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The Ford Ranger is the overall winner of the 2022 AA DRIVEN New Zealand Car of the Year. It’s a potentially controversial decision in an increasingly complex new-car market, and it’s a very close decision between our top three cars – the closest ever in the history of our COTY competition.
However, the case for the Ranger is also very clear: the main thing any COTY should do is advance its segment in design, technology and quality. Ford’s new ute does that better than any other COTY contender and that’s why it wins. Simple. The Ranger has redefined the one tonne ute segment for Kiwi buyers.
Ford worked on the design and engineering of the new Ranger with more than 5000 customers around the world before the big decisions were made, and it shows.
It looks sensational inside and out. It’s full of active safety equipment and brilliant to drive thanks to a wider range of engines and wider tracks: the biturbo 2.0-litre has been mainstreamed, bringing improved power and better economy to more yet in the lineup, but there are also exciting new V6 options (turbo diesel for the Sport, twin-turbo petrol for the Raptor) and a full-time AWD system that gives its credentials a real boost on -Ranger road. Off-road, it’s better than ever.
Real-world customer input can also be seen in smart features like the large portrait infotainment screen, the “box step” to aid tray access and a workbench integrated into the tailgate.
Watch the full COTY show on Zooming with DRIVEN
The elephant in the room is the Government’s Clean Car programme, which aims to push electrified vehicles to the fore. It continues to be dedicated for DRIVEN, too: we have three dedicated Clean Car COTY categories and the other eight, if you exclude the Ranger (the LCV winner, naturally) all but two of the winning models are electrified.
Is Ford out of step with modern priorities? Actually, no. The Ranger and its ilk are still relevant to more new car buyers than ever before. At the time of writing, Ford remains NZ’s top new car seller (followed by another ute, the Toyota Hilux), a position it has held since 2015. Even in the world of Clean Car payments, the Kiwis prefer and need pickup trucks. than before.
Around the world, it is well known that Ford is working on an electrified Ranger. But at an international media conference earlier this year, the company also emphasized that the internal combustion engine (ICE) is still key in its international media group (IMG) markets outside the US, Europe and China – which includes NZ. Diesel/petrol for Ranger is not missing; if anything, it will expand.
Food for thought from Trevor Worthington, vice president of ICE programs for Ford: “[These] Customers have unique requirements, whether it’s off-road, whether it’s family travel over long distances, [or] if it’s commercial vehicles that need to be towed at higher speeds.”
The Ranger raises the bar on everything a ute should do – work or living – and much more. Note that while we drive the hero Raptor model in Australia, this award is based primarily on the mainstream turbo-diesel Ranger lineup as that’s what we’ve tested here in NZ. We’re going to local Raptor testing in 2023… and we can’t wait.
FORD RANGER
ENGINES: 2.0-litre single or biturbo diesel, 3.0-litre turbo-diesel V6, 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V6
POWER: 125kW/405Nm, 154kW/500Nm, 184kW/600Nm, 292kW/583Nm
GEARBOX: 6-speed or 10-speed automatic, 2WD, part-time 4WD or full-time AWD
CONSUMPTION: 7.6l/100km-11.5l/100km
PRICE: $47,490-$92,990
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