THE Ford Ranger PX that went on sale in Australia in late 2011 and has just been superseded, is a pivotal product in Ford’s history. Despite carrying over the Ranger name from its predecessor, it was a genuine top-to-bottom Ford product and not just a rebadged Mazda as was the earlier Ranger and all the Ford Courier utes before that. This was Ford responding to the growing global demand for utes by making the new Ranger an in-house engineering priority rather than just relying on someone else’s design.
In what was a big-budget effort, Ford marshalled its considerable resources from all around the world to contribute to the design and then headquartered the development right here in Australia, which has subsequently proved to serve the Ranger well. This new Ranger was to be built on three continents and sold in no fewer than 180 countries, so it had to be ‘right’.
Thankfully all the effort was worthwhile as the PX proved to be a standout design, not only on debut in late 2011 but also against the flood of newer rivals that have subsequently arrived, namely new-generation Holden Colorado, Isuzu D-MAX, Mitsubishi Triton, Nissan Navara and Toyota Hilux models.
Against its contemporaries the PX Ranger is notable for many things but none more important than its long-travel suspension and long wheelbase chassis. The long-travel suspension is just the ticket for bumpy back-roads touring in this country and it also underpins the Ranger’s off-road excellence. For its part, the notably long wheelbase means class-leading combined front and rear legroom in what is a very spacious cabin without compromise to the length of the rear tub, always the crucial point with a dual-cab.
The PX’s 3.2-litre in-line five-cylinder turbo diesel, the biggest capacity engine to appear in the class, also sets it apart from its rivals, which are almost exclusively
