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Ford Confirms Sub-Ranger Compact Pickup Truck

In the long run, Ford plans to reduce the number of platforms from nine to five. Given these circumstances, the long-rumored unibody pickup is believed to feature the C2 vehicle architecture of the 2019 Focus.
Ford Courier pickup truck 13 photos
Photo: Ford
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Speaking to Automotive News at the Deutsche Bank Global Auto Industry Conference in Detroit, president of global markets Jim Farley decided to put an end to the speculation. “You can expect new nameplates below where we compete today,” he told the media, confirming the compact pickup.

Even though Farley didn’t go into further details such as the date of reveal or the name of the newcomer, there’s no denying Ford is making the most out of the industry’s trends. On the other hand, it still isn’t clear if the successor to the Courier will be available in North America.

The Blue Oval filed a trademark for Courier with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on May 1st, 2018 for “motor vehicles, namely, passenger automobiles, and their structural parts.” This isn’t a confirmation the Courier-replacing pickup will be available in the United States, but Ford doing its homework in terms of intellectual property.

Rumor has it the unibody pickup will go on sale in Brazil in 2021, with the U.S. getting it the following year. At that point in time, the Focus will go through the mid-cycle refresh and add hybrid assistance. If this eco-friendly technology trickles down to the workhorse, that would be perfect considering the F-150 is going hybrid in 2020.

What’s more, Farley confirmed an F-150 EV is in the works. This project was made possible in part by the green dollar bills that Ford is pouring into trucks and utilities. More to the point, 90 percent of the capital.

Turning our attention back to the Courier, there’s talk Ford could bring back the Ranchero nameplate for the sub-Ranger pickup. The coupe utility was discontinued in 1979 after production of the seventh generation came to a grinding halt. Ford Motor Argentina, on the other hand, continued production until 1991.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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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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