Widebody Ford Ranger MS-RT Is a Turbodiesel Street Truck
Ford’s M-Sport World Rally Team got its hands on the Ranger, and the result speaks for itself.
We love the Ford Ranger, don't we, folks? Well, I know we love the old ones, and things are a little more complicated with the mid-sizer's latest generation. That's not to say it's bad, but it's hard not to be a little jealous of our neighbors across the sea, considering the various body styles and powertrains they get that we don't. That's where you'll find this new, factory-tuned version of the Ranger for sale called the MS-RT. It's a lowered and widened street truck spec created by Ford's M-Sport rally team, and it's only available in Europe.
M-Sport made the Ranger 3.2 inches wider on each side, so the body kit is definitely noticeable. The fenders house 21-inch wheels wrapped in Continental ContiSport Connect tires and combine with a track that's 1.6 inches wider than normal, too. The stance is seriously squatted thanks to suspension that's lowered 1.6 inches, and the sporty aesthetic is prominent front and back with honeycomb matte black plastics—the essential design motif of any performance vehicle.
The truck's 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 remains untouched despite all the flashy appearance extras. Still, it makes 237 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque, which isn't bad. A 10-speed automatic transmission sends that output through all four wheels, all the time so traction ain't a problem. Of course, we could never talk Ford into selling a Ranger street truck in the States with that compression-ignition lump, but how about the Ranger Raptor's EcoBoost V6 with 405 hp? That'd be swell.
The Ranger MS-RT can still do truck stuff, even with its go-fast bent. Max payload stands at 2,205 pounds and it can tow up to 7,716 pounds, which is actually a smidge more than it's rated for in the United States at 7,500 pounds. Anywho, it's a slick pickup that can get the job done and look good doing it.
Sadly I don't have much pull with Ford when it comes to what trucks it sells here in the U.S. Maybe if Blue Oval product planners read enough of your comments about bringing this thing to our market they'll cave, but I kind of doubt it. Instead, we might ought to focus our lobbying efforts on a Maverick ST or something along those lines.
As cool as it'd be to drive a Ranger that's hunkered down and ready to rock, I think I'd rather carve corners in a pocket rocket pickup with a heavily boosted four-cylinder.
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