Ford Ranger

All the variants of the Ford Ranger come with an all-black theme for the cabin as standard, with the higher-spec variants also getting leather upholstery and soft-touch plastics for an added premium feel. The Raptor stands out with the contrast orange highlights in the cabin and stitching for the seats and jet fighter-inspired front and rear sports seats.

Ford has done a commendable job in modernising the cabin of the Ranger, which now comes with a full-TFT instrument console and portrait-styled touchscreen infotainment system right from the base-spec XL Single Cab version, with the higher-spec variants getting larger-sized screens for them. The cabin has a lot of rectangular influence in the design of elements, including the AC vents on the sides of the infotainment screen and corners of the dashboard. The lower centre console has minimalist buttons for the climate control system, while also having cup holders and a stylish-looking transmission lever.

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Premium-looking leather finish for the cabin in higher variants

Con: Lack of physical buttons for the audio system

Features and Technology

All the variants of the Ford Ranger are distinguished from each other significantly based on the features they come bestowed with.

The XL Single Cab and XL versions of the Ford Ranger come with a tilt and telescopic adjustable steering wheel, a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, two USB charging ports, 8-inch full-TFT instrument console and 2 speakers. The XL versions further get two additional speakers (four speakers in total) and dual-zone automatic climate control (XL Single Cab has manual AC).

The XLT and XLT Plus variants of the Ford Everest further come equipped with a 6-speaker audio system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, four drive modes – Normal, Eco, Tow/Haul and Slippery and manual height adjustment for the driver’s seat. 

From the Wildtrak version, the Ford Everest gets an electronic parking brake, a larger 12-inch touchscreen infotainment system, four USB charging ports, two additional drive modes – mud/ruts and sand, leather upholstery and 8-way power-adjustable driver’s seat.

The Platinum and Raptor variants further get a premium 8-speaker Bang-&-Olufsen audio system, a larger 12.4-inch full-TFT instrument console, ambient lighting, auto-dimming inside rearview mirror, 10-way power-adjustable front seats with memory function for the driver’s seat, heated and ventilated front seats, 230V power outlet and a wireless charger, with additional Baja drive mode in Raptor variant. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Several comfort and convenience features across all variants 

Boot Space and Storage

Measuring 1,564mm long, 1,584mm wide and 540mm tall, the rear bed of the Ford Ranger offers an excellently spacious load-carrying bay, which is even better in the entry-level XL single cab version meant for commercial purposes. Even in the cabin, the Ranger feels practical with several small storage spaces, including bottle holders in all four doors, a front centre armrest with storage space in mid and higher variants and a big glovebox.

Pros and cons:

Pro: Huge deck space in all four variants

Con: Rear doors could have bigger pockets

The second-generation Ford Ranger has taken off from where its predecessor left off, with it now being more modern and muscular in its appearance while retaining the boxy and upright stance. The front profile of the Ranger looks butch, with the pickup having C-shaped headlamps, that are full-LED units from the XLT version onwards. 

The imposing-looking grille in the middle has a horizontal bar that stretches towards the middle of the headlamps on either side. This grille has a simple black finish in XL versions, a simple black finish with a chrome bar in XLT versions, a gloss black finish in Wildtrak, a full-chrome finish in Platinum, and a wild-looking Ford Black grille in the Raptor version.

The Ford Ranger has a very imposing stance when viewed from the sides, with the pickup getting wheel arch mouldings in all the variants. The Ranger lineup comes with alloy wheels as standard – silver-coloured 16-inch in XL versions, silver-coloured 17-inch in XLT and XLT Plus versions, gloss-black 18-inch in Wildtrak version, machined 20-inch in Platinum and gunmetal grey 17-inch in Raptor versions. All the variants get vertical LED tail lamps with wide Ford lettering across the deck lid.

The colour options for the Ford Ranger are Arctic White, Meteor Gray, Absolute Black and Aluminium Metallic in XL, XLT and XLT Plus versions, Lightning Blue and Sedona Orange in XLT and XLT Plus versions, Luxe Yellow, Meteor Gray, Absolute Black, Sedona Orange and Arctic White in Wildtrak, Equinox Bronze, Meteor Grey and Absolute Black in Platinum and Arctic White, Code Orange, Conquer Grey, Absolute Black and Blue Lightning in Raptor.

Pros and cons:

Pro: Butch and imposing design, especially the Raptor and Platinum

Cons: No LED headlamps in XL versions

The Ford Ranger comes with three powertrain options, as discussed above – 2.0-litre single-turbo diesel, 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel and 3.0-litre V6 petrol. Among these engines, the bi-turbo diesel engine is the most efficient with a fuel economy of 13.9 kmpl in combined city-highway conditions. The single-turbo diesel engine comes next, with an efficiency of around 13.2 kmpl. Meanwhile, the twin-turbo V6 petrol engine of the Raptor is the least efficient at 8.5 kmpl. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Impressive fuel efficiency of both diesel engine options

Con: Twin-turbo V6 petrol of Raptor is thirsty

All the versions of the Ford Ranger, barring the Raptor, come with a double wishbone setup with coil springs at the front and leaf springs at the rear, while the Raptor gets an off-road-focused double wishbone with FOX coil springs at the front and FOX coil springs with Watt’s linkage at the rear. For added ruggedness and off-road-worthiness, the Ranger also has a limited-slip differential in the XL Single Cab and XL and e-locking rear differential in the XLT, XLT Plus, Wildtrak and Platinum variants. The Raptor feels full-blown with e-locking front and rear differentials and BF Goodrich off-road tyres.

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Terrific off-road-worthiness, especially the Raptor version

Con: Stiff and bouncy low-speed ride quality 

The XL Single Cab version of the Ford Ranger comes with a 2.0-litre single-turbo four-cylinder diesel engine with a 6-speed manual transmission claiming 170 PS of maximum power and 405 Nm of maximum torque. The same engine with the exact state of tune is offered in the XL and XLT versions, with both manual (6-speed) and automatic (6-speed) variants.

The XLT Plus, Wildtrak and Platinum variants get the biturbo version of this 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel engine, which produces 210 PS of maximum power and 500 Nm of maximum torque, while paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission. Meanwhile, the Raptor version has the full-blown 3.-litre twin-turbo V6 diesel engine, claiming 397 PS of power and 583 Nm of torque, while paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Powerful diesel engines and responsive transmission choices

Con: Single-turbo diesel engine feels noisy at idle

The standard safety features offered in all the variants of the Ford Ranger are ABS with EBD and brake assist, electronic stability control, traction control, hill launch assist, hill descent control, rollover mitigation, trailer sway control and dual front airbags. Side and curtain airbags and ISOFIX mounts for child seats are offered from the XL variant onwards.

From the XLT variant onwards, the Ford Ranger gets cruise control with speed limiter, reverse camera, Ford MyKey trailer sway assist, while lane keeping aid, second and post-collision brakes, pre-collision assist, autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection, forward collision warning and front and rear parking sensors are added from XLT Plus variant onwards.

Additional features like driver knee airbag, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go, lane change warning and aid, blind spot detection system, rear cross-traffic alert, high beam assist, reverse brake assist, adaptive load control, evasive steer assist and 360-degree parking camera are added from the Wildtrak variant onwards. Auto park assist 2.0 is further added from the Platinum variant, while the tyre pressure monitoring system is offered exclusively in the Raptor variant. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: ADAS features offered from mid-spec variant onwards

Con: No tyre pressure monitoring system in lower variants

Competitor Comparison

The Ford Range has a lot of traditional rivals with which it competes in the Asian markets, including Malaysia, with the list including Toyota Hilux, Mitsubishi Triton, Isuzu D-Max, Nissan Navara, Maxus T60, Mazda BT-50, Peugeot Landtrek, and JAC T9. 

Conclusion and Final Verdict

Like its traditional Asian rivals, the Ford Ranger also scores high on reliability, durability and muscular visual appeal, with it also offering a touch of American flair in its design, interior quality and performance. The higher-spec versions, especially the Raptor, create new segment benchmarks in premium quality levels, equipment and performance.