LET’S CUT straight to the punch. You’re looking at the most powerful Ford Ranger in Australia. By a long, long, long way. While the internet is rife with people pushing their 3.2 Duratorqs to their limits chasing anything north of 200 rear-wheel horsepower, Michael has obliterated that with an eye-watering 750hp at the rear wheels. If you’ve come here hoping for a write-up on storage drawers and roll-out awnings, you’re in for a bad time. But if forged rods, billet internals and one-off adaptors for exotic transmissions are your kind of funk then you’re in for a treat.
Let’s get one thing clear right from the start: the original 3.2L five-cylinder turbo-diesel that came standard in Michael’s 2013 PX1 Ranger (yeah, she’s a first-gen) is a distant memory. In its place is now the holy grail of Aussie motoring: a 4.0L six-cylinder ‘Barra’. Aussie-designed and -built, the big six was found in everything from
