The V6 engine establishes a new standard for refinement because it is quiet, smooth, and powerful. Its low NVH levels are better than those of all Ranger four-cylinder turbo-diesels as well as the original in-line five-cylinder, which felt a bit bumpy in comparison to this one.
Its peak torque zone offers a forceful and unrelenting surge that feels like being propelled forward by a huge wave. It pulls like a locomotive thanks to its 600Nm of torque, which ensures that it does so not just in its rather small maximum torque band between 1750 and 2250 rpm but also from 1500 rpm up to its peak power at 3250 rpm.
It drives effortlessly on the highway as well, requiring only roughly 1600 rpm at 100 km/h and 1800 rpm at 110 km/h thanks to the top three gears’ overdrive. At these speeds, engine, tyre, and wind noise are minimal, allowing for intelligible speech.
How is it for tradespeople to use?
We loaded 890 kilograms into the load tub, adding the driver to make a total weight of 990 kilograms, just shy of the 995 kilogram limit. Ford has replaced the original hard bump-stop rubbers, positioned on the chassis rails above the rear axle, with longer and fatter cone-shaped jounce bumpers. However, the rear leaf springs still compressed by almost 60mm under this weight.
To provide a second level of load support and get rid of the harsh thumps caused by conventional bump-stops at full suspension travel, these interact with the springs in compression. As a result, the Ranger delivered a surprisingly smooth ride with this maximum capacity, floating over big bumps and dips without a thud to be heard.
If engines could laugh aloud, this one would have when faced with the 2.0 km set climb at a grade of 13% and carrying this load to the summit like it was carrying nothing at all. In a second gear that was manually selected, engine braking on the way down was equally adept, with speeds effortlessly remaining below the posted 60 km/h limit without ever needing to use the brake pedal.
This is again another illustration of why we prefer ute (and van) engines with reasonably high displacements (3.0 liters and beyond) since they provide engine-braking that smaller engines can’t even come close to, especially with restraining heavy weights.
What safety equipment is installed for protection? What level of safety?
New five-star ANCAP rating for 2022. comes with nine airbags and cutting-edge active safety features, including adaptive cruise control, tyre pressure monitoring, a rearview camera, blind-spot monitoring with cross-traffic alert, and trailer coverage. Other features include evasive steering assistance, lane-keeping assistance, and reverse brake assist. The two outer rear seating positions also have top tethers and ISOFIX.
What does it cost to be an owner? What kind of guarantee is given?
Ford offers a five-year/unlimited-mile warranty for the Ranger. every 12 months or 15,000 miles, whichever comes first, for scheduled maintenance. Capped-price servicing costs $2520, or an average of $504 each service, for the first five planned maintenance visits up to 60 months/75,000 miles.