Ford Isn't Bringing The Ranger PHEV Or Super Duty To The U.S. Because It Doesn't Think We Need Them

If you were one of the few people in the U.S. still holding out hope of buying a Ford Ranger Super Duty or plug-in hybrid, well, I've got some bad news for you. The Blue Oval has confirmed that neither of these variants of the mid-size pickup truck will make it to our shores. If this sounds a bit like déjà vu, it's because we told you the PHEV wasn't coming all the way back in 2023. However, as the demand for electric vehicles has cooled in the U.S., there has been some renewed hope that the plug-in hybrid would come to our market.

While it would be neat for Ford to bring over the Ranger plug-in hybrid, the automaker says there's really no need for it with the way its U.S. lineup is constructed. It says traditional hybrids in the Maverick and F-150, as well as the all-electric F-150 Lightning, offer a suitable alternative for folks who would otherwise be interested in the Ranger PHEV, according to Car And Driver.

I suppose I can understand the reasoning, but it is a bit of a shame. The Ranger PHEV is a neat little piece of equipment with its turbocharged 2.3-liter EcoBoost inline-four, a 75 kW electric motor and 11.8 kWh battery. All in all, the system puts out 275 horsepower and 514 pound-feet of torque, and the battery gives the small-ish truck enough juice to travel about 27 miles on the WLTP cycle.

It's the same issue of lineup overlap when it comes to bringing the Ranger Super Duty to the United States. Ford explained its reasoning to C And D, saying that the half-ton F-150 and F-Series Heavy Duty already do enough to offer customers the capable work trucks they're after. To be fair, it was always highly unlikely the Ranger Super Duty would come to our shores. After all, you can't have anything challenging the F-Series crown, but there was some speculation after a pre-production model was spotted being tested in Michigan. Alas, it seems that it was just your run-of-the-mill home-base test and nothing more.

The Super Duty is one badass piece of kit, too. It comes with a turbodiesel 3.0-liter V6, putting out 247 hp and 443 lb-ft of torque, which is capable of towing nearly 10,000 pounds, which is wild for a mid-size pickup. It's also fitted with 33-inch General Grabber all-terrain tires, a snorkel, eight-lug wheel hubs and a frame-mounted heavy-duty steel front bumper.

It does make sense why Ford would trot out so many different variants of a vehicle and then not bother to sell them in its biggest market. U.S. customers have four different Ford trucks to pick from (with numerous powertrains and configurations), while many other international markets fly with just the Ranger, according to Car and Driver. It also just so happens to be the best-selling truck in 21 out of the 180 markets where it's sold, so it makes good business sense for Ford to extend the model range as far as it can to scoop up as many buyers as possible.

Still, it's a damn shame we aren't getting the Ranger Super Duty or Ranger PHEV in the U.S. I'm sure they wouldn't have sold particularly well here, but as a proud member of the Land of the Free, I believe in having as many choices as possible.