As much as I would like to see a BRAND NEW US-Spec Ranger, I could wait a bit longer if this is what is to come. As of late Ford as been producing some worthy vehicles. This just seems like a step backwards. This is one model that should stay across the pond.

Is LLN sure that this is a Ford Ranger?

It could be a Chevrolet Colorado/ GMC Canyon. Those Taillights look like they are from the current colorado/canyon
.

THere is also no way that a ford logo could be under that black covering. Its just not the right size

But i do want a new Ranger to come out

when ford talks name change I immediately think of Ford 500/Taurus… they brought the name plate back because that was what the customers wanted, a name they have trusted for decades… well the same goes for the Ranger. It is due for a refresh tho

Aggie, This is the Mazda BT-50 and is believe to be the test mule for the new Ranger. You can see the outline of the Mazda logo. However, it does look like a Colorado/Canyon. I thought it was a little Frontier looking from the 3/4 views.

I wonder why no one ever wants to bring a diesel to the US in a smaller truck/SUV (discounting the future India thing)

ChuckTown, it also says that the running gear is the what’s being tested for the new Ranger – not the body style of “cobbled together” parts. And yeah, we need a fvcking diesel.

Whatever they do with the Ranger, I hope they don’t make it much bigger than it already is. It might be old but it’s a great small truck, not everyone needs an F150 sized truck (Sometimes I think Detroit forgets that fact because of their love affair with bigger=better).

Mahindra & Mahindra’s truck looks better than this. a bit much? ok

The end result probably won’t look much like this superman, it’s just a test mule for Ford to work on the mechanicals of the truck.

Your right Chuck. I guess I was just thinking Ford Ranger and didnt even notice the Mazda logo or the fact that this is a test mule.

My bad

Two Tings!

First Ting: I need some competition for Tacoma. So bring on some fresh meat!

My #2: Ford. Show some guts and call it Ranger, and NOT F-100
Ford could use the F-100 to artifically inflate full-size F-series numbers by lumping F-100 and F-150 numbers together, like Hyundai does with Genesis/Genesis Coupe
F-100 sales should be seperate
F-150-350 sales should be grouped
F-450+ should be seperate

Do the right thing. Be a man!
DrFill

They must use that Silverado in the background to pull the trailer around, so maybe they are trying to learn what a truck buyer really needs?

fill- why would you group the 1/2 ton with the 3/4 and 1 ton, when they are completely different models? and not the 450 which is part of the superduty line?

While I’m here, I saw a Raptor tonight at a car show, it’s really something.

Arm
In a perfect world, you’d be right
But the HD versions of Ford, GM and Dodge actaully share most chassis components with their LD brothers
You have to draw lines somewhere
When you get to F-450, they sell mostly cabs for Box truck duty
Fleet sales of Chassis cabs
This has nothing to do with LD sales
Ford uses the F-series tag to say they’re #1 in sales for 30+ years
More than a little misleading
But Ford will take as many shortcuts as they can
F-series is really all they have left
Kinda sad, really

People who still buy Focus need to have their head examined
It’s really a 10 year old model
Almost as old as Ranger
Just warmed-over, and uglier than the original!
DrFill

^the f150-f350 are all a step up of the same thing. The F450 is out of that league.

Its looks ok

So for US consumption there is a truck with 180 lbs of torque and outside US the one with 280 lbs. Just have a wild guess which one can pull more.

LOL:-)) Hmmm… Brazil… F150, f250, f350 & f450… maybe…uno, dos, tres… cuatro… a little rumba… DrFill y’all teasing the girlz again… tsk, tsk – naught-tay;-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2tMV96xULk&feature=fvw

DB9:-))

Fill- “people who buy a Focus need to have their head examined”?? So the ten year old Corolla is a better pick?? And this quote..”First Ting: I need some competition for Tacoma. So bring on some fresh meat!”…Are you finally coming clean with us Fill?? Are you really a Toyota salesman?? Just wondering.

Borat, there will undoubtedly be a six cylinder option here. The current 4.0 really isn’t a bad engine for a truck the size of our current Ranger. I drove one a couple weeks ago hooked up to the 5spd manual and it was actually quite pleasant. Nice clutch take up and reasonably smooth- if they could do the same kind of number on it as Dodge did with their 4.7 V8 it would probably fit the bill quite nicely in these parts.

Hopefully everything about this truck is a mule because it looks very weak compared to Ford’s beastly F-150 and Super Duty lineup.

Jd
Corolla gets redesigned every 4-5 years
Focus has had a serious facelift, but no official redesign since 2000
DrFill

BTW, Jd
Yes, a ten year old Corolla is a better choice
Good lookin’ out!
DrFill

Fill- Do you believe the stuff you spew or?? Do you even know the diffference between “redesigned” and “reengineered”?? The Corolla hasn’t been reengineered in many years just like the Focus. Redesigned is new fabrics, dash module, front and rear bumpers/lights. Reengineered is new unibody,engine,trans, sheet metal, glass etc. Oh and BTW, Corolla doesn’t offer an option like SYNC in the Ford Focus. That option alone is worth buying one econobox over another. And BTW, Fill, how long have you been a Toyota salesman??

The mule is a Mazda BT-50 with Ford running gear. It looks like Ford is going to rebadge the BT-50 to become the new Ford Ranger. The only thing that will be changed in the final production model is every panel front of the firewall and the bed. The BT-50 has a history of being a great truck overseas. Mazda has sold 60,000 of them worldwide since 2006.

Ford found out the F-100 concept was too expensive to manufacture thus rebadging and amercanizing BT-50 makes more sense. Ford did the same thing with the Ford Escape. Mazda created the Mazda Tribute and Ford rebadged it as the Escape. So far, the only vehicles Ford can design and manufacture in the states is the Mustang and the full and super size truck series, everything else is copied.

Frontier and Tacoma need not be worried about this. Colorado/Canyon should have been lumped in with the “Bad” GM and never seen or heard from again. Doesn’t look like GM has anything on the horizon to replace that platform though. Guess they’re happy taking the bottom of the barrel small truck market from Ford and letting them move up market.

Johnny, for a working truck (purchased by working guy!) this 4 cyl. diesel would the job. I don’t believe that 4.0L V6 has 280 lbs of torque (maybe close but at much higher RPM) and it will be quite thirsty. Mrs. Canuck tested diesel powered Jeep and told you about marvels of diesel torque. I concur with her on this one.

Guess what Dr. Fill – The current Corolla is the exact same age as the focus. Are you going to say that your precious Corolla buyers need their head examined as well? Didn’t think you would.

Nevermind it looks like that was covered and you are indeed quite ignorant.

Also your grouping structure of the F-series is completely fudged, it doesnt matter if GM and Dodge didn’t take the time to differentiate their 1500 series trucks from the 2500+ trucks – that isn’t Ford’s fault. The Super Duty line now includes the F-450, and just because they are the first manufacturer to offer a 4500 class truck doesn’t mean it shouldn’t count towards F-series and Super Duty sales. It is a Super Duty, and it can handle more than the competition.

Its about time. But don’t get your hopes up guys. They should have redone the Ranger twice by now and haven’t. This should be a third redo from the existing model which dates back to the early 90’s. Just wait and see what happens.

Well if the Focus is only a “major facelift” and not a re-design, they did a pretty good job of hiding it. The previous model vs the current is like night and day. I test drove a new one a few weeks ago then tested an 02 model Zx3 a few days later. Granted it had 7 years worth of use on it and its hard to compare used to new, but at only 35k Id say it was a decent comparison. The new car’s quality was considerably better than its older sibling and was overall much more satifying drive. Hopefully 7 years from now I’d feel the same way.

As for the Ranger…yeah not much has changed. I kick myself for buying a used 06 when i could have picked up an 02 for much cheaper and had the same truck.

I find it humorous that people conveniently forget things in this blog. First, a few months ago, Dr. Fill stated that he was a previous FoMoCo employee & now hates the company. The reason for this I don’t immediately recall. Obviously it will take an act of God to sway his opinion of the company and their vehicles. But, god bless america we are all entitled to our own opinions and are allowed to voice those opinions, however biased or flawed they maybe.

Second, FoMoCo has been planning to terminated the Ranger for the last 5 or so years. But as everything changes, the little Ranger is allowed to linger on. To point out the obvious, if you plan on discontiueing a vehicle you don’t put engineers or designers to work on a new reengineered/remodeled version of said vehicle. Now that FoMoCo has decided that it might be a good idea to keep the Ranger around they are getting to work and completely reengineering the tired little truck. They haven’t invested any money or time in this truck for over 10 years & it is still one of the best selling non full size truck in the US.

looks like a toyota tacoma