Ford is exploring new boundaries with the upcoming Ranger by creating specific options geared to work or play for its customers.
“Our intent was not to simply create a good bakkie. We wanted to deliver an exceptional one that people would want to own – one that customers around the world could trust to tackle anything,” says Gary Boes, Enterprise Product Line Management director, Global Trucks.
The next-gen Ranger has a wider cargo box packed with features and opportunities to transform the space into a total cargo management makerspace.
For instance, owners can create segmented DIY storage spaces, both big and small, by sliding pieces of wood into slots moulded into the bedliner, or even get creative and build things such as a bike rack.
There are tie-downs mounted in the bed, sliding cleats that can be adjusted into nine positions to help secure odd-shaped cargo, while external tie-down rails make securing bulky loads easier.
The new rear load box access step is the result of more than 5 000 interviews with pickup owners, learning how they used their vehicles and what they wanted from their next one.
For those who use their vehicle for adventure, the addition of six structural attachment points in the protective load box capping, make it easy to fit accessories such as a canopy, cross bars or a tent.
There is also more storage space on the inside – from under-seat storage to retractable cup holders and a raft of cubby holes stashed around the cabin. There is room under the bonnet for a second battery and the vehicle has been pre-wired with auxiliary switches, making it easier to install accessories such as driving lights, a winch and more.
The rear load box access step makes climbing up into the cargo box much easier. Attached directly to the load box via two steel supports, the box step boasts a strong, durable construction and means no more climbing onto the wheel to access gear, tools or equipment in the back of Ranger.
The easy-lift tailgate, which can be raised and lowered with one hand, doubles as a mobile workbench. The tailgate work surface is designed to help owners with professional or DIY jobs. Two clamp pockets concealed by spring-loaded caps in the tail gate are designed to help secure timber or other project materials, while a built-in ruler with 10 mm increments (on models not fitted with a drop-in bedliner) makes measuring convenient.
The new drop-in bedliner incorporates functional divider locators so that owners can create their own compartments to store gear that they might otherwise have to carry in the cabin.
Dividers can be custom-made from timber at home and then installed and removed as required. As a bonus, the improved and wider moulded profile on the bedliner is more comfortable on your knees, is much easier to clean and also means items are less likely to slip around.
At 1 233-litres, the cargo box is one of the most voluminous in the segment, meaning customers can carry more. With Ranger now 50 mm wider, the cargo box can accommodate a standard European pallet between the wheel arches (up to 1 224 mm) while the load box length runs from 1 544 mm to 2 305 mm depending on the variant.
Customers can personalise their next-gen Ranger with a range of as many as 600 factory-backed work, urban and adventure accessories, depending on the market. These accessories include those developed in collaboration with global off-road icon, ARB 4x4 Accessories. The ARB 4x4 Accessories and Ford collaboration will initially roll out in select markets.
“We’ve really packed a lot into the next-generation Ranger to inspire owners to do more of what they love to do, with features that encourage them to explore new horizons,” says Boes.
“Before we started the design process, we took all of the research and boiled that down into some key phrases or themes to begin our work. One of those themes was 'empowering mastery'. This, to us, simply meant we needed to deliver a product that would enable customers to be the best they could be – whether at work or play, or with their families. We were focused on authenticity and delivering a truck that wasn't superfluous, meaning everything in it had a purpose and meaning,” adds Leigh Consentino, Ranger exterior design manager.
