‘Bantam successor’ loading? Ford boss confirms new ‘junior’ Ranger in 2027

Still unknown newcomer will only be sold outside the United States and have no relations to the Maverick or the incoming all-electric Fathom. Ford’s CEO has reportedly confirmed that the long-rumoured small bakkie positioned below the Ranger will become a reality next year for markets outside North America. ‘Smaller’ Maverick While exact details are still unknown, the newcomer is expected to differ from the Maverick that currently sits below the Ranger in the Blue Oval’s North and South American line-ups. As well as the Maverick, it also won’t be related to the incoming Fathom, Ford’s new all-electric small bakkie that will also debut next year in the States, priced from a reported $30 000 (R491 180). In confirming the new arrival, Ford boss Jim Farley was quoted as saying, “Next year, we will be launching our affordable midsize pickup for international markets”. The incoming new model will be smaller than the Maverick that opens Ford’s bakkie line-up in the United States. Picture: Ford According to motor1.com, the announcement was made in the company’s third quarter earnings report at the end of October, in which its revenue dropped by two percent and global vehicle sales by 6.6% to 509 764. Declining to provide any further details, Farley stated, “We expect the base material cost for this truck to be 20% lower than today’s Ranger”. “Just as Maverick has done in the US, this truck is designed to bring new customers into the Ford truck lineup internationally at a cost structure that allows us to compete – in this case with the Chinese”. ‘New Bantam’ Back in 2021, Ford’s then Chief Product Platform and Operations Officer, Hau Thai-Tang, hinted at the arrival of a sub-Maverick model of which nothing subsequently emerged. Ford concluded production of the Bantam in 2013. Picture: Ford “What are we good at? Trucks. What do we need? An affordable, entry vehicle to bring first-time buyers into the showroom,” Tang said. An announcement made months after the Maverick’s US market debut, the rumoured new small bakkie was subsequently dubbed the likeliest successor to the locally made and developed Bantam that ended production in 2013. Stay tuned As it stands, no further details are, however, known and will only become apparent in the new year.