Ford Thailand has given the Ranger a quick visual update and an insane powertrain warranty.
Ford Thailand’s timing was impeccable with the updates you see being announced as the updated Nissan Navara broke cover.
The biggest change is the new-look grille, with the two-nostril setup. Mechanically, it appears the 2.0-litre biturbo engine and 10-speed automatic gearbox has been unchanged. For the record, there’s 157 kW and 500 Nm on tap. Impressively, Ford Thailand is offering an incredible 10-year/150 000 km powertrain warranty.
It is important to note these updates apply to the Thai-spec Ford Ranger. If you want a similar front-end, then look to the SA-built Ford Ranger Thunder. We suspect Ford South Africa will release the Thunder look for the entire Ranger portfolio before the all-new next-generation Ranger production kicks off in either late 2021 or early 2022.
As a reminder, the next-generation Ford Ranger and Volkswagen Amarok will be co-developed and will share a common platform. Given South Africa’s love for bakkies, both brands have heavily invested in their South African production operations. With this in mind, the idea of next-gen Ford Ranger ladder-frame chassis units leaving the Silverton factory and heading for Volkswagen’s Uitenhage plant for next-gen Amarok bodywork and final assembly is not as radical as you might think.
Further Reading
2022 Volkswagen Amarok: What We Know So Far
Next Volkswagen Amarok To Be Built Tough in SA
Building the Ford Ranger Raptor’s Engine
Mustang power for Ranger Raptor
Original Story by www.cars.co.za
