The all-new fourth-generation Ford Ranger is set to receive a brand-new plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain, according to documents sighted by Australian publication Drive. The PHEV Ranger will be making its way into Ford showrooms in Australia sometime next year, as part of the Model Year 2024 (MY2024) updates for the pick-up truck.
Ford has previously said that the all-new Ranger and its Everest SUV sibling have been engineered to support electrified powertrains in the future, including fully-electric and hybrid mills. Ford Europe has also previously announced plans to electrify its entire commercial vehicle line-up, lending credence to the PHEV Ford Ranger rumour.
The Australian publication reports that the first electrified Ford Ranger will be powered by a 2.3-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine, which is paired to “one or more” electric motors. The engine – without electric assistance – is already available in the US market Ranger, as well as the Ranger-based Volkswagen Amarok in Australia.
No power output estimates are available at the time of writing, as it’ll be a brand-new powertrain combo for Ford. The non-hybrid 2.3-litre turbocharged mill already makes 302 hp and 452 Nm of torque on its own – with additional electric assistance, it wouldn’t be surprising if the petrol-PHEV Ranger boasts comparable outputs to the V6-powered Ranger Raptor.
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The Ford Ranger PHEV will reportedly also be sold in the US, with the same powertrain eventually making its way into the Ford Bronco. There are no indications if the PHEV model will make its way into showrooms here in Malaysia either, though we wouldn’t keep our hopes up.
That’s because the Thailand assembly plant, where we import our Rangers and Everests from, currently do not produce any models with the 2.3-litre petrol engine. While Australia currently also imports its cars from Thailand, the nation’s low import tariff makes it possible to also bring the PHEV Ford Ranger in from South Africa at only a 5% tariff rate.
Although, 5% is still higher than 0%, so there could be a possibility of it being assembled in Thailand too. Who knows…
