Saturday, February 18, 2006

Ranger? 4Trac Concept from Thailand, what does the future hold.


I think the last time I posted on this, I assumed it was the global replacement for the Ranger, but after re-reading the press release I realized it never actually said that. Now I'm sure that if it makes production it will replace the Ranger and Mazda B series around the world. But does that mean it will not come to the US? I think it would be a great replacement for the Ranger here. I know that if the Ranger had the 2.5L Diesel here in the US, it could blaze new trails in the US market. Great fuel economy, and extra low end grunt for off road ability. The 4Trac concept shows nice styling, even if some of the fluff doesn't make it to production, like the bedside storage compartments and multi element tailgate.

What do you think?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Big Ford Fan,

It has not been confirmed, but everyone is saying that the 2008 Ranger program is cancelled, as part of the "way forward" plan. Meaning what? We're not sure, but one rumor is that the Ranger will be an "international truck" platform, possibly built in Thailand for export.

Anonymous said...

That's a superb design, a modern version of the Ranger ... I just bought a 2006 Ranger and would buy that new one as soon it's available on 1 condition: Is the length of the trunk larger than 50% of the wheelbase ( Requirement in Europe to have fiscal advantage on a pick-up )!!!

Big Ford Fan said...

I'm not thrileld with the prospect of a Ranger built in Thailand, but had posted on the trade agreement a few months ago. I would not be truly surprised if they made that move.

I'm sure any Crew Cab version would have a minimu of 4.5 ft bed, possibly a 5 ft. Would that be enough to meet those requirments? I've noticed that Crew Cabs seem more popular for pickups than standard cabs in the UK and Europe, where Pickups aren't that big a market anyway. Always interested in hearing about a new perspective on global truck sales.

Anonymous said...

The current Rest of World (RoW) RANGER as seen in Europe are already built in Thailand. By The Way it's also a top-seller in Thailand I believe...

Big Ford Fan said...

OK, I'm going to remind people, I hope nicely, that Anonymous comments will not be published in the future. Please sign with initials or nickname in the future.

I'm aware that the "RoW" Ranger is a class leader in many markets and that it is built in Thailand on the same platform as the US Ranger. One other thing I'd like to see is the 2.5L Diesel that everyone else gets.