BLE, LE WILDTRAK

1,600 to 2,600rpm. It has a 3.5-tonne towing capability and 800m water wading ability.

Ford claims the Ranger can complete the century sprint in 12.6 seconds and has a top speed of 175kph. The Ranger measures in at a length of 5,362mm, width of 1,860mm and height of 1,815mm. It has a wheelbase of 3,220mm and a 1,549mm long by 1,560mm wide cargo bed and 80-litre fuel tank capacity. It weighs in at 2,010kg.

The 2.2 Wildtrak is equipped with auto halogen headlamps, daytime running lights, front and rear fog lamps, power folding side mirrors with turn indicator and puddle lamp, 18-inch two-tone alloy wheels, Wildtrak specific fabric with leather insert upholstery finished with orange stitching, ambient lights, automatic dual-zone air-conditioning, eight-way power adjustable driver’s seat, auto rain sensing wipers, adaptive cruise control, cooled console box, 240-volt inverter power sockets, SYNC 3 infotainment system with ApCarPlay ple and Android Auto integration, six speaker sound system and eight-inch touchscreen.

As for safety aspects, it includes six airbags, anti-lock braking system, electronic brakeforce distribution, electronic stability control, brake assist, hill decent control, hill launch assist, roll over mitigation, emergency brake assist, reverse camera, lane departure warning, lane keeping aid, forward collision alert, and ISOFIX mounting points.

The 2.2 Wildtrak is priced at RM119,474.34, excluding tax and insurance. It is covered by a three-year or 100,000km manufacturer warranty.

Over the years, the Ford Ranger Wildtrak has won numerous awards locally and internationally. In Malaysia, there is no pick-up truck that offers the kind of safety features available in the Wildtrak.

We managed to drive the vehicle more than 350km, on highways, in the city, uphill, downhill, as well as a on a variety of road condition.

The 2.2-litre four-cylinder Duratorq TDCi diesel engine can easily climb the steep roads of Genting Highlands without having to rev above 2,000rpm. On the highway, it easily exceeds the legal speed limits, if one does not pay close attention to the speedometer.

The Ford Ranger 2.2 WildTrak grips the tarmac securely on high speed corners. The electric power-assisted steering feels slightly weighted and it reacts to the driver’s input precisely.

In the cabin, wind and tyre noise is very well isolated, only the engine sound is heard. There’s also load of space in the cabin, offering generous headroom, leg room and shoulder room for the front occupants.

There will be lack of shoulder room if three large frame adults are sitting in the rear. The rear seat storage also offers more storage space.

The air-conditioning system of the Ford Ranger 2.2 WildTrak can be set to 15 ∞Celsius whereas most systems go only to 16 or 17 degrees.

There is also an armrest storage to keep drinks chilled while driving long distance.

Driving for a long distance on the highway is much safer, thanks to the safety and assist features like the adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, lane departure warning and forward collision alert. Currently, no other companies in Malaysia offer such features for vehicles in this segment.

The Sync 3 infotainment system is easy to operate, with a simple screen layout.

We managed to record 8.6 to 9.1 litres per 100km (l/100km) after a combination of city and highway driving. A cruise on the highway below the legal speed limits consumed 7.7 to 8.3l/100km. After some acceleration and hard driving, it used 10.7 to 11.6l/100km. Indeed, it is fuel economical, given that it is a 2.2-litre engine.

Overall, we find that the Ford Ranger 2.2 Wildtrak is a marvelous pick-up truck, but there is still some room for improvement.

Ford engineers should tweak the lane keep assist system a little, as currently it is slightly too sensitive, and assists the truck back to the lane quite strongly, especially on corners. The driver has to wrestle with the steering during corners if the system kicks in.

Another feature the 2.2 Wildtrak should have is integrated blind spot mirrors. It will further enhance the safety of the truck during lane changing.