M-Sport Ford Ranger pick-up gets the Raptor treatment
Beefy Ford Ranger pick-up by M-Sport gets F-150 Raptor-inspired styling tweaks and extra off-road additions
Racing team M-Sport has branched out into vehicle modifications in recent years with its Van-Sport division, and the company’s latest creation is a package of styling upgrades and off-road additions to the best-selling pickup truck in Europe – the Ford Ranger.
The M-Sport Ranger is intended to mirror the look of the big, brutal Ford F-150 Raptor sold in the US, but in a smaller, more Euro-friendly package. The vehicles was launched at the Abenteuer and Allrad off-road trade fair in Germany.
The mighty pick-up truck is gaining ever more traction in the British market, thanks to the appeal of its rugged styling and unrivalled carrying capacity (as well as some significant tax breaks if registered as a commercial vehicle). Yet compared to our friends in America, the British pickup truck is a pretty weedy thing. The best-selling pick-up in the USA, the Ford F-150, dwarfs its European Ranger counterpart by almost 3 feet in length, and it's the same story with other European best-sellers like the Mitsubishi L200, Volkswagen Amarok and Toyota Hilux.
That doesn’t mean that the Ranger can’t look as mean as an F-150, though. M-Sport started with the double-cab Ranger fitted with the top-spec 3.2-litre TDCi diesel engine, and added all sorts of bold additions. The front bumper has been converted to look like the F-150 Raptor’s, while extensions have been fitted to the bonnet lip and wheelarches. The black grille features additional Lazer lights while wing mirrors, door handles, side steps, tailgate and wheels are finished in matte black.
It’s not all just for show, though – M-Sport has fitted a Pedders suspension pack to improve the ride, while a sports exhaust might make that diesel rumble sound a bit more like the twin-turbo V6 in the F-150 Raptor.
• 2010 Ford F-150 Raptor SVT review
If you fancy taking your Ranger off the beaten track, there’s also an optional off-road option pack which lifts the suspension by 1.75 inches. It adds a Lazer light strip to the roof, too. Further options include full underbody protection and an extended hard-top load cover.
The interior hasn’t been left alone either. It’s fully trimmed in black leather, extending to the centre armrest and door trims, while a sports steering wheel also features.
The M-Sport Ford Ranger will be sold through selected Ford dealerships from September. M-Sport hasn’t yet revealed pricing information but we’d expect a fairly hefty premium over the standard Ford Ranger.
Would you buy a mini-Raptor when it's released? Let us know in the comments below...
