, a troop carrier, and an ambulance — all based on the extended-cab chassis cab.
Ford Europe President Jim Baumbick described the pitch at the announcement: “The UK Ministry of Defence requires uncompromised capability, scale, and absolute reliability from day one. Our commercial off-the-shelf Ford Ranger platform does just this. By marrying the most trusted and dominant truck platform in Europe, powered by an engine built in Dagenham, and the integration expertise of GDLS and Ricardo, we are able to offer an immediate, scalable, and UK-supported mobility platform.”
Why Ford Is Using a Commercial Truck for a Military Contract
The Ministry of Defence’s Light Mobility Vehicle Programme specifically prioritises commercial-derivative vehicles — production trucks modified for military use rather than purpose-built military platforms. The reasoning is supply chain resilience. A commercial platform sold in 180 markets means spare parts are available wherever the vehicles are deployed. A purpose-built military truck means a dedicated supply chain that has to follow the army.
The Ford Ranger is Europe’s best-selling pickup truck. Ford holds more than 40 percent of the European pickup market. General Dynamics handles the military integration as prime contractor. Ricardo handles the engineering modifications including the Ford Ranger six wheel HEX 6×6 system. Ford supplies the trucks and the engine manufacturing in Dagenham.
Ford, General Dynamics, and Ricardo collectively employ more than 7,000 people across UK facilities. The bid was structured to highlight that industrial footprint — the Ministry of Defence’s procurement decisions increasingly factor in domestic job creation and supply chain resilience alongside vehicle capability.
The Competition
Ford’s consortium isn’t the only team bidding. General Motors, Babcock International, and INEOS Automotive have also entered proposals for the Light Mobility Vehicle Programme. INEOS — the British company that makes the Grenadier off-roader — is the most direct competitor in terms of UK industrial positioning. GM Defense supplies a version of the Chevy Colorado ZR2 to the US Army as the Infantry Squad Vehicle, and brings that military platform experience to the UK bid.
The contract decision is expected in 2027. Initial deliveries are valued at approximately £750 million.
The US Situation
The Ford Ranger six wheel and the Ranger Super Duty it’s based on are not coming to the United States. The Ranger Super Duty is built for markets where payload and towing demands exceed what the standard Ranger delivers and where the F-150’s size is impractical. Offering it in the US would put a Ranger with 4,370 pounds of payload directly against the F-150’s 2,440-pound figure — on Ford’s own showroom floor.
US Rangers max out at a 7,500-pound tow rating and 1,767 pounds of payload capacity. The Ranger Super Duty’s 9,921-pound tow rating and 4,370-pound payload exist in a different category — one Ford deliberately keeps out of the American market to protect F-150 sales.
The closest US equivalent to the military ranger programme is GM Defense’s Infantry Squad Vehicle — a heavily modified Colorado ZR2 that carries nine passengers and requires a military ID to get behind the wheel.
Key Numbers
| Specification | Ranger Super Duty |
|---|---|
| Max Tow Rating | 9,921 lbs |
| Payload Capacity | 4,370 lbs (2,000 kg) |
| Engine | 3.0L diesel V-6 |
| Torque | 443 lb-ft |
| Engine Made In | Dagenham, England |
| Six Wheel System | Ricardo HEX 6×6 bolt-on overlay |
| Contract Value | ~£2 billion ($2.7 billion) |
| Initial Deliveries | ~£750 million ($1 billion) |
| Decision Expected | 2027 |
FAQ
What is the Ford Ranger six wheel?
The Ford Ranger six wheel is the Ricardo HEX 6×6 — a military conversion of the Ford Ranger Super Duty that adds a third axle using a bolt-on overlay system. It requires no permanent structural modifications to the base vehicle. It’s part of Ford’s bid for the UK Ministry of Defence’s Light Mobility Vehicle Programme.
Which companies are behind the Ford Ranger six wheel bid?
Ford supplies the Ranger Super Duty platform. Ricardo developed the HEX 6×6 six-wheel system and handles engineering modifications. General Dynamics Land Systems UK is the prime contractor for military integration. All three companies confirmed the partnership on September 2, 2026.
How much is the UK military contract worth?
The Light Mobility Vehicle Programme is worth approximately £2 billion ($2.7 billion). Initial vehicle deliveries are valued at around £750 million ($1 billion). A decision is expected in 2027.
Why doesn’t Ford sell the Ranger Super Duty in the US?
The Ranger Super Duty carries 4,370 pounds of payload — nearly twice the F-150’s 2,440-pound maximum. Selling it in the US would put a mid-size truck with better bed capacity than Ford’s full-size truck directly in front of American buyers. Ford keeps it out of the American market to protect F-150 sales.
What other variants is Ford pitching to the UK military?
Beyond the Ford Ranger six wheel HEX 6×6, Ford’s proposal includes a general purpose vehicle, troop carrier, equipment support vehicle, enhanced protection vehicle, utility vehicle, battlefield ambulance, mission systems vehicle, and open-air light tactical vehicle — all based on either the standard Ranger or the Ranger Super Duty.
Who else is bidding on the UK Light Mobility Vehicle contract?
General Motors, Babcock International, and INEOS Automotive have all entered competing bids. INEOS — maker of the Grenadier off-roader — is the most prominent UK-based competitor. The contract decision is expected in 2027.
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