Ford’s commitment to motorsport seemingly knows no bounds at the moment, and we’re absolutely all here for it. Following just a few days after the Mustang GT3’s debut, there’s now this, the Ranger T1+. Which looks like an old Ranger, yes, but is an all-new competition car. It’s being built with M-Sport (the team behind the WRC Pumas) and Neil Woolridge Motorsports (South African rally raid legends) to take on the 2024 Dakar Rally in the Rally Raid T1+ category. This will be the first time a Ford factory effort has taken on the event.
This won’t be a one-off, either, today’s announcement confirming that it’s 2024 will be the ‘first step in the multi-year plan to compete in the Dakar Rally’; Ford Performance Motorsports Global Director - there’s a good job title - Mark Rushbrook added that “To lead the charge at one of the ultimate global off-road events – the Dakar Rally – has been a goal of ours”. While the future maybe doesn’t look too bright for some of Ford’s road car endeavours, it seems that it’s all guns blazing for motorsport.
The Ranger T1+ will head to Dakar with the familiar 3.5-litre V6 Ecoboost under the bonnet; there aren’t many additional details yet, but expect torque to be prioritised over power and a suitably sturdy gearbox to marshal power to all four wheels. Moreover, the pictures show some drastically altered bodywork to deal with the demands of the event, from enormous off-road tyres and yards more suspension travel to extra cooling and body protection. Already this Ranger looks a very serious off-road race car.
Probably no surprise, then, that the T1+ isn’t far off its first event. As part of the build up to Dakar in January, the Ranger will race at the Baja Espana Aragon next month and the Rally du Maroc in October. ‘Finish and learn’ is the stated aim for the ‘most bad-ass yet Ford Ranger’ when it comes to Saudi Arabia in January. “But as with all racing, we’re not just racing to win, we’re also racing to help build better products for our customers” added Rushbrook. Gotta justify that budget somehow, eh.
Ford is already thinking ahead on both the competition and the customer front, too, as for 2025 a T1+ truck based on the current Ranger Raptor will compete. Who knows what that might bring for the mid-life facelift…
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