South Africans can now order an armored Ranger with a warranty.
South Africa, to put it mildly, can be a dangerous place. Amongst other alarming statistics, armed robbery is the most prevalent major crime in South Africa, and carjacking is common enough that South Africans just call it hijacking. As a result, armored cars are big business. Now, South Africans can order an armored Ford Ranger specced to various levels of protection from a Ford dealership and without voiding the warranty. The option is the result of a partnership between Ford and SVI Engineering, a company formed in 2004 to focus on the armoring industry.
Ford/SVI Engineering
Ford/SVI Engineering
Typically, we see more upmarket cars and SUVs being offered with armoring around the world, but Ford and SVI engineering believe there’s enough of a market for the humble Ford Ranger. On its website, SVI Engineering lists “hijackings, kidnappings, contract killings, and farm murders” as dangers South Africans face every day. As a result, the armored Rangers are offered with various levels starting with B4 and B6, which is the highest level of specification allowed without a special permit. B6 specification is developed for high profile individuals and the valuables-in-transit industry.
Ford/SVI Engineering
Ford/SVI Engineering
All armoring levels involve upgrading the windows, pillars, doors, firewall, and fenders, as well as protecting components like the battery and ABS module. B4 specification is designed to protect against hand-thrown projectiles and all common handgun rounds while adding just 617 lbs to the Ranger’s weight. B6 specification ramps up protection to resist rifle rounds and adds upgraded suspension to deal with the extra 1,433 lbs of weight. The B6 upgrades are noticeable, so an option called Stopgun V2.0 is available to make the truck less identifiable as being armored.
The B4 spec is only available with the discrete option and takes eight weeks to build. B6 spec takes just two weeks, but that increases to 12 weeks with the Stopgun V2.0 option box ticked. Pricing starts at $15,550 for a non-discreet Regular Cab model, while a discretely armored Double Cab or Super Cab costs the equivalent of $45,654.
