From our first encounter with the Ranger on the slopes of Mt. Pinatubo—through deep lahar, steep embankments, and river crossings—we’ve recognized that the Ranger can take you to the abyss and back with confidence. That go-anywhere attitude has always been a Ranger trademark, and the new model is set to continue the tradition. For this part of the test, we switched to the 4x4 variant.

Top Gear’s resident 4x4 expert Beeboy Bargas constructed a special off-road course to highlight the Ranger’s abilities. The track looked challenging to say the least, but the Ranger made easy work of it. The truck didn’t so much as survive the course as beat it into submission.

Rough gravel followed by a low climb started the sequence. Next was a side-sloping muddy trail. Despite the uneven traction, with its right wheels plowing through mud and its left wheels on firmer gravel, the pickup crawled through it confidently in four-wheel drive High. Then a path paved with wheel-sized boulders bounced the passengers around, with their seatbelts clicking on and off like castanets. The truck moved steadily forward without much fuss.

Next was an enormous 45-degree incline paved with slippery mud. For that, we engaged the low-range transfer case. Foot off the pedal, the Ranger climbed up the slope practically on engine idle. The descent was at a perpendicular angle, so we had to twist the Ranger around a very narrow plateau. Its maneuverability proved useful here; a wider-turning vehicle would have barrel-rolled down the slope.

The piece de resistance was comprised of three water obstacles, each one submerging the pickup in 600 mm of Batangas’ muddiest. Throughout, the Ranger seemed hewn out of a solid block of metal, none the worse for wear after repeated floggings at the course.

The Ranger 4x4 is propelled by a class-leading 3.0-liter engine. 156 hp and a massive 380 Nm available at just 1800 rpm allow it to power its way out of the stickiest terrain. The limited-slip rear differential, reportedly the tightest in the market, gave the truck superior traction. The manual gearbox was ideal for off-roading, but there’s an optional five-speed automatic. One indication of the Ranger 4x4’s dedication is the position of the transfer-case lever. It sits just at the driver’s right knee, ready to be engaged without the driver leaning forward or having to grope around for it.

On the Track

This is the part that gave us some serious pause. We knew we weren’t at the Batangas Racing Circuit just to play among the cows, but we were still surprised when the pickup started hurtling down the track. Deep mud may be the Ranger’s natural habitat, but a high-speed race course? Formula 3 team owner and race driver Pepon Marave showed us the lines around BRC then let us have our turn thrashing the 4x2 Trekker.

This part of the morning was the greatest revelation. The truck’s handling was predictable and linear even through the track’s hairpins. It remained obedient even at the limit of adhesion. The recirculating-ball steering may have been optimized for off-road work, but it was sufficiently precise for the tarmac.        

The brakes, equipped with four-wheel ABS and EBD, were the most significant asset here, allowing braking deep into the corners. We never thought that we’d be confident drifting a pickup on a racetrack, but the Ranger pulled it off nicely.

As befits its character, the new Ranger doesn’t look like a spaceship or a suppository; it’s clearly designed as a tough, practical workhorse. The cabin is comfortable, but the load bed size has not been sacrificed for it. The best drivetrain in the market can pull and haul well above its class. New Ranger picks up properly from the original, offering attractive farmboy looks that disguise superhero performance.

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