We’ve spent a lot of time theorizing about what the 2024 Ford Ranger would be. We’ve contemplated an all-electric version as well as a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) – but that was just speculation. Now, new articles from Automotive News and Ford Authority seems to suggest a hybrid version is definitely coming in 2025.
The big question: Will it be a straight hybrid or will it be a plug-in hybrid?
Automotive News simply says “hybrid” without any further descriptors, but Ford Authority takes the leap to PHEV.
While we’d love to see a plug-in version of the Ranger, there isn’t any precedence for a plug-in truck – not at Ford Motor Co. and not in anywhere else in the automotive world.
But we’ve long thought that a PHEV truck would be a great bridge between the gas world and straight electric because it gives you fuel efficiencies for your commute but longer range without worry for towing and road trips.
If we look at the Escape PHEV in Ford’s lineup, we could be looking at about 40 miles of all-electric range. The Escape PHEV uses the 2.5-liter I-4 engine and is front-wheel-drive only. While we should see sharing the same 200-horsepower powertrain, we find it unlikely that a Ford pickup truck would be front-wheel-drive – so there would have to be some re-engineering to get a rear-wheel-drive or 4X4 drivetrain ready.
Moving to other PHEVs in the industry, Jeep has another really good example to follow with its 4XE Wrangler. That vehicle is four-wheel-drive only and delivers 21 miles of all electric range.
We imagine we’ll see something between the two.
We’re still just speculating about a hybrid or PHEV variant. But given the fact that the F-150 has a very successful hybrid and Ford has a strong electrification strategy, we can all but guarantee a hybrid of some sort is coming. We expect the Ranger to hit the U.S. market in early 2023 as a 2024 model.
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