Ford Australia teases Ranger Super Duty scaling Melbourne's Rocky Track

It seems the news of Ford Australia’s Super Duty Ranger model has sparked the interest of the aftermarket which has up until now been doing a roaring trade of upgrading 4x4s with GVM upgrades to increase load capacity.

Ford announced last week that it has been working on the Ranger SD and will introduce it to market as a 2026 model with capacities of 4500kg GVM, 4500kg towing, and a 8000kg GCM.

While initially born of the demands of industries such as fire services, forestry, national parks and other that require a go-anywhere 4x4 with heavy weight capacity, the Ranger SD will also have strong appeal in the touring and off road segment particularly for those wanting to tow heavy trailers.

We’re expecting a long slow drip-feed of information and teasers on the Ranger SD to dribble out over the coming year and the latest is this image on the SD’s steel, 18-inch, 8 lug wheel and 33-inch tyre which is similar to what you will find on commercial variants of the Ford F-250.

The teaser video shows a vehicle driving up Rocky Track in Toolangi State Forest in Melbourne, a track that is challenging and well known with local 4-wheel drivers. It’s a given that the local Ford team will be out and about testing the Ranger SD over terrain like this and in many other conditions as well and testing and development at the company’s You Yangs testing facility near Geelong.

If the Ranger Super Duty delivers on its promises it will offer a factory-built mid-size 4x4 ute with heavy duty capability off the showroom floor, negating the need for owners to look to the aftermarket and Second Stage Manufacturers (SSM) for upgrades.

Up until now this type of vehicle has been the domain of the Land Cruiser 79 Series and Mercedes Benz G-Professional cab-chassis with regular Rangers and Hiluxes modified to do lighter duties. Even the mighty LC79 and G-Professional are subject to extensive modifications for both capacity and safety for such work by the industries noted above.

The Mercedes has been plagued with problems when used for such work with many departments complaining of faults that keep vehicles off the road while being repaired and, with questions being asked about the long-term future of the Toyota 70 series, the new product from Ford Australia could find itself perfectly positioned to make its mark.

We’re sure that Ford will keep up fed with a steady flow of information in the months before we see an actual Ranger Super Duty.