2021 Ford Ranger: this is definitely it

LAST week Wheels obtained photos of what we thought was the next generation 2021 Ford Ranger.

One week later, Ford Motor Company has indirectly added fuel to the fire by sending a cease and desist letter to an American outlet which shared our story, Jalopnik.

Normally, spy shots, rumours and leaks are left-alone or downplayed by manufacturers – which makes sense. Why would a car company want to give credit to a leak of their upcoming model, especially if it is still speculation?

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While we here at Wheels HQ were confident that what we saw last week was in fact a Ford product, it had remained unconfirmed by the Blue Oval. Until now.

While there’s a slim chance it may not be the Ranger specifically, we’re happy in our deduction that what we spied will be the forthcoming Ford Ranger. The timing, suspected dimensions, and location strongly suggest it’s a Ranger, which is designed and developed in Australia.

Ford US’s legal team inadvertently confirmed that it is indeed a Blue Oval product, signalling the design language of upcoming pick-ups/dual-cab utes, by sending Jalopnik’s Editor, Patrick George a sternly worded letter:

Dear Mr. George,

We are outside counsel to Ford Motor Company (“Ford”), which asked us to contact Jalopnik and ask for its voluntary agreement to take down copyrighted images of a Ford automobile, which are displayed at the following URL:

Attached is a screenshot on which the photos have been circled. Ford did not authorize release of the photos, which Ford has strong reason to believe were released in violation of a non-disclosure agreement.

Please let me know if there is anything else that you need in order to consider this request. Ford asks Jalopnik to remove the photos as soon as possible and by no later than February 25, 2019.Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Best regards,

REDACTED | Attorney

We’ve not been contacted by Ford US nor Ford Australia about the images we shared, and subsequently won’t be taking down any photos. Wheels isn’t engaged in any non-disclosure agreement in regards to the images and although the letter may look scary, it does actually ask for “voluntary” compliance with their requests.

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Above: Current generation Ford Ranger

We look forward to official word about the next-generation Ford Ranger in due course, but that won’t stop Wheels from continuing to report on any information that we uncover.