SHED: SSANGYONG MUSSO XLV ULTIMATE
SPECCED-OUT RANGER PROVES – AGAIN – WHY IT’S SO POPULAR.
WHEN Ford chucked me the keys to a Ranger Wildtrak 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel in December, I knew it was just the ticket to serve as 4X4 Australia’s resident tow tug for camper-trailer reviews. With heaps of grunt and an impressive 3.5-tonne towing capacity, the Wildtrak was born for the job. What I wasn’t expecting was just how comfortable the Ranger would be as an everyday people mover.
Year after year the Ranger proves itself as one of the most popular 4x4s in Australia, and it wasn’t long before I got a glimpse of why. With power, comfort and functionality to spare, this vehicle would happily serve tradies, serious adventurers, weekend warriors, young parents and grey nomads alike.
Despite its smaller engine size than the 3.2-litre five-cylinder turbo diesel, the 2.0-litre four-cylinder bi-turbo packs more of a punch when it comes to power down low. It has loads of torque at 500Nm at 1750 to 2000rpm, versus the 3.2-litre’s 470Nm at 1750 to 2500rpm. The 2.0-litre also enjoys a 10-speed automatic gearbox, providing a smooth, quiet ride at low and highway speeds.
To my surprise and delight, the Ranger drives and handles more like an SUV than a hefty ute, a fact I appreciated greatly when using the vehicle for grocery runs, school dropoffs and arvo beach missions in my hometown of Wollongong.
Historically I’ve found driving 4x4 utes can make me feel like an 11-year-old who has stolen dad’s keys for a spin around the back paddock, which is to say, too small to do so comfortably. Not the case with the Ranger. Finding a comfortable seating position with the six-way electric seat controls is easy and visibility is excellent out of every window. Steering is light and predictable at any speed and manoeuvring around tight carparks is simple.
Parking is aided by some handy technology, namely the autonomous reverse-parking feature which scans
the street for a spot of a suitable size and backs the thing in for you. I was a bit too nervous to relinquish control, but my partner, an electrical engineer and virtual reality professional (ahem, massive nerd), was right into it. Cool trick indeed. Front and rear parking sensors help, of course, as does the reversing camera displayed on the 20cm entertainment screen.
Apple Carplay and Android Auto enable the safe navigation of your phone’s call log, messages, music and podcasts while driving, and it will be sorely missed by yours truly when I go back to driving my 2014 Volvo.
Other driver-assist technology I loved was the radar cruise control with adjustable sensitivity to enable the vehicle to coast at a specified distance from the car in front. It’s so smooth and subtle that my biggest gripe is that you can easily drop well below the speed limit without realising it’s happening. Automatic headlights and wipers, as well as lane-keep assist and emergency crash warning, also gave me the warm, fuzzy feeling of someone having my back.
Despite relentless rain and border closures foiling more than one camper trailer test during our first month with the Ranger, it still got a good workout in our household for weekend excursions to secret swimming spots in Kangaroo Valley, lazy Sunday drives out to Wombeyan Caves and school holiday missions to the mid-north and south coasts of NSW.