Two years ago, armed with a Mazda B-series chassis, Ford Philippines came rushing in the market with their compact pick-up entry, the Ranger. Relying on a revised styling, which handsomely picked up cues from its bigger corporate brethren, competitive price and durable build—it didn’t manage to capture the public’s taste buds. Not wanting to be left behind in the dust, Ford designers, with the help of the huge Thailand-based R&D center, went back to the drawing board—redesigning the Ranger as a competitor truly worthy of the decisively eye-candy Mitsubishi Strada and the undisputed leader, the Nissan Frontier. With huge amounts invested in redeveloping the Ranger, does it finally have what it takes to knock the socks off the competition?
Like any good software out there, Ford Ranger Version 2.0 isn’t just a patch to fix up all the bugs from the previous model. It does, however, manage to include nifty new features further strengthening the Ranger’s core value.
Though the Ranger is still mechanically similar, the biggest and most obvious change will have to be the packaging. Cosmetically, the 2003 model manages to close the gap since it now manages to have less-than-ordinary styling.
From the outside, it grafts on the face of the US Super Duty pick-up range—the most evident cue of which is the chromed grille with an egg-crate and mesh combination design. It has been chromed up and bug-eyed as well—something to satisfy the Asian perception of luxury.
Of course, toughie-looking features weren’t removed, rather have been enhanced even further: the fat, body-colored mouldings on the wheel arches; standard two-tone paint (silver at the bottom); the addition of inner tie-down on the cargo bed (the largest in its class); and the fattest, and I mean, the FATTEST tires to ever grace a pick-up: 265/70 R 15 all-terrain Michelin tires mounted on new six-spoke alloys.
Sadly, Ford has opted to delete some of the more important exterior equipment that greatly enhances practicality such as the drop-on bed liner (the Amber Metallic showed major nicks already) and side step boards.
Inside, no major reprogramming was done to uplift the Ranger’s doom-laden interior. Although, there are still some key changes that will certainly not appeal to everyone’s taste. For instance, there’s the addition of generous swathes of metallic-finished plastic that will certainly keep your attention away from the limbo of looking into miles of a dubious material called black plastic. The seats are now wrapped in higher quality fabrics and redesigned to improve touring comfort, but still contain the piping stitching, which is irritating to say the least. Lastly, the instrumentation cluster has been given a sporty rethink with its Volkswagen-style white-on-blue gauges. Sadly, it turns on as ordinary florescent green at night.
Standard creature features remain the same: all-power amenities, a stereo with in-dash CD player, rear defogger and instrumentation dimming light control. One neat feature that is truly likeable it the foldable rear bench, which acts as an emergency luggage space in the event of rain—of course, at the expense of carrying three additional passengers.
Shouldering on underneath the new hood is the same 2.5-liter turbocharged diesel with a class-leading power rating of 117 bhp and 280 Nm of pulling power. The strength of the engine is very evident with the Ranger’s surprisingly off-the-line performance. It accelerates quite well, being able to do speeds beyond the legal speed limit on the South Expressway, as long as you keep the turbo spinning in its sweet spot.
It’s worth nothing though that brute strength is all that this engine’s good for. In terms of refinement, it’s really down there—with tons of mechanical noises that truly betray its diesel origins. Like before, it’s fairly weak with its Noise Vibration Harshness (NVH) level as accelerating on the highway would make even the biggest Metallica fan scream for mercy. This fact could make the Ranger a not so desirable car for that everyday commute to the Makati office. Frugality is not a strong point as well, managing only 9.6 km/L on a combination of city and highway roads with two-wheel drive engaged most of the way.
What’s more is that the Ranger comes only with a five-speed manual as the only transmission option available. The sharp, abrupt clutch along with the rubbery feel of the shifter makes stop-and-go traffic something best avoided.
Since it carries the same guts as before, riding the Ranger is still like a land yacht complete with sea sickness. It suffers from a terribly stiff ride that goes beyond the word thrashing. Barf bags and extra pillows on the seat cushion may have to be standard equipment, especially in the pothole ridden roads of the metropolis.
Visibility from the front has been improved thanks to the flattened hood. The larger side view mirrors and large greenhouse makes overtaking a breeze. However, rear visibility, especially maneuvering in tight spaces can still be a pain as it’s still fairly hard to judge the distance between the pick-up bed and a wall. Back-up sensors may help.
However, don’t discount the Ranger just yet. If out-of-town trekking is your daily gig, then be glad to know that the Ranger’s home is off the beaten path. It did the job the first time very well, and with the new enhancements, it does it superbly. Besides the ultra fat tires, the body is now 30 percent stiffer—reducing the amount of flex and body roll while improving handling. Getting out of sticky situations is no sweat either thanks to the Ranger’s part-time all-wheel drive system with RFW (Remote Free Wheel locking). There’s also the case of the rear (LSD) Limited Slip Differential and the excellent suspension travel.
The Ranger is no Big Foot though. Doing more extreme levels of off-roading will require a higher ride height and maybe tires with deeper treads as the stock version tends to have its floor pan scrape at the sight of high obstacles.
Among all the compact pick-ups in the market, this is the one that could be pushed closer to its limit thanks to the tons of safety equipment that off-set the Ranger’s devilish performance. After all, having the most powerful engine should entail having the best brakes, which a good thing it has. Its twin-piston vented disc brakes and drum brakes with Anti-lock Brakes provide sure stopping power. Unfortunately, the brake pedal feel is mushy and requires a heavy foot. Other safety features include dual SRS airbags and Ford’s Emergency Roadside Assistance, which offers free towing among others.
Our range-topping XLT unit is currently priced at P960,000—a figure that undercuts the lesser equipped model by P20,000. With a powerful engine, reliable all-wheel drive system and a complete set of safety equipment, there’s little doubt that the Ranger still rules the ‘best in value’ category.
Looking at it purely in value terms, the Ford Ranger XLT has what it takes the clobber the competition. Though it may look ordinary next to its competition, it offers a lot more below the skin. It’s more bang for the buck with features such as ABS, usually a USD 600 option in the US (P30,000) thrown in as standard. So what if it doesn’t have a bedliner or leather seats, surely these won’t cost as much to add as optional accessories (think Honda CR-V in this case).
Version 2.0 is certainly a huge improvement over the original one. Although I’m no huge pick-up fan, I find the Ranger something vaguely desirable. However, add an automatic transmission, even if it makes the Ranger lethargic could make be a true believer. Ford, I await your Version 2.5.
By Ulysses Ang | Photos By Ulysses Ang
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