It is not quite as huge as the North American F-150 Super Duty we often see on television, but at least South Africans will be able to get their hands on a Ford Ranger Super Duty from next year.
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Ford Motor Company Africa last week confirmed that it will offer the bakkie derivative from next year in single and double cab body styles. SuperCab is off the table for now.
For those unfamiliar with the Super Duty badge, think of the incoming bakkie as a Ford Ranger on steroids. Ford Australia, which developed this particular Super Duty, calls it a “purpose-built truck designed for heavy-duty use”.
While final specification and pricing is still anyone’s guess, The Citizen Motoring takes a look at what we can expect for the Mzansi-bound Super Duty which will be built in Thailand and not alongside the standard Ford Ranger in Silverton.
Beefed-up dimensions
The Super Duty’s exterior revisions comprise wider wheel arches to accommodate 33-inch all-terrain wheels compared to the standard Ranger. It also sports a steel front bumper, wider mirrors, a new grille, restyled bonnet, snorkel and steel underbody bashplate.
The Ford Ranger Super Duty double cab has a ground clearance of 295mm. This is higher than the local Ranger Raptor (272mm) and the Ranger Tremor (261mm).
Its wading depth of 850mm is 50mm higher than that of the Tremor.
Ford Ranger Super Duty’s powertrain
The powertrain fitted to the Australian Super Duty is the 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel that is available locally in the Ranger and Everest. Its power output has however been detuned from 184kW to 154kW, with the torque staying unchanged at 600Nm. Drive goes to all four corners via the familiar 10-speed automatic gearbox.
It also comes standard with a long-range 130-litre fuel tank compared to the 80-litre tank in the standard Ford Ranger.
The Super Duty can tow 4 500kg compared to the standard Ranger’s 3 500kg.
Climbing inside
A nifty party trick is readouts from sensors built into the suspension displayed on the 12-inch SYNC 4A infotainment display.
The interior is largely unchanged, bar from the Super Duty lettering on the upper glovebox and a scale display.