Armored Ford Expedition SUVs Delivered To State Department

The U.S. government has long used a variety of Ford-branded vehicles for its own operations, a list that includes the Ford Mustang Mach-E for the FBI Police and the Department of Homeland Security, as well as the Ford Expedition, which is currently utilized by the Secret Service. Now, a grand total of four Ford Expedition models equipped with numerous upgrades by a company called Battelle have been delivered to the United States Department of State (DoS) for testing, evaluation, and certification purposes, too.

Battelle has been working with FoMoCo for the past two years to develop these armored Ford Expedition SUVs for the DoS after being awarded a government contract for such an endeavor, all with the request that it beef up those models while also retaining their stock appearance. As one might imagine, Battelle didn’t provide too many details about what makes these Expedition models unique, but did note that they feature “armor and technology to meet specific protection mission requirements while leaving the original showroom appearance.”

The concept behind these special Ford Expedition SUVs isn’t just to provide discreet protection for DoS agents, but also, to serve as a more affordable alternative to other models with similar performance and size as well. The armored Ford Expedition models represent Battelle’s first “Up-Armored” domestic vehicles, which is notable given the fact that the company has been supplying armored vehicles to the U.S. government for more than 80 years now.

“We are really proud of these vehicles,” said Battelle Ground Systems Senior Program Manager Jim LaBine. “We look forward to the feedback and to offering these affordable alternatives to other organizations and government agencies seeking armored vehicles manufactured in the United States.”

We’ll have more on the Expedition soon, so be sure to subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford Expedition news and 24/7 Ford news coverage.