All-new 2022 Ford Ranger revealed with host of features and upgrades

Ford revealed the all-new Ranger today. Featuring an all-new design and loads of added new features in terms of performance, handling, cargo space and safety, Ford’s global team of engineers and designers, led by the Product Development Center in Australia, have put in the work to create a pickup truck which can be used for both commercial and private use. 

Customer input was key to developing the next-generation Ranger’s rugged new look. Ford spent a lot of time with owners around the globe, conducting more than 5,000 interviews and dozens of customer workshops to understand how customers used their pickups and what they wanted and expected in the new Ranger.

The design features a defined new grille, and signature C-clamp headlight treatment at the front while a subtle shoulder line down the sides incorporates bolder wheel-arches that gives Ranger a sure-footed stance. For the first time, Ford Ranger offers matrix LED headlights. At the back, the taillights are designed in harmony with the signature graphics on the front. Inside, the cabin uses more premium soft-touch materials in the higher trims, and prominent portrait-style center touchscreen with Ford’s signature SYNC®i 4 connectivity and entertainment system.

The reveal models – the XLT, Sport and Wildtrak – reflect this customer input both inside and out.

Beneath the new bodywork is an upgraded chassis riding on a wheelbase 50mm longer and a track 50mm wider than the prior Ranger. A hydro-formed front-end structure creates more space in the engine bay for the new V6 engine and helps future-proof the Ranger for other propulsion technologies. It also opens up the front of the pickup to allow more airflow to the radiator, which helps keep running temperatures low when towing or carrying heavy loads.

Customers wanted a choice of more power and torque for towing heavy loads and extreme off-roading, so the team added Ford’s proven 3.0-L V6 turbodiesel and developed it for the Ranger. It is one of three turbodiesel engine options available at launch, depending on market.

The next-gen Ranger will also come with a choice of proven Single-Turbo and the Bi-Turbo 2.0 inline four-cylinder diesels. The Single Turbo comes in two different performance levels and delivers power, torque and fuel economy, which is important to small business owners or commercial vehicle fleets. The Bi-Turbo engine is a more sophisticated, performance variant for customers who want more power but need to maintain fuel economy.

In addition, the next-gen Ranger will be available with a tried and tested 2.3-L EcoBoost four cylinder that underpins a range of Ford global products and is a perfect choice for customers who prefer petrol propulsion.

New transmission choices include an updated 10-speed auto or 6-speed manual, complementing the current 6-speed automatic.

Engineers moved the front wheels forward by 50mm for a better approach angle and outboard for better off-road articulation, both of which improve the off-roading experience. They also shifted the rear suspension dampers outboard of the frame rails to give drivers and passengers a better ride both on- and off-road.

Customers will have a choice of two four-wheel drive systems, an electronic shift-on-the-fly system, or advanced full-time 4×4 system with a reassuring set-and-forget mode, designed for capability when and where customers need it. Off-road recovery is made easier with prominent dual recovery hooks in the front bumper.

Many of the traditional driving mode controls have been moved from the dash and center console to their own dedicated display on the SYNC screen. With one button press, drivers can go to Ranger’s dedicated screen for all off-road and drive modes where they can monitor the driveline, steering angle, vehicle pitch and roll angles and other controls.

The screen also is linked to a 360-degree camera. In addition, customers can control Ranger’s new exterior zone lighting system via the touchscreen or the FordPass App. Ranger technology will also be future-proofed to accept software updates thanks to an embedded modem.

The design team also created clever storage and useful features for owners. There are not only places to store your phone or charge it wirelessly (where compatible), but there’s a large center console bin to stash things. In addition, the door pockets are designed to carry more, the wide dash conceals an upper glovebox and there are storage bins under and behind the rear seats.

There is now an integrated side-step behind the rear tyres of the next-generation Ranger, to create a more stable way for users to access the box.

Additional thoughtful, customer-focused touches include a new, tough plastic-molded bedliner that helps protect both the truck bed from scratches and owner’s knees from kneeling on a steel truck bed. Extra cargo tie down points on strong steel tube rails provide convenient points to secure loads. Durable, flexible load box caps around the sides of the box and across the tailgate conceal structural attachment points for canopies and other aftermarket accessories.

Ranger offers a new cargo management system designed with dividers to hold various sized items – like timber or toolboxes. Owners also can create smaller compartments to store objects, which would otherwise have to go in the cab, using a system of ultra-strong spring-loaded cleats that clip into rails bolted to each side of the cargo box. The tailgate can also double as a mobile work bench with an integrated ruler and clamp pockets to measure, grip and cut building materials.

Customers will be able to personalize their next-gen Ranger with a range of almost 600 fully factory-backed work, urban and adventure accessories, depending on the market. These accessories include those developed in collaboration with global off-road icon, ARB 4×4 Accessories.

The ARB 4×4 Accessories and Ford collaboration will initially be rolling out in select markets.

The next-generation Ranger will be built at Ford’s plants in Thailand and South Africa beginning in 2022, with other markets to be announced at a later date. Specific market launch details will be announced in due course. We estimate the new Ranger to be here in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and other GCC markets sometime in the summer of 2022. No details have been released yet for the next Ranger Raptor.