Pinnacle Ranger Platinum thinks it’s a larney Sports Ute
In line with Ford’s policy of making sure there’s a Ranger on the South African market for every man and his dog, they’ve slotted this R1,1 million bakkie in at the top of the range. Well almost, the Raptor is a hundred grand more expensive, but that’s… kinda special.
You can’t miss what this is. It proclaims itself with ‘Platinum’ spelled out in three-dimensional capital letters across the nose. Just in case you never noticed. And there’s more at the bottom of the doors and scattered all over the place in case you missed the first one you saw.
Ranger Platinum has a luxurious accent
Positioned at the pinnacle of the range to offer ‘exceptional versatility, luxury, comfort and refinement, the Ranger Platinum packs all form of luxury and finery to place it apart. Like standard glare-free high beam and high beam boost Matrix LED s for those C-clamp headlamps. And 20-inch machine-faced alloys with all-season rubber and an ebony accent. We’d love to hear how that sounds!
Add a unique meshed grille, that silk chrome spreading to the side steps and vents, window linings and rear bumper. All offset by a body colour coded front bumper, mirror caps and door handles on our frozen white sampler. Ford’s neat Cargo Management System and a power roller deck also come standard on this Platinum.
This Ranger’s cabin doesn’t escape the Platinum stick. The ambient lit space has accent stitch soft-touch and black maple dash and door trim. And uber cool heated, ventilated and cooled 10-way power memory quilted and perforated high-grade black leather Platinum seats. And this one packs Pro Trailer Back-up Assist with Trailer Reverse Guidance, and an extra upper glovebox as standard.
Platinum kit adds to regular Ranger fare
All that extra spec comes on top of Ford’s fully stacked latest portrait 12-inch touchscreen Sync infotainment and crisp digital dials. It’s easy enough to use and en main uncomplicated, with enough knobs and buttons run the main functions, and screen menus for the rest. It does the job well, which is refreshing, and even looks the part. Well, in dark mode anyway.
Larger door cards, a big centre console, gadget holders and the rest add to ample place to store and even wirelessly charge your phone. Even if the holders are too small for mega cups. Build quality concerns we had on early run Rangers also appear to be cured in general.
Loadability is another Ranger plus. The broader bak now swallows a Euro pallet, while the tailgate doubles as a work bench. There’s even a tough bedliner under that power roller shutter and management kit. When open, those sidesteps behind the rear wheels make the bak easier to access too.
Is that 184 kW V6 rEally an advantage?
Ranger Platinum is powered Ford’s proven 184 kW 3-litre V6 turbodiesel driving a 10-speed auto with permanent all-wheel drive. It runs to 100 km/h in 8.5 seconds and the quarter mile in 16.2 seconds. Which is hardly better than the 2-litre biturbo Rangers we have tested of late. And a second off the old Amarok V6, the extinct Merc X350d and even a 10 year old Navara TD V6.
We also scratch our heads when we see that this V6 is 36 kW and 50 Nm shy of the same unit used in Land Rover applications. Is Ford concerned about that 10-speed box holding up between the extra grunt and a full 3.5-ton trailer load? Either way, in our humble opinion, maybe a slightly cheaper biturbo 2-litre Platinum would hit an even sweeter spot than this V6?
That said, the Ford Ranger Platinum V6 is great to drive. It has a comforting V6 growl, is smooth, sophisticated, never mind comfy and quiet too. Well-damped and positive off road, those 20-inch wheels would put us off bundu bashing. But we did a bit and it did it well anyway. And there are plenty other Ranger models better suited for the bush.
Million buck bakkies are now dime a dozen
Look, there’s nothing strange about million buck bakkies these days. They’re dime a dozen and sell like hotcakes. So if you’re in the market for a luxury SUV and you need, or wouldn’t mind that 4×4 double cab versatility, then Ranger Platinum certainly fits the bill. And when you consider that all the above is on top of the already R1,05-million Wildtrak V6, then this Platinum premium is pretty appetising
Most people may baulk at the price. But that’s where the market I,s and this Ford Ranger Platinum does the premium pickup bit very well indeed. If you want a great tow bakkie for the horses, the boat, the race car, the bikes or whatever, without the expected bakkie compromises in ultimate comfort, then maybe this one’s worth a look. One point one bar, and all. – Michele Lupini
Images & Testing Giordano Lupini
ROAD TESTED: Ford Ranger 3.0 V6 Platinum DC 4WD
Engine: 184 kW 600 Nm 3-litre turbodiesel V6
Drive: 10-speed automatic 4x4
Load Capacity: 1,000 kg
Braked Trailer 3,500 kg
TESTED:
0-60 km/h: 4.02 sec
0-100 km/h: 8.50 sec
0-120 km/h: 11.81 sec
0-160 km/h: 9.98 sec
400m: 16.2 sec @ 142 km/h
80-120 km/h: 5.86 sec
120-160 km/h: 9.98 sec
CLAIMED:
VMax: 190 km/h
Fuel: 8.4 l/100 km
CO2: 222 g/km
Range: 950 km
Warranty/Service: 4y 120K/ up to 8y 200K km
LIST PRICE: R1.12M
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