Easy-going Ford Ranger XLT the perfect camping companion

There can be nothing more South African than jumping in a Ford Ranger and going for a weekend of camping at an ATKV holiday resort. And that’s exactly what we did when we took our long-term XLT to Buffelspoort recently.

Buffelspoort is located around an hour from both Pretoria and Johannesburg on the road out towards Sun City, which meant it was just long enough to appreciate the open road manners of our Ford Ranger double cab.

Unfortunately, though, open road driving in this country is a dangerous thing and any and all safety systems are welcome in a vehicle. And even though our long-term Ford Ranger is a mid-spec model, that slots in above the XL and below the Wildtrak, it still comes with a level of active and passive safety features that many of its competitors simply can’t match.

Ford Ranger safe as a house

On board, you have Dynamic Stability Control incorporating ABS, Load Adaptive Control, Roll Over Mitigation, Traction Control and Trailer Sway Control. And if you tick one of the Tech Pack boxes, you can have Pre-Collision Assist, Post-Collision Braking, Blind Spot Information System with Trailer Coverage, Cross Traffic Alert and Lane Keeping System with Road Edge Detection.

ALSO READ: Even without a fancy badge, Ford Ranger XLT is a lot of bakkie

On the road is also where the Ford Ranger excels with its car-like ride while still retaining its off-road abilities. To achieve this balance, there have been a host of under-the-skin improvements, from increasing the wheelbase by 50mm to moving the rear dampers outboard of the springs. Not that a trip to Buffelspoort required any sort of off-road driving, but it is worth noting that the front approach angle is up from 28.5 degrees to 30 degrees. And the departure angle is up to 23 degrees from 21 degrees. This is with the towbar fitted.

If the road less travelled still calls, the Ford Ranger features an electronic rear differential lock. A differential lock allows both wheels on a specific axle to turn at the same speed, providing additional traction when you’re off-roading. This feature might still come in handy, as we chose a 4×2 Ford Ranger XLT instead of a 4×4, knowing most of its life would be spent in the urban jungle.

Four driving modes

Talking of which, The Citizen Motoring‘s bakkie comes with four selectable drive modes to help you get traction to the wheels that need it the most and in a way that is best suited for the situation at hand, without you having to be an expert. These modes are Normal, Eco, Tow/Haul and Slippery. They adjust everything from the gearshift to throttle response, traction and stability controls, ABS and more.

Tow/Haul mode is a new drive mode that optimises the gear shift timing to maintain power when you’re climbing up a hill or deliver the right amount of engine braking when you’re travelling down a hill. All of which comes in handy when you know that your Ford Ranger has a braked towing capacity of 3 500kg with a 350kg tow ball download limit. That’s a heavy load.

Perhaps the best kept secret of the four Ford Ranger XLT derivatives on offer is that you can have the 154kW/500 Nm 2.0 litre bi-turbo top spec model in 4×2 and 4×4 guise with a 10-speed automatic transmission if you really want the extra urge. Or you can opt for a simpler 4×4, or 4×2, 125kW/405Nm single turbo with easy shifting six-speed auto like we did. Trust me, and I have done the performance testing of our Ranger XLT, when I say that this combo is more than good enough for everyday use.

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Easy on the juice

What’s even better is the fuel consumption that has settled at 8.9 litres per 100km with a heavy bias towards city-type driving. It went into the high 7s on the trip out to Buffelspoort. It’s really hard to fault this bakkie in single turbo guise.

The Ford Ranger XLT double cab 4×2 SiT 6AT retails for R681 500. The price includes a four-year/120 000km warranty, with service and maintenance plans available as options.