Choosing between these two Ford Ranger bakkies is not a simple black-and-white decision… and I’m not referring to the colours. They represent two similar but also differing approaches to the genre.
Ford Ranger Tremor
The white one is the macho Tremor version, which has been our long-term test vehicle for a few months.
At a shade over R1 million – yes, you read that correctly – there is very little this off-road biased Ranger doesn’t offer those who like to get away for dirty weekends – the literal ones, not the
figurative kind.
It has Ford’s latest four-wheel-drive system, which features a permanent all-wheel-drive mode which gives you ultimate security in slippery conditions, whether on Baboon’s Pass or the N1 highway. In that sense, it is more like the new Land Rover Defender.
That doesn’t mean it has gone soft – the “old school”, selectable four-wheel-drive is still there, featuring a low range set of gears to allow you to harness the 500Nm of torque from the 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel engine.
The Tremor has a rear diff lock, off-road biased suspension and a host of electronic programmes guaranteed to make you look like the original Camel Man tackling the bundu.
We haven’t had much opportunity to put it through its paces because, even on some dodgy gravel roads, there hasn’t been a need to deploy the full arsenal of 4WD weapons.
Despite its brawny looks and capabilities, the 154kW Tremor is a docile vehicle to live with every day, as a few members of our team have discovered on their daily commutes. On longer trips, it has been a revelation, with comfort levels not far off what you’d get in a luxury executive sedan.
Ford Ranger XLT
Why, then, would you opt for the “almost-poverty” spec two-wheel-drive Ranger XLT double cab, which only has a single turbo engine, with 125kW of power and 405Nm of torque and none of the fancy bits and pieces of its pricier sibling?
That’s it – price. The rear-wheel-drive XLT comes in at less than R700 000… and unless you’re a poser or visit rough bush often, you could probably put that R300k to good use somewhere else.
If you want to save another R60k and are prepared to put up with a smaller touch-screen in the cabin and having to use an actual key to start it (as opposed to a push button), then the XL is even better value.
In the 2WD you won’t be missing much – in my opinion, anyway. You’ll still get a rear diff lock, which means you’ll be able to go pretty far when the going gets tough.
Otherwise, there’s little to choose between the two when it comes to equipment levels – the 2WD even has a reverse camera and parking sensors, which is mandatory on a big vehicle like this.
What you won’t miss going downmarket is the fuel consumption of the bigger engine.
Granted the biturbo is already good for something which has to push a big vehicle along, giving around 11 litres per 100km in town and around 9l/100km on the open road.
The 2WD puts that into the shade, though, thanks to its less powerful, 125kW motor and “simple” six-speed auto gearbox (the top of the range has a fancy 10-speed).
Around town, it will give around 9l/100km and on my open road highway test, averaging 107km/h over 145km, consumption was an amazing 7.2l/100km.
The 2WD also rode better, thanks to less aggressive tyres – and improved upon the Tremor’s already impressive comfort.
As someone who is in the process of “gracefully surrendering the things of youth” and who realises that hardcore off-road is challenging and sometimes frightening, I could certainly live with the lower spec Ranger.
Moral of the story: consider your mission before you decide on the tool you will need to execute it.
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