--- title: "Spied: A New 2021 Ford Compact Pickup is Under Development" url: "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/" publisher: "Pickup Truck + SUV Talk" content_signal: "search=yes, ai-input=yes, ai-train=no" author: "Tim Esterdahl" published: "2018-12-01T21:13:27+00:00" modified: "2025-07-23T15:20:49+00:00" image: "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2021-Ford-Courier-Small-Pickup-Truck-Spy-Shots-Exterior-005-720x340.jpg" --- # Spied: A New 2021 Ford Compact Pickup is Under Development By Tim Esterdahl Published: 2018-12-01T21:13:27+00:00 Updated: 2025-07-23T15:20:49+00:00 ![Featured image]() ![]()Our friends over at *[Ford Authority]()*are reporting a new compact pickup is currently being developed with an aim for the U.S. market. This compact pickup would harken back to decades ago when compact pickups were truly compact. [Embedded video]() New spy photos confirm Ford is testing such pickup. The pictures show 2-door pickup (or heck even a van). A 4-door variant and 4wd are also likely. ![]()For years now, there has been ongoing discussions about whether the timing is right for a compact pickup to make a return to the U.S. marketplace. The growth, literally in size and scale, of both mid-size and full-size pickups has created a space for a compact pickup to enter the market. A Ford Courier pickup would be slotted below the Ford Ranger and would be an entry-level pickup replacing a compact car. This pickup, either going to be called the Ford Courier or a Ford Ranchero, would be probably built at the Ford Cuautitlan plant in Mexico. and then sent to Brazil and finally the U.S. ![]()Pricing would seem to have it ranging from the mid teens to the mid 20s with likely some fleet options for small businesses. Powertrains for this pickup would likely be a small displacement (2.3L or smaller) EcoBoost engine mated to an 8-speed transmission and with a 2wd version would likely push past 30 MPG highway. A diesel and hybrid powertrain are also possibilities. Payload and towing would be nominal and really only be rated enough for carrying people and light cargo. Towing a small, lightweight trailer would be a possibility, however, that would probably be the extent of the towing capacity. This is really a city dweller or gardener kind of pickup with the ride comfort of a car, the fuel economy of a car and the option of hauling some cargo in the bed. With spy photos of ongoing testing, it is pretty likely this won’t be the last we will be hearing about a new compact Ford pickup. Also, the timeline of a 2021 model seems accurate at this stage and a debut would be possible at a 2020 auto show. ## Structured page information ~~~json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Article", "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/#article", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/" }, "author": { "name": "Tim Esterdahl", "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/#/schema/person/82b06f99329f69a069a5ab6caed18593" }, "headline": "Spied: A New 2021 Ford Compact Pickup is Under Development", "datePublished": "2018-12-01T21:13:27+00:00", "dateModified": "2025-07-23T15:20:49+00:00", "mainEntityOfPage": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/" }, "wordCount": 370, "commentCount": 0, "publisher": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/#organization" }, "image": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/#primaryimage" }, "thumbnailUrl": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2021-Ford-Courier-Small-Pickup-Truck-Spy-Shots-Exterior-005-720x340.jpg", "keywords": [ "2021 ford courier", "compact ford pickup", "ford courier", "ford pickup" ], "articleSection": [ "News" ], "inLanguage": "en-US", "potentialAction": [ { "@type": "CommentAction", "name": "Comment", "target": [ "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/#respond" ] } ] }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/", "url": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/", "name": "Spied: A New 2021 Ford Compact Pickup is Under Development", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/#website" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/#primaryimage" }, "image": { "@id": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2018/12/spied-2021-ford-courier-testing/#primaryimage" }, "thumbnailUrl": "https://pickuptrucktalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2021-Ford-Courier-Small-Pickup-Truck-Spy-Shots-Exterior-005-720x340.jpg", "datePublished": "2018-12-01T21:13:27+00:00", "dateModified": "2025-07-23T15:20:49+00:00", "description": "Our friends over at Ford Authority are reporting a new 2021 Ford Courier pickup is being tested for the U.S. market. 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