2024 Ford Ranger

The standard Ranger will be available in XL, XLT and Lariat trims. Bed and cab options have been simplified down to one setup: a four-door SuperCrew body with a 5-foot bed. Two-wheel drive is standard but you can add a locking rear differential. Four-wheel drive is optional along with a locking rear differential.

On top of that, the new generation Ranger has a wheelbase and a track that have both grown by around 2 inches. This bigger size seems to have had a positive impact on the Ranger's ride quality. Even versions with the FX4 off-road package and the more aggressive tire are impressively quiet and composed on the street. Compared to the Tacoma and Colorado, the Ranger's road manners are a clear advantage.

The steering can be a little imprecise; there's the tiniest bit of play at the top of the steering wheel to remind you that you are indeed driving a truck. But it's still very easy to get the Ranger to track straight on the highway, and everything else feels so buttoned up that this small foible can be forgiven.

It is disappointing that the Raptor doesn't get an additional lift over the standard four-wheel-drive Ranger, but its 33-inch BFGoodrich KO3 all-terrain tires do add a bit of ground clearance so the truck is sitting 10.7 inches off terra firma. And all the important bits underneath are protected by skid plates. 

Most of the geometry looks pretty good too, except for that approach angle. The Ranger Raptor has a departure angle of 26.4 degrees and a breakover angle of 24.2 degrees, but its approach angle of 33 degrees is the worst in the segment, falling behind the ZR2's by a good 5 degrees and behind the Jeep Gladiator Mojave's by over 11 degrees. Yeah, this thing needs a lift.

Stability is increased by a 3.5-inch-wider track and a Watts linkage and trailing arm setup in the rear. The rear leaf springs are axed in favor of a coilover setup, and there are 2.5-inch Fox live valve shocks with internal bypasses at all four corners. Heck, there are even piggyback reservoirs on the rear for better cooling of the Teflon-infused shock oil.

Those components give the Ranger Raptor desert-running bona fides, but if you want to go slower, standard front and rear locking differentials help the truck over rocky terrain. 

The Raptor's cabin gets the same gauge cluster and infotainment screen options as the standard Ranger, and the design is mostly the same save for some keen orange accents. The seats, however, are much more supportive and hug your rear and shoulders to keep you planted while bombing through the whoops. 

The suspension is a hero. Those Fox shocks at each corner are working overtime to keep the truck as stable as possible and also to keep those KO3 all-terrains in the dirt to give you traction. The Ranger Raptor easily handled everything we threw at it, but it needs some more robust obstacles to give us a real window into its full capability. But what we experienced was enough to let us know that this truck was worth the wait.

Off-road tech includes a terrain management system with drive modes for sand, snow and the like. There is also the Trail Control system (it works like a low-speed cruise control for navigating off-pavement excursions) and a new forward-facing camera, which appears when you put the screen into its off-road view. It provides a better view of the path ahead and handy guidelines to show you where the front tires are pointing.

An 8-inch digital gauge cluster is standard, with an option to upgrade to a 12.4-inch instrument panel. The 10.1-inch center touchscreen is plenty big, but you can also select a 12-inch screen; the latter is loaded with Ford's updated Sync 4A infotainment system. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, but there aren't an abundance of USB ports (just four total — two USB-As and two USB-Cs). However, wireless charging is available, and the rear seat is treated to a standard household outlet.

Towing capability remains the same at 7,500 pounds, but Ford has added some technology to make hauling your toys easier. You can program the size of up to 10 trailers into the system so the blind-spot warning system will cover the length of your trailer. There is also a new integrated trailer brake controller and the nifty Pro Trailer Backup Assist feature that takes the complicated steering out of the equation when reversing a trailer. The driver simply turns a knob on the dash in the direction the trailer should go. Also available is Trailer Reverse Guidance — a 360-degree camera that shows you everything you might run into when backing up.

The new Ranger can haul up to 1,805 pounds in the bed, and the wheelhouses have been pushed outward to just over 4 feet. There is a much-appreciated side step available to easily reach cargo in the bed, as well as in-bed lighting to help locate items.

The Ranger Raptor jumps that start price even higher to $57,065, about $8,500 more than its main rival the Chevy Colorado ZR2. Look for the Raptor in dealerships late this summer.