DETROIT - The next-generation Ford Ranger is due to be released internationally within the next year, and although Ford Southern Africa has yet to officially confirm that it will be built locally, Volkswagen all but verified that fact last year when it announced that its new Amarok would be built in Ford’s Silverton plant from 2022 onwards.
But while the German carmaker has at least released a teaser sketch previewing its new double cab, its Ranger twin has remained something of a mystery.
However, we now have a better idea of how the new Ranger will look thanks to spy shots of a disguised prototype, which recently appeared on various international websites, including Car and Driver.
The 2022 @Ford Ranger will be a more appealing pickup: https://t.co/ri0hSbwMRB pic.twitter.com/ZGzvcfZ1cc
— Car and Driver (@CARandDRIVER) January 11, 2021
Although the prototype is heavily disguised, the pics do reveal the basic proportions of the newcomer, as well as parts of the blockier front end, which seem to corroborate the renderings which appeared on the CarExpert website last year.
Report: 2022 Ford Ranger Will Offer a Hybrid Powertrain: What? 362 Horsepower! - https://t.co/PJ2cnLsF7B pic.twitter.com/mSAfB3WxhW
— The Fast Lane Truck (@TFLtruck) May 22, 2020
At the time the Australian publication also reported that the new range would largely continue with the current 2-litre turbodiesel engine range, which makes sense given that it’s still a fairly new powerplant.
However, while base versions of the new Raptor are set to carry over the 2-litre engine as well, CarExpert also said that a new V6 would also be offered as an option in the flagship derivative, making it the high-performance off-roader that it always should have been. This will reportedly be the same V6 unit that’s currently found in the US market F-150 diesel, which offers outputs of 186kW and 600Nm.
Interestingly there’s also talk of a 2.7-litre V6 turbopetrol for US versions of the Ranger Raptor, although given our affinity for diesel it’s unlikely that this option will be offered locally.
Hybrid versions of the new 2022 Ford Ranger are also said to be in the pipeline, which could help Ford SA to retain its lucrative export contracts with the increasingly CO2-strict European markets.
On the subject of production, Silverton will also be the only plant in the world to produce the new Volkswagen Amarok, which is likely to use the same engines as the Ranger. However, VW says its version will be aesthetically differentiated.
The Amarok-Ranger tie-up is one of three joint projects that the two companies have announced, which will also see Ford building large vans for VW and the latter building small vans for Ford, which will also in future gain access to the German carmaker’s sought-after MEB electric car platform.