Review: Ford Ranger gets Walkinshaw Performance treatment, just don’t call it a Raptor

What is it:

This is a special edition of the Ford Ranger developed by Walkinshaw Performance and the Walkinshaw Andretti United (WAU) race team. Just 25 will be built. And we’ve driven it.

It was designed to appeal to customers who like the Ford Ranger Raptor look and off-road clearance – but who want a TDV6 under the bonnet and 3.5 tonne towing (the Raptor is rated to 2.5 tonne towing).

This is not a factory-backed Ford program, however the engineers who developed it have a deep understanding of factory requirements.

The brains behind Walkinshaw Performance developed their know-how at Holden Special Vehicles and the Holden Racing Team, but the motorsport division has since switched to racing Ford Mustangs in V8 Supercars.

Hence the link to Ford.

We also suspect Walkinshaw engineers wanted to get their head around the new Ranger platform because it will form the basis of the next VW Amarok W Series editions.

While they are yet to be confirmed (and Walkinshaw aint talking) Volkswagen Australia has previously expressed an interest in a successor to the original VW Amarok W580.

Meanwhile, the engineers at Walkinshaw put a spanner on the new Ford Ranger to see how far they could take the concept in their own direction – while keeping it legal and without pushing the limits of the chassis.

Price:

This is a BYO vehicle arrangement.

That is, bring your own Ford Ranger Wildtrak, plus $14,490 for the complete Walkinshaw kit as you see it here: suspension, wheels, tyres, fender flares, roof lights (must be covered when on-road, when mounted on the roof they are for off-road use only in most jurisdictions).

Walkinshaw would prefer to base the limited edition on a Wildtrak with the optional $2000 Premium Pack, which already has the auxiliary switch panel to make it easier to add accessories such as the roof lights (as well as Matrix headlights and B&O audio).

The Ford Australia website says a TDV6 Ford Ranger Wildtrak with Premium Pack costs about $84,000 drive-away, while the twin-turbo 2.0-litre four-cylinder Ford Ranger Wildtrak with Premium Pack costs about $78,500 drive-away.

That would take the price of the complete package from $93,000 (four-cylinder) to $98,500 (TDV6).

ANCAP safety rating:

The new generation Ford Ranger has a five-star safety rating from 2022. However it is unclear what impacts – if any – the taller driving stance has on the safety systems (it’s two inches higher than standard).

Walkinshaw has adjusted the headlights so they don’t dazzle oncoming cars, the speedometer has been recalibrated so it has the same accuracy (and leeway) as standard, and the radar cruise control worked normally when we tested it.

Engine:

Under the bonnet is the same 3.0-litre TDV6 as the regular Ford Ranger Wildtrak. It is too expensive to retune the engine to find a bit of extra grunt.

The cost of a new emissions testing program (about $1 million in round numbers) to find a few kilowatts and a few newton-metres was deemed to be cost prohibitive for such a limited run of vehicles.

So despite the wild looks and the race team links it has the same output as standard (184kW/600Nm).

That said, it is already perky enough and is at the pointy end of the diesel double-cab ute class (previous testing has shown a 0 to 100kmh time of about 8.5 seconds, versus 10 to 11 seconds for most four-cylinder diesel double-cab utes).

Transmission:

The 10-speed automatic is standard. Walkinshaw deliberately didn’t lift the Ranger suspension too high because it wanted to make sure the driveshafts stay in place.

Some guys take things too far – by lifting the vehicle way too high – and end up popping a driveshaft or axle out of its socket.

0 to 100km/h (as tested):

We didn’t VBox test this one, but previous experience has shown us wide, chunky off-road tyres with a larger rolling radius than standard (these are 285/70/17) tend to blunt acceleration because there is more mass to move (like spinning a Ferris Wheel rather than a Yoyo).

The Ford Ranger Raptor also runs 285/70/17 rubber, but it has a twin turbo V6 petrol engine under the bonnet, which is why it can do 0 to 100kmh in 6.0 to 6.1 seconds (in our testing).

Good points:

This thing looks the business and the craftsmanship and engineering work is evident here.

The front and rear suspension are completely new.

New front shocks and springs, new rear shocks and rear leaf springs.

The shocks are by Bilstein and were specifically tuned for Walkinshaw (Bilstein even sent engineers to Walkinshaw for the final calibration).

The list of upgrades includes:

• Machined alloy wheels (17 x 8.5 inch)
• Walkinshaw branded centre cap
• 285/70/17 all-terrain tyre
• Fender flare kit with integrated parking sensors
• Six 
Baja-styleintegrated roof lights
• WAU tuned 2-inch lift Bilstein shock absorbers
• New front coil spring and spring rate.
• New upper control arms to optimise front suspension geometry.
• Front drop links
• 0 to 150kg rear 2-inch lift leaf spring
• Rear leaf bush and shackle kit.
• Rear tail shaft realignment.
• Unique WAU decal kit.
• Walkinshaw Performance tail gate badging.
• Numbers 1 to 25 build plate on the centre console
• Walkinshaw Performance gift pack including 
two tickets to local V8 Supercars event with garage tour and two signed caps.
• Warranty on WAU enhancements is three years or the balance of the new-car warranty up to 12 months outside of the new car warranty.

Bad points:

The suspension is smooth most of the time and feels luxurious at freeway speeds but can be a bit busy at low speeds.

This is the compromise for heavy-duty off-road suspension.

Otherwise, the vehicle feels very polished.

What the haters say:

Why do you need a ute that high mate?

What the haters don’t understand:

We agree. No-one really needs a ute that high.

But if you must, you’re way better off going with a kit that has been engineered to road legal standards and car company engineering standards.

Should you buy one?

I would never get a backyard, aftermarket chop-shop to modify a vehicle.

Why undo the hundreds of millions of dollars that Ford spent developing the Ranger platform?

Who knows what you’re doing to the vehicle’s safety systems and what the changes will do to the overall durability?

But the WAU Ford Ranger Wildtrak bridges the gap nicely between a showroom standard vehicle (which already has epic off-road ability) and a ute that is off its guts.

The WAU Ford Ranger Wildtrak delivers more off-road capability without going too far and snapping a hamstring.

If I was to modify a ute, this is as far as I would go.

And these guys would be the only guys I trust, given their extensive experience back in the Holden Special Vehicles days, and then with the HSV Colorado and VW Amarok W580.

Also consider:

Ford Ranger Tremor, Ford Ranger Raptor.