SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVsand 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.

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Bare necessities: 2021 Ford Ranger 2.2 XL 4x4 6AT d/c Sport

With a dash

Posted: August 15, 2021

The numbers
Basic price incl. Sport pack: R580 400
Engine: 2198 cc, four-cylinder inline, high pressure common rail injection, variable geometry turbocharged diesel
Power: 118 kW at 3700 rpm
Torque: 385 Nm between 1500 and 2500 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 12.8 seconds
Maximum speed: 175 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 10.0 l/100 km
Tank: 80 litres
Tare: 2130 kg
GVM: 3200 kg
Payload (max.): 925 kg
GCM: 6000 kg
Maximum towing capacity (within GCM): 3500 kg
Ground clearance: 237 mm
Approach/departure/rampover angles: 25.5/21.8/18.5 degrees
Wading depth: 800 mm
Turning circle: 12.7 metres
Warranty: 4 years / 120 000 km with 3 years’ roadside assistance
Service plan: 6 years / 90 000 km

Although it’s nice to be spoiled with top-of-range test vehicles, it’s almost a relief to get one’s butt into something lower-key sometimes. It’s easy to realise that manufacturers would like us to give you the idea that all their offerings are as wonderful as each gadget-laden test car. But you know better than that.

Our most recent Ranger from the Blue Oval was a 2.2 TDCi double cab 4x4 in XL trim. That’s the one with the 118-kW engine, a manual air conditioner, a four-speaker radio-CD player with Bluetooth, steering wheel buttons, 16” steel wheels, fabric upholstery, halogen lights, DRLs, a burglar alarm and a towbar. There’s a choice between six-speed manual or automatic gearboxes and 4x2 or 4x4. The steering wheel adjusts only for height and the pilot’s chair does fore-aft and seatback recline. The driver has no makeup mirror.

Included safety kit consists of two airbags, ABS brakes with EBD, adaptive load control, ESP, traction control, hill descent control on 4x4s, hill start assist, roll-over mitigation and trailer sway control.

Options include 16- or 17-inch alloy wheels; a six-speaker, 8” colour touchscreen music player (for when the teenagers come home from boarding school demanding Apples and Androids), side steps; spray-in bin liner; metallic paint and reversing beepers. This last option falls away should you choose the recently introduced Sport Pack because it uses a different rear bumper, although I'm sure your local car electronics store could fit a generic for you.

The pack in question is priced at R16 500 and adds 17” glossy black alloy wheels and grille, matt black bin bar and rear bumper and decals to suit. Similar wheels alone would cost         R11 920 separately, so the pack looks doable; especially if you consider that the bar could be useful for lashing extra gear to and would add a measure of roll-over protection, should you manage to do something really unfortunate.

The facelift has been around since April 2019 so if you haven’t driven a new one since then, expect a couple of surprises. The lethargic acceleration we criticised on a 2017 XLT appears to have been attended to; engine, gearing or autobox settings – nobody’s talking. It’s still no lightning bolt but it gets the job done. Another improvement is in the suspension.

This has been thoroughly reworked: Thicker and stiffer front stabiliser bar, moved from in front of the axle to behind, in order to improve roll control; softer, more comfortable springs; the jounce bumper, that softens impact when the suspension is fully compressed over severe bumps, has been relocated from the lower control arm to the damper rod at the top of the suspension, thereby reducing load on the bushes. This improves ride and reduces noise levels. Further measures enhance overall suspension compliance, giving the Ranger better steering precision and control.

Add new front dampers, tailored to revised suspension and steering settings, and adapted to four weight categories across the various model derivatives. Whereas outgoing models used a single damper setting across the range, New Ranger has four distinct states of tune suiting the weights of vehicles’ bodies (Single Cab, SuperCab or Double Cab), engine choice (2.2 and 3.2 TDCi, 2.0 BiT and SiT) and drivetrain (4x2 and 4x4).

These combine to improve ride characteristics and handling performance across the range, particularly over rough and corrugated surfaces and, most notably, on lighter models. It works well.

A further pleasant surprise, for those used to more upmarket models, is a pair of big, clear and readable gauges – no tiny rev counter, no switchable “views” and no bs – a serious working environment for a change. And, happily, user-friendly tyres. This one was fitted with 265/65R17 Continental CrossContact M+S rubberware that looks promising for most mild-to-medium offroad use and behaves well on asphalt.

The bin locks with a key, offers the usual lashing points and provides plenty of tailgate clearance, when opened, to allow easy sweeping and washing. This item doesn’t fall into the “easy lift” class offered by its more expensive sisters but it really doesn’t need to.

Back seat accommodations offer almost four finger-widths of head space for 1.84-metre passengers, plenty of kneeroom and “enough” foot clearance. Amenities include three head restraints and full belts, an armrest with the usual cup holders, one seatback pouch, two ISOFix points, 12-volt socket, a second courtesy lamp and serviceable door bins.

So, there we have it; an almost bare-bones working truck with a dash of safety- and convenience kit – not so fancy that it gets confused by its own “features” but pleasant enough to live with.

Test vehicle from Ford SA press fleet

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.