Ford Ranger review: New top-of-the-range Wildtrak pickup has enough power to tow a boat – and a £35,000 price tag to match
The luxury version of Ford's pick-up is packed with technology and even has leather seats - plus is as much of a workhorse as any big American truck
THE mid-life crisis can take many forms. For some it can be getting a tattoo or buying a Harley-Davidson.
I’ve got a mate who took it a step further – he bought a bloody boat.
Of course he blew his budget on the boat without thinking about transporting the thing using his towbar-free family hatchback.
Luckily, I was knocking around in Ford’s latest Ranger Wildtrak.
It's the Blue Oval's 3.2- litre turbo-diesel pick-up, with enough low-down torque to tow the QE2.
At £35k, the top-of-the-range Ranger isn’t exactly cheap, but Ford has followed the ways of many modern pick-up manufacturers and kitted it out with every conceivable luxury that make long trips to waterside towns more enjoyable.
There’s DAB radio and a full SYNC 3 infotainment system, with 8ins touch screen display. The steering wheel is wrapped in leather and the front seats are heated.
Adaptive cruise control smooths out of motorway journeys, and a bunch of sensors, cameras and audible prompts make sure you don’t look like a plum when it comes to parking the thing.
It drives pretty well too, with this spacious double cab version feeling planted at higher speeds, and offering a relatively relaxed ride over crappy road surfaces.
There’s also plenty of power available from the beefy 3.2-litre diesel, with 470Nm of torque helping box off 0-62mph in an impressive 10.6 seconds.
KEY FACTS: FORD RANGER WILDTRAK DOUBLE CAB 4x4
Price: £35,204
Engine: 3.2 TDCi
Economy: 32.1mpg
0-62mph: 10.6
seconds
Top speed: 109mph
Length: 5.3 metres
CO2: 231g/km
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This particular model was mated to the six-speed automatic transmission, which makes things nice and easy in stop/start traffic, but it did get a little confused under heavy acceleration.
It’s also quite thirsty compared with your average SUV, so don’t expect much more than around 25mpg under normal driving conditions.
But it’s a handsome beast and this Wildtrak spec proves that it’s possible to live with a pick-up truck that’s capable of towing 3.5 tons without compromising on comfort.