The prospect of a left-hand drive version of the Australian-developed Ford Ranger Super Duty for global consumption has been left open, with the US market potentially being one of the first to put its hand up.
During a roundtable discussion, Ford Australia boss Andrew Birkic and several senior Blue Oval engineers said their counterparts in North America initially laughed at the prospect of creating a Ranger ‘Super Duty’ – a nameplate previously only applied to the likes of the extra-large F-250 and F-350 pickups.
However, after beginning development of the new heavy-duty ute – which shares relatively little beyond the interior and front-end with the standard Ranger – Ford HQ eventually conceded it was worthy of the Super Duty name.
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Since the reveal of the Ranger Super Duty, many Ford fans in the US have expressed their disappointment that there have been no plans announced for the hardcore ute to be sold in North America.
While Ford spokespeople remained tight-lipped about plans for a left-hand drive Super Duty, they did admit the model was created as a global product.
However, at the ute’s global launch in regional Victoria last week, Mr Birkic downplayed any plans for a left-hand drive Ranger Super Duty.
Despite the denial, the regular Ranger is already engineered and manufactured in both left- and right-hand drive, in Thailand and South Africa for international markets including Australia, in the US for the North American market, and also in countries such as China, Vietnam and Argentina.
So for nations that drive on the right side of the road, Ford has at its disposal left-hand drive dashboards, pedal boxes, and steering components already being manufactured for the Ranger.
While almost all chassis components have been upgraded for the heavy-duty Ranger, it would be relatively easy for the Super Duty to be produced in any factory where the Ranger is already manufactured, leaving the door open for a left-hand drive Ranger Super Duty in the company’s future.
But given Ford HQ originally laughed at the mere idea of a Ranger Super Duty, there might be more work to do before the ute hits driveways in North America, beyond just engineering and manufacturing.