SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Many of the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

My most recent drive is on the home page. Archived reviews and opinion pieces are in the active menu down the left side. Hover your cursor over a heading or manufacturer's name and follow the drop-down.

Editor's note: SA Roadtests accepts multi-day vehicle loans from manufacturers in order to provide editorial reviews. All vehicle reviews are conducted on our turf and on our terms.

For out-of-province vehicle launch features however, travel costs are covered by the manufacturer concerned. This is common in the motor industry, as it's more economical to ship journalists to cars than to ship cars to journalists.

Judgments and opinions expressed on this site are our own. We do not accept paid editorial content or ads of any kind.


Soar with eagles: 2019 Ford Ranger 2.0 Raptor

But mind the trade-offs

Posted: October 17, 2019

The numbers
Price: R819 400
Engine: 1996 cc, DOHC 16-valve, four-cylinder turbodiesel
Power: 157 kW at 3750 rpm
Torque: 500 Nm between 1500 and 2000 rpm
*Zero to 100 km/h: 10.0 seconds
*Maximum speed: 170 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 10.2 l/100 km
Tank: 80 litres
Turning circle: 12.9 metres
Payload: 607 kg
Tare: 2338 kg
GVM: 3090 kg
GCM: 6000 kg
Maximum towing mass (braked): 2500 kg
Ground clearance: 283 mm
Maximum wading depth: 850 mm
Approach/departure/ramp-over angles: 32.5/24.0/24.0 degrees
Warranty: 4 years/120 000 km with 3 years’ roadside assistance
Service plan: 6 years/ 90 000 km, at 15 000 km or annual intervals
*Ford UK figures

In case you’ve been off-planet for a while: Ford SA’s Raptor pickup comes in double-cab only, is 4x4 only, uses only the higher output version of Ford’s new 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel and is available only with 10-speed automatic transmission.

It is 22 mm longer than other Ranger dual-cabs, 168 mm wider and 22 mm taller. Its suspension was jacked up by 46 mm to give 283 mm of ground clearance and wading capability up to 850 mm. Then they widened front and rear tracks by 150 mm for greater stability, fitted coil springs at the back to improve compliance, increased suspension travel (32-percent in front and 22-percent behind) and damped it all down with 63.5 mm Fox shock absorbers to absorb “yoomp” landings more readily.

Stopping power was improved with larger, ventilated disc brakes at each end, all squeezed by bigger pistons in the calipers. Those at the rear have their own, separate, master cylinder and booster. Just in case.

Big, chunky 285/70R17 B.F.Goodrich All-terrain tyres provide impressive gripping power for adventuring off-road. It’s the Martial Eagle of one-ton 4x4 pickups, yet still able to claim street-legal credentials. It looks the part too: Big black grille, big-block FORD lettering, chunky black fender trims and a massive, thicker-than-standard, aluminium front skid plate. All the above kit adds almost 300 kg to the vehicle but the extra power compensates for it.

A serious off-road machine, it goes without saying that it offers selectable 2H, 4H and 4Lo with differential lock, downhill crawl, hill holder, a proper pull-up handbrake and a terrain response program. This is selected and controlled via buttons on both sides of the steering wheel. We found it fiddly and much prefer dial-in setups offered by other manufacturers.

Raptor’s perfect for those who simply have to have the biggest, meanest and toughest of everything, or who spend significant time streaking across the savanna like hunting leopards in “kill” mode. But others notice certain trade-offs.

Those tyres for instance: They’re decently quiet on asphalt but we found that they became jittery over the kind of gravel that features short, sharp ripples and embedded stones. Then, on the blacktop coming back from our off-roading expedition, we experienced sudden and unexpected instances when the tyres tried to “steer” the vehicle.

We took it into the local branch of a major tyre chain to have them inspected. “Some evidence of high-speed cornering,” the man said, “but no untoward wear.” He assured us, however, that should anyone need that particular size and spec’ of B.F.Goodrich tyre in a hurry, his franchise partners countrywide had 63 in stock that day. We might consider another brand, with less aggressive tread, come replacement time.

You also sacrifice loading capacity and top speed: Although the Raptor’s bin is slightly longer and deeper than those on other Ranger 4x4 dual-cabs, its rated payload is only 607 kg vs. as much as 1011 on others. And maximum braked towing capacity is 2500 kg vs. 3500 for the 4x4 XLT while top speed, according to UK specs, is 170 km/h rather than 180. Added body mass and higher centre of gravity probably account for the differences.

Trying out the back seat, we found a full suite of belts and adjustable head restraints, ISOFix anchors, an armrest with cup holders, seat-back map pouches, 12- and 230-volt sockets and a central courtesy light. Although we found almost a fist-width of air between scalp and hood lining, knee room and foot space was marginal. Our 1.85-metre tester also complained that his knees were slightly bent because the seat is extra low, to create needed head space, apparently.

Apart from the above, it’s a fine vehicle with all the usual safety- and convenience kit, strong performance, a grand gearbox, plenty of connectivity, decent storage and even a pair of illuminated mirrors on the sun visors.

Would we buy one? Possibly not; why do falconry with a Martial Eagle when a Yellow-Billed Kite provides all the sport you need?

Test unit from FMCSA press fleet

We drove a 2019 2.0 XLT double cab 4x4 here

And a 2022 Stormtrak as well

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.