Ford Gives Ranger an Engine Upgrade

We’d expect more power pushing less weight to make the 2024 Ford Ranger equipped with a 2.7L EcoBoost V-6 into a strong performer, but we’re happy to report it doesn’t create a hyperactive, overpowered beast. Save that for the Ranger Raptor.

Instead, the 2.7L twin-turbo, shared with the F-150 pickup and Bronco SUV, provides a smooth, powerful response without any theatrics in the 4,415-lb. (2,048-kg) midsize pickup. The 10-speed automatic transmission is quick to respond and in general the powertrain produces few surprises.

That’s also to be expected, considering the engine has already won over legions of F-150 buyers who gave up big V-8s for the smaller-displacement, more fuel-efficient V-6. It’s been a fixture in F-150s, and then Broncos, since winning a Wards 10 Best Engines & Propulsion Systems trophy way back in 2018. Back then, it was the top-selling engine in the F-150 but has since been supplanted by the 3.5L EcoBoost V-6, Ford says.

The Ranger gets the 2.7L, producing 315 hp and 400 lb.-ft. (542 Nm) of torque, as a $2,195 upgrade over the standard 2.3L turbo 4-cyl. making 270 hp and 310 lb.-ft. (420 Nm). Output for the 2.7L is down by 10 hp compared with the F-150 application, primarily due to differences in packaging in the smaller truck that restrict intake and exhaust flow, a Ford spokesperson says.

Ford doesn’t hide 2.7L turbo under plastic cover.

Our SuperCrew 4x4 Lariat model, with options including a 3.73 locking differential, towing package and spray-in bed liner, stickered at $53,070 with $1,595 in destination and delivery charges.

In our weekend test, we found the Ranger’s optional engine was a powerful but refined tool, whether getting up to speed from launch without unexpected tip-in or providing extra punch at speed without running out of breath. As we’ve observed in the F-150, the fuel-saving stop/start system operation is nearly unnoticeable.

We recorded 21 mpg (11.2 L/100 km) in city and highway driving, beating the truck’s EPA-estimated combined rating of 20 mpg (11.8 L/100 km). The truck is rated at 19/23 mpg (12.4-10.2 L/100 km) city/highway. The uprated engine’s combined fuel economy is 2 mpg (.87 km/L) less than the 2.3L, according to the EPA. The engine produces the same combined rating in the approximately 500-lb. (227-kg) heavier F-150.

The truck’s cabin was well-insulated from road and wind noise, except for the occasional ping of stones popping off tires and rattling into the rear wheel wells. The interior was nicely upholstered in Sandstone leather-trim seats and equipped with a small-ish-by-today’s-standards 12-in. (30-cm) center touchscreen, but that was ample. Simple, functional knobs and switches controlled the HVAC.

With just 32,000 sales in 2023, the Ranger represents a small percentage of Ford’s truck portfolio, which is dominated by the nearly 700,000 F-150s and just under 95,000 Mavericks sold last year, according to Wards Intelligence data. Ranger sales are up this year, already surpassing all of 2023 through just 10 months of 2024.

Ford expects a 10%-15% take rate for the new engine, so we expect Ranger’s sales to continue ramping up – with more power under the hood.

Functional 12-in. screen and simple knobs manage systems.