Remember that overland-perfect Ford Ranger Super Duty that’s been slowly making its way to global truck markets like Thailand and Europe all year? Well, it was purpose-developed in Australia for Australian levels of off-road gnarliness, and we now have the first go-anywhere 4×4 micro-camping variant developed in Oz. It hails from Ballarat-based Tommy Campers, which leverages the truck’s strongman capabilities in equipping it with a high-rising off-road canopy ready to absolutely vanquish the Outback and points beyond.
The powers that be are making it damn-near impossible to pick out the year’s best Ranger Super Duty camper truck. Things got off to a hot start with the world’s first Ranger Super Duty camper, a hard-sided panoramic lifter from Thailand that spills out the back of the pickup’s stock bed. Longtime German builder Kerkamm upped the ante by ripping the bed out, adding an axle and planting down an extended motorhome atop those four rear wheels.
Tommy Campers
It’s no surprise to see Australia get into the act well before the close of 2026 given that the Ranger Super Duty was developed by an Australian team of Ford designers, engineers and vehicular specialists in collaboration with fleet customers. Beyond a 4,500-kg (9,900-lb) gross vehicle weight rating that leaves up to 1,982 kg (4,370 lb) of payload, depending on trim and build, the Super Duty is built to be “commercial grade but consumer friendly” with loads of off-road workhorse features and add-ons, including a reinforced steel chassis, 4×4 system with 4A permanent all-wheel drive, F-Series Super Duty low-range gear set, front and rear differential locks, heavy-duty axles, steel underbody bash plates, and a sealed snorkel. It’s powered by a 3.0-liter turbo-diesel V6 that puts out up to 207 hp and 443 lb-ft and features cooling optimized for the tough conditions it was conceived to endure.
After Ford Australia started rolling out Super Duty trucks late last year, Australian 4×4 and overland camper companies didn’t waste much time in teasing their own Super Duty builds and showing off truck deliveries on Facebook. Tommy comments that it might just be the best ute platform for its campers, and the builder fittingly became the first we spotted to roll out a complete camper truck. It equips the Ranger SD Super Cab with its S6X camper canopy and Tommy Tray combination, creating an Outback-ready touring system with plenty of space to sleep, cook and live the good life.
Of course, while the Super Duty is prepped by Ford for serious deadlifting, it’s not precisely tuned for every use case that type of lifting might involve. Tommy Campers worked with the suspension experts at JMACX to supplement the factory suspension with a rear coil-over/leaf-spring kit that accounts for all the permanent weight of Tommy’s camper/tray combo on the back. The upgrade levels the suspension out through the full travel range so the rear-end doesn’t sag under all that added weight. Further upgrades such as ride height lifts are also available.
Tommy Campers
One very cool thing about Tommy’s S6X system, which it’s also built atop Toyota Land Cruiser 79s and other truck platforms, is it’s an integrated canopy design that better utilizes the full height of its pop-up camping system. While it’s not the only one doing so, these types of canopies have proven rare in our experience as compared to enclosed cargo canopies topped with independent rooftop tents and no passthrough access between the two.
The S6X’s integration means there’s an interior for people, not just gear, luggage and equipment. The interior is accessed through the door on the sharply angled rear wall and provides 198 cm (6.5 feet) of standing height on the floor in back of the queen-size cabover bed. Tommy also manages to squeeze in a sofa bench to sit on while utilizing the table that slides out from under the bed frame to enjoy a compact indoor dining area for two. An optional seat can be added atop the inset kitchen compartment to create a vis-a-vis setup.
Tommy Campers
Across from the sofa bench, the outdoor kitchen pantry can be accessed from separate interior doors. Tommy also installs a sliding Dometic fridge box in the center of the cabin area for quick access to drinks and snacks.
The main meal prep and cooking take place back outside, behind the lift-up side hatch. Here, Tommy installs a standing 113-L Dometic fridge so there’s never a shortage of cold storage, a 20-L microwave and a drop-down worktop with slide-out sink basin. The dual 75-L water tank system is plumbed to a tap next to the hatch that users can use to run water to the sink.
Tommy Campers
There’s no mention of a stove, but the worktop could easily hold a basic portable camping stove steady for cooking. Tommy’s introductory video, meanwhile, shows an induction cooktop tapping into the camper truck’s heavy-duty off-grid power system. That Dometic Enerdrive system includes a 460-Ah lithium battery, 3,000-W inverter/charger, DC-DC charger and 480-W solar charging setup. A 15-A shore power plug wires the truck back into the grid when at a campground with hookups.
Inside the hatch opposite the galley, Tommy equips the Super Duty S6X with an air conditioning system, heater and water heater for the utmost in backcountry comfort, all year long. The build incorporates a mounted Darche Shower room and includes a Clesana X1 telescoping dry toilet stowed in the same compartment.
Tommy Campers
As previously mentioned, the Ford Ranger Super Duty has a payload of 4,500 kg, and that’s the top limit for a light duty vehicle in Australia. That means you can drive the Tommy Super Duty rig with a standard Class C driver’s license. Tommy Campers estimates that the full tray-top S6X truck build described weighs in at 3,800 kg (8,378 lb), leaving 700 kg (1,543 lb) of payload for people, gear, luggage, water and fuel.
Tommy Campers further equips the Super Duty S6X with a 270-degree Darche awning, a pair of Front Runner collapsible camping chairs, a rear tire rack, Maxtrax recovery boards with mounts, a Polaris reverse camera, a C-Gear sand mat and more.
Tommy Campers
Tommy plans to work with customers to outfit the Ranger Super Duty base truck and the S6X camping canopy precisely to their needs, just as it does with other camper truck builds. So prices will vary accordingly.
A barebones S6X canopy with baseline spec of one 85-L fresh water tank, 5-in foam mattress, basic electrical wiring with two LED lights, four lift-off legs and vehicle fitment can be ordered starting at AU$30,900 (approx. US$21,825). The complete debut truck equipped as described above is currently on sale for a price of AU$214,990. Even with 10,000 km on the odo, that’s well lower than we expected … especially if you convert it over to US$151,125. I’d take that nicely equipped truck over any $150K off-road camper van or pickup on the US market.
Sadly, that’s where the promised all-American envy comes in: As much as American off-road and overland enthusiasts would go absolutely nuts over an ultra-rugged midsize truck with full-size levels of payload, Ford has no intention of throwing a big, rusty wrench in the gears of its ever-reliable F-150 money-printing machine, so the entirety of North America is left with drool on their chins and unfulfilled dreams in their minds when looking at Ford Ranger Super Duty builds like this one.
Source: Tommy Campers
