2025 Ford Ranger 4×4 Review

Last year, Ford did a complete redesign of the Ranger. It stretched both the wheelbase and track a couple of inches, beefed up the frame, and improved the suspension by setting the rear shocks outboard, all the while retaining its ability to tow up to 7,500 pounds. It also upgraded the interior with new seats, better materials, and improved storage capacity.

Ford’s Product Development Center in Australia led the next-gen Ranger project. Its international team of dedicated designers and engineers worked with teams around the globe to incorporate the latest Ford technology, capability, and safety, and engineer and test the Ranger to Ford’s toughest standards.

“Our team was focused on one goal — to make this Ranger the toughest and most capable we’ve ever created,” said Graham Pearson, Ranger vehicle program director. “They put it through one of the most exhaustive global testing schedules we’ve ever developed and would not rest until we were satisfied that it was Built Ford Tough.”

The 2025 version of this popular mid-sized SuperCrew 4×4 is essentially a direct carry-over from the previous year. The only real difference is Ford discontinued some paint colors, replacing them with new hues along with offering a black appearance option.

In short: The 2025 Ford Ranger offers impressive power, electronics, driver aids, towing, and off-road capability. It, however, needs a suspension upgrade, and could use more passenger room along with better fuel economy.

2025 Ford Ranger Lariat 4×4 Review

The Ranger doesn’t drive like a pickup. It’s more akin to being in a light, sporty car that sits up high. It feels very nimble from behind the wheel — responsive and agile, not heavy and cumbersome like a full-size pickup.

And the short-throw, palm-sized E-shifter that comes on the Lariat 4×4, with side toggle buttons for manual shift and other features, gives the sense of using a mouse instead of a traditional shift lever.

“The new short-throw e-shifter is central to the layout and is another example of where customers really guided our decision making,” Tran said. “Customers overwhelmingly liked the e-shifter — they liked the fact that it looked higher-tech and that it was intuitive to use.”

Indeed, it is. I love how the 10-speed automatic always seems to keep the EcoBoost in the perfect rpm range for whatever the driving situation is, be it cruising down the highway, working one’s way in and out of heavy city traffic, or driving along some backcountry gravel road winding through the mountains. A light press on the throttle, and the transmission responds instantly to provide the torque and horsepower needed for that moment. 

A touch of the button on the E-shifter and you can lock in whatever gear you need for the terrain or driving situation at hand. Another cool feature of the Ford E-shifter is that if you push the button to turn the truck off and it’s still in driving mode, the E-shifter automatically ratchets into the “Park” position — a smart safety feature.

Engine

One of the nice features of the 4×4 Ranger XLT and Lariat is that you can order either model with the optional 315 horsepower, twin-turbocharged, 24-valve 2.7L EcoBoost V-6, a $2,195 option. This motor instantly brings a lot of muscle when it comes to towing, off-roading, and passing slower traffic.

This makes the Ranger unique among its mid-size competitors, as none offer a turbo’d V-6, nor do their numbers come close to the horsepower and torque this little sleeper makes.

The great aspect of having the 2.7L EcoBoost V-6 under the hood is that you get the sub-6-second acceleration performance with only a drop in fuel economy of only 1 mpg over the base 2.3L four-banger, according to the EPA numbers.

The best mileage I saw driving mostly open highways along the Oregon Coast was 22 mpg, with a combined average of city/highway/off-pavement use coming in at 19.6 mpg, logging nearly 300 miles on- and off-pavement.

Touchscreen Center Stack

The most obvious focus when sliding into the new Ford Ranger Lariat 4×4 is the massive center display screen loaded with Ford’s SYNC 4A system that provides voice recognition, navigation, entertainment, over-the-air updates, and connectivity for Ford vehicles. The foot-tall touchscreen dominates the dash, and at the same time, it complements the fully digital instrument panel.

“There’s an embedded factory-fitted FordPass Connect modem, allowing connectivity on the go when linked with the FordPass app, so customers can stay connected to their world,” says Tran. “FordPass enhances the ownership experience with features like Remote Start, Vehicle Status, and remote lock and unlock functions via a mobile device.”

What takes a while to figure out is all of the functions that are now available on the touchscreen, including many of the traditional driving mode controls that have been moved from the dash and center console to their own dedicated display on the SYNC screen.

With one button press, you can go to the Ranger’s dedicated screen for all off-road and drive modes, including one to monitor the driveline, steering angle, vehicle pitch and roll angles, and other controls. If you are a data geek, this is awesome.

If you’re the typical Ranger 4×4 driver, you’ll probably check that screen out once, and then move on to more important features. These include the 360-degree camera view that makes parking a breeze in tight urban spaces, or to assist when negotiating particularly tricky terrain while out exploring. The see-all camera incorporates cameras in the front, rear, and side mirrors to give a clear view of what’s around the pickup.

Self-Parking & Towing Features

The Lariat’s upscale leather interior, heated steering wheel, power-adjustable front seats, and the massive 12-inch-deep center touchscreen add an air of luxury to the interior. The connectivity between Ford’s infotainment system and my wife’s and my iPhones was super-easy.

The wireless charger for our mobile devices in the center console was convenient, as were the camera views that popped up on the big center console screen for the various driving situations we encountered around town and off-pavement.

I’ve been reluctant to take advantage of letting the vehicles I test drive back themselves into tight parking spaces for fear of something going amiss. Dents and dings are no-nos.

But this time, I relaxed and let the Ford Ranger’s sophisticated computer system do its thing — and parallel park itself when we stopped for lunch in a busy riverfront district near my home in Newport, Ore. It was amazing how well Active Park Assist 2.0 handled the task.

I didn’t get the opportunity on this drive to do any trailer towing. However, for those who are a little squeamish about towing and backing up trailers, let me allay any fears: Ford has you covered in the new Ranger.

I’m confident that when you press the little trailer symbol in the center of the E-shifter knob, the Pro Trailer Backup Assist and Trailer Reverse Guidance, which uses cameras to show angles and monitor conditions surrounding the truck, will do a superb job of directing you to make the perfect moves first time out.

Ranger Sized Right

I’ve driven mid-size pickups like the Ranger for years and find them convenient when it comes to fitting into the typical two-car garage found in most of today’s residential homes. They are also a good pickup option for singles or couples who need the versatility of having an open cargo bed and the ability to tow a medium-sized boat, multi-ATV, or smaller travel trailer with ease.

Slipping behind the wheel of the 2025 Ford Ranger Lariat 4×4 brings all of that into play. With a 7,500-pound tow rating, it can easily tow any of the popular teardrop and off-road trailers, 18-foot fishing and ski boats, two-horse trailers, or any of the smaller camping trailers on the market.

The space between the wheel wells is more than 4 feet, so you can drive in a typical ATV without going over the inner fenders, or it’s now easy to lay flat sheets of plywood in the bed, with the 5-foot-long bed’s tailgate down.

2025 Ford Ranger 4×4 Review Conclusions

Overall, this newest generation of Ford’s Ranger Lariat 4×4 fits nicely into the lives of Millennials and older Gen Z’ers who enjoy the active outdoor lifestyle and embrace the technology that’s always been an integral aspect of their world. In the new Ranger, you are seamlessly electronically connected on all fronts. 

The 2.7L EcoBoost engine option is a must. With it, the Lariat 4×4 incorporates world-class design and engineering teethed through extensive testing in the Australian Outback. It has all the angles covered as far as build quality, styling, safety, comfort, and performance. Also, the Ranger’s 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty is one of the best in mid-size pickups.

The trade-off is that the 2025 Ford Ranger Lariat 4×4’s fuel economy is so-so, it only comes in a Crew Cab short-bed configuration, and the price for a loaded version can be slightly higher than comparative versions of the mid-size offerings from Toyota, Chevrolet, GMC, Honda, Nissan, and Jeep competitors.