FORD RANGER 2.0 ECOBLUE

Terrain-tearing Raptor has taken great strides. Has the best-selling Wildtrak as well?

- STEVE CROPLEY

TESTED 17.4.23, WARWICKSHIRE ON SALE NOW

Not many people know this: the Ranger pick-up truck is Ford's most widely sold model, I made on six continents for a remarkable 180 countries.

It's a particular success in Europe. Annual sales are running at a record 60,000, a third of those in the UK. And Ford hopes to build on that number now that it has launched a comprehensively renewed Ranger.

In the UK, seven versions are offered, ranging from the two-door XL at £26,000 to the £58,000 four-door V6 Raptor, with different combinations of what Ford reckons are the Ranger's four key abilities: as a workhorse, a leisure vehicle, an off-roader and relatively refined on-road transport. The top-end models all offer 4x4 capability, too.

The new Ranger uses the same rugged steel ladder chassis (albeit upgraded) as the previous model, so they are very similar in their dimensions, apart from 50mm wider tracks. However, the outer panels and cabin are all changed.