Following the sighting of an undisguised Ranger Raptor, we get a look at the off-road-ready Ranger Wildtrak here in the U.S. The truck was spotted alongside the tiny dino at a gas station in Michigan, and it, too, lacked any camouflage whatsoever. From what we can tell, it also has the updated grille and front bumper that are more inline with the upcoming 2019 U.S.-spec Ranger than the current model sold overseas.
With that being said, we’re not entirely sure this model really is bound for the U.S. It could just be that Ford is testing a foreign market vehicle here because of its plentiful testing resources near its HQ. The big tipoff to this probably being a foreign-market Ranger is the fact that this truck is right-hand-drive. There’s also the inclusion of the truck’s diesel engine. While we won’t completely rule out a diesel coming to America eventually, Ford has been pretty clear that America is only getting the turbocharged gasoline four-cylinder from the start. Ford has also hinted that it plans on putting a gas engine in the Raptor instead of the diesel it will get in other countries.
Like the diesel, though, we also wouldn’t rule out Ford offering some sort of Wildtrak-style trim in the U.S. It would provide a nice stepping stone between basic Rangers and the ridiculous Raptor. It would also be a good competitor to other mid-level off-road trucks such as the Chevy Colorado Z71 and the Toyota Tacoma TRD Off-Road. Only time will tell at this point.
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