URBAN ALL-TERRAIN: Ford Ranger Wildtrak comes in handy on city ‘off-roading’
That pickup truck was particularly loved because it had a unique charm. Like all pick-ups it had taller clearance and solid built.
The Ford Ranger Wildtrak 4X4 is tougher than it looks.
Photographs by Marc Anthony Reyes for the daily tribune
For many years I was asking myself why would people buy a pickup truck when they don’t own a business or, like, work in a farm.
The gnawing, unprotected room in the back is such a waste of space, as far as I’m concerned. Unless you spend even more money for a camper or a pull-down cover, there is practically no use for that space.
You can’t put your bikes, not even your golf sets. Unless you tie them up really good. Even then that’s no guarantee they won’t get stolen when you pass through heavy traffic in some shady part of the city.
And if indeed you work in a farm, or have business where you’d need cargo, why on earth would you buy a sleek pickup truck.
That’s until I bought one for myself back in 2004. It was a previously owned Nissan Frontier. Well-kept. All-power. Shiny. With chrome wheels you’d feel bad to pass through street puddle.
That pickup truck was particularly loved because it had a unique charm. Like all pickups it had taller clearance and solid built. It kept us safe traveling from our home in Marilao, Bulacan, to our office in Makati. And vice-versa. Everyday.
Console is too neat for such a power ride.
Front grille is macho and menacing.
It stayed with the family for eight years.
It all came back to me when I got my hands on the 2023 Ford Ranger Wildtrak 4X4 early this week.
With all the top-of-the-line spec, I doubt if I get to test it against the conditions for which it was built.
After all, there wasn’t anything in our agenda that part of the week aside from coming to work to Makati from Quezon City.
The one thing that will strike you was the massive resemblance with the Ford Everest Titanium 4X4. From the honeycomb pattern in the front grille (that resonates to the dashboard) to the C-shaped headlights and linear, massive appearance.
The digital interior of the Ford Everest Titanium 4X4 was also there in the Ford Ranger Wildtrak 4X4 including the 12-inch touchscreen that looked like an attached iPad.
True to its high-end specs — which comes at a price of P1.614 million — the inside was premium with wireless charger; eight-way power adjust for driver and four-way manual adjust for passenger; leather and synthetic seats; eight-inch digital instrument cluster; smart keyless entry with push button start; dual-zone temperature control that extends to the second row; 12-volt and 230V inverter in rear center console; windscreen-mounted USB port; auto-dimming rearview mirror; and terrain management system.
It runs on a 2.0L Bi-Turbo Diesel with maximum power of 210 PS at 3,750 rpm, and maximum torque of 500Nm at 1,750-2,000 rpm. All pulled by a 4X4 drivetrain (that you can control with a switch on the diver’s right-hand side) with 10-speed automatic transmission.
It also has Matrix LED headlights with Adaptive Front Lighting System and daytime running lamps; LED taillights and fog lights; puddle lamps; power folding, power exterior mirrors with side turn indicators; roof rails side step and rear box steps, rain-sensing wipers; and 12v and 230V sockets on its bedliner, among others.
