GM already field testing rival Silverado-based infantry squad vehicle
Ford Motor Co. said Monday it has secured a Defense Department contract to develop three prototype tactical trucks for the U.S. Army, marking the automaker’s largest pursuit of a military contract since the Cold War.
The prototypes will be based on Ford’s F-Series super-duty pickups, the company said. The trucks would serve double duty on the battlefield as a stealthy power bank on wheels, according to the automaker.
Ford’s announcement comes as the Pentagon pushes automakers to apply their manufacturing capacity toward modernizing and replenishing military hardware that has been depleted by wars in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The contract puts Ford in competition with crosstown rival General Motors, which is years into developing its own version of the infantry squad vehicle, dubbed the ISV-Heavy. Military officials in recent months have begun field testing the GM version, which is built off the heavy-duty version of the automaker’s Chevrolet Silverado pickup, according to the Wall Street Journal. GM unveiled its truck in 2024.
Ford, in a statement, said it is excited to work on the project and looks forward to “delivering several incredibly capable vehicle prototypes that demonstrate the value Ford can provide to the Army and soldiers.”