The pick-up taking on SUVs
The Ford Ranger Platinum combines comfort and sophistication with sheer brute strength
The word “premium” is not one you’d usually associate with “pick-up truck”, says Alastair Crooks in Auto Express. But the new Ford Ranger Platinum combines these two descriptions in one “seamless offering”. That’s just as well, because the Platinum is pitched as an alternative to the SUV market, where competition is fierce. It certainly has “plenty of presence”. The exterior, with its chrome, “massive grille and imposingly bluff front”, will appeal to anyone “looking for something more eye-catching than a traditional family-friendly SUV”. Under the bonnet, the V6 diesel engine is “smoother” than the two-litre unit found in other trims, “and it’s pretty refined, too”. The Platinum doesn’t lack for power, with 237bhp and 600Nm of torque, along with a ten-speed automatic transmission system.
“It’s a smart-looking thing, no doubt,” says Top Gear. “But it’s had more than just a glow up” from the previous generation of Rangers. The chassis has been “upgraded to ride on a longer wheelbase and a wider track”, creating an improved ride, handling and space. Inside, the “huge” touchscreen is an “excellent bit of kit – easy on the eye, logical to operate and smooth functioning”. The cabin, with its “premium materials and soft-touch plastic”, also feels like a step up. If anything, the Platinum is almost a little “too posh for work purposes with its fancier leather trim”. You are afforded a “commanding view over the road” and as for the seats, they are “comfortable and ... supportive”.
The Platinum is no sports car, but the handling is “pretty neat”, says Alex Robbins in The Telegraph. It turns in “tautly” and “despite all that weight, it doesn’t lean over too much”. There’s also a “tonne of traction and plenty of grip, too”. “This is definitely not a vehicle for those looking to save the planet.” But if you are set on buying a pick-up truck, then “the Ranger is a good one”. And if it’s pulling power you’re after, the V6 in the Platinum is the way to go.
“If anything, the Platinum is a little too posh for work purposes”