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2019 Ford Ranger: What to Expect From the U.S.-spec Model

The U.S. is no stranger to the Ford Ranger, even though this part of the world has been missing out lately. Ford stopped selling the Ranger in North America just about six years ago, when the final unit of the 2011 MY was built at Twin Cities Assembly Plant.
 Ford Ranger Wildtrak (T6 model) 51 photos
Photo: Ford
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Happily, however, the Ranger will make a comeback in 2018.

During the 2017 Detroit Auto Show, the Blue Oval confirmed that its mid-size pickup is coming back to North America for the 2019 model year onward. According to Ford, production is set to begin late in 2018 at Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan. At the present moment, the factory’s 3,700 workers are making with the Focus (4- and 5-door) and C-Max.

And so, the question is, what to expect from the 2019 Ranger?

Brand new it won’t be. Just about everyone in the biz, as well as the rumor mill, believe that the U.S.-spec model will make use of the T6 platform employed by the current Ford Ranger. As a brief reminder, the Ranger available today outside the U.S. is manufactured in Thailand.

Mike Levine
, the product communications manager for North America, also offers a hint regarding the T6 underpinnings in store for the U.S. model. “Unique front styling, engines, and features,” are what we should look forward to. In layman’s terms, Mr. Levine suggests not to expect too big of a visual difference from the Ranger featured in the main picture of this story.

Having concluded that the 2019 Ranger isn’t a full redesign from the current model, the Blue Oval will offer at least two body styles: Super Cab (i.e. reverse-hinged rear doors) and Double Cab (four full-sized doors). The Regular Cab doesn’t make too much sense in the U.S. if I’m to be honest.

On the powertrain part of the deal, gasoline-drinking engines will be the norm. The 3.3-liter Ti-VCT (282 hp and 253 lb-ft) that made its debut in the 2018 Ford F-150 is a nice starting point. The 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder in the Ford Explorer (280 hp and 310 lb-ft) could also make the cut. In Europe, the Ford Ranger is available with two TDCi Duratorq diesel engines.

In the U.S., the 3.2-liter TDCi Duratorq is rebranded Power Stroke Turbo Diesel and it offers 185 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque in the Transit. The 2.8-liter Duramax in the Chevy Colorado makes do with 181 hp and 369 lb-ft.

The F-150’s 3.0-liter Power Stroke V6 is also feasible for the 2019 Ford Ranger, but only if the Blue Oval can down tune it accordingly. Overlapping the F-150 Power Stroke's output wouldn’t be OK for the Ranger, wouldn’t it?

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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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