Ranger XL Tradie puts Ford ute to work
FORD has added yet another special edition to its bulging Ranger ute line-up, this time at the lower end of the range with the XL Tradie double cab 4x4 that carries driveaway pricing of $47,990, despite its $52,190 recommended retail price.
Living up to its nameplate, the XL Tradie is aimed at Ranger customers planning to use their vehicle as the workhorse it ultimately is, sporting a range of tradie-minded upgrades over the base XL.
A genuine Ford Black nudge bar, Lumen 20.5-inch slimline LED light bar, black 16-inch alloy wheels, black side steps, bedliner and tow bar are all included in the price, saving customers from having to manually specify each item individually on an XL.
Despite the thousands of dollars worth of upgrades, the Tradie’s RRP is only $1000 more than that of a regular XL while its driveaway ticket undercuts the $48,690 retail price of a base model XL double cab 2.2 automatic by $700.
Asked about the strategy behind the pricing, Ford Australia communications director Matt Moran said the special edition was about offering “small business customers and tradies the chance to upgrade their truck to one that’s kitted out with all the gear they need”.
“We’re focused on offering special editions that reflect significant value at every series, from the fully equipped, adventure-ready Ranger Wildtrak X to Ranger Tradie, based on the workhorse XL series, meaning there’s something for all customers from a value and feature perspective,” he said.
Away from the added exterior accessories, the Tradie also adds an 8.0-inch Sync 3 infotainment screen with smartphone mirroring from higher up in the range as well as the FordPass Connect modem.
Under the bonnet resides the familiar 147kW/470Nm turbocharged 3.2-litre five-cylinder diesel mill as found in most other Ranger 4x4s, paired exclusively here with a six-speed automatic transmission.
‘Arctic White’ and ‘True Red’ make up the core colour palette, however, prestige paint is available for an extra $650 and includes ‘Meteor Grey’, ‘Aluminium Silver’, ‘Blue Lightning’ or ‘Shadow Black’.
All Ranger 4x4s, including the Tradie, come as standard with autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection, emergency brake assist, hill descent control, lane keep assist, rear parking sensors, automatic high beam, stability and traction control, roll over mitigation, traffic sign recognition and trailer sway control.
Ford Australia sold 2802 Ranger 4x4s last month, accounting for 21.1 per cent of the 4x4 pick-up market behind its arch-rival the Toyota HiLux (3090/23.3%).
2021 Ford Ranger pricing*
| Cab Chassis | ||
| XL Single 3.2L | $43,090 | |
| XL Single 3.2L (a) | $45,290 | |
| XL Super 3.2L | $45,490 | |
| XL Super 3.2L (a) | $47,790 | |
| XL Double 2.2L (a) | $47,290 | |
| XL Double 3.2L | $47,590 | |
| XL Double 3.2 (a) | $49,790 | |
| XL Special Edition Double 3.2 (a) | $49,990 | Driveaway |
| XLT Double 3.2L | $56,240 | |
| XLT Double 3.2L (a) | $58,440 | |
| XLT Double bi-turbo (a) | $59,940 | |
| Pick-up | ||
| XL Double 2.2L (a) | $48,690 | |
| XL Double 3.2L | $48,990 | |
| XL Super 3.2L (a) | $49,190 | |
| XL Double 3.2L (a) | $51,190 | |
| XL Tradie 3.2L (a) | $52,190 | $47,990 |
| XLS Double 3.2L | $50,290 | |
| XLS Double 3.2L (a) | $52,490 | |
| Sport Double 3.2L | $53,540 | |
| Sport Double 3.2L (a) | $55,740 | |
| XLT Super 3.2L (a) | $57,440 | |
| XLT Super bi-turbo (a) | $58,940 | |
| XLT Double 3.2L | $57,240 | |
| XLT Double 3.2L (a) | $59,440 | |
| XLT Double Fully Loaded 3.2L (a) | $60,740 | Driveaway |
| XLT Double bi-turbo (a) | $60,940 | |
| XLT Double Fully Loaded bi-turbo (a) | $62,240 | Driveaway |
| Wildtrak Double 3.2 | $62,090 | |
| Wildtrak Double 3.2 (a) | $64,290 | |
| Wildtrak Double bi-turbo (a) | $65,790 | |
| Wildtrak X Double 3.2L (a) | $66,490 | |
| Wildtrak X Double bi-turbo (a) | $67,990 | |
| Raptor Double bi-turbo (a) | $77,190 |
*Excludes on-road costs
