What Van? Britain's biggest and best van buyers' guide

With an all-new Ford Ranger on the way very soon, the Blue Oval has presented two final editions to see out the current-generation model. Alongside the sporty Stormtrak, which we reviewed last month, comes the variant seen here, the Wolftrak. Taking its base from the XLT trim level in the regular Ranger line-up, the Wolftrak features a number of upgrades, chiefly designed to boost its capabilities as a go-anywhere off-road vehicle.

Perhaps the most immediately obvious features of the Wolftrak are its chunky all-terrain tyres. Paired with 17in matt black alloy wheels, as well as increasing off-road driving ability, these add a great deal of on-road presence and visual appeal, augmenting other styling elements also finished in matt black, including the long-legged sports bar which sits above the load bay, as well as the door mirror caps, radiator grille, door and tailgate handles, and rear bumper step, while conspicuous Wolftrak decals also feature. Perhaps of more practical use, the load bed features a spray-in liner designed to help protect it from scuffs and scratches, and also help prevent items from sliding around. In view of the model’s off-roader focus, those big tyres are also joined by an electronically locking rear differential to further boost its all-terrain abilities – four-wheel drive of course already being standard across the Ranger line-up.

Interior features, aside from more Wolftrak labelling, include robust-feeling front and rear all-weather floor mats, which ensure carpet protection should the truck’s occupants need to step outside in a muddy location. Convenience features include heated front seats, and dual zone automatic air conditioning, although a slight annoyance is that this is operated via up/down buttons, which are a bit small and harder to find while driving compared with a knob. Infotainment is well covered by Ford’s Sync 3 system, including sat-nav and Apple Carplay and Android Auto connectivity, running on an 8in touchscreen. As for the instrument cluster, this has a central speedometer flanked by two digital displays, which works well enough, except it seems a bit strange to not have a dedicated rev counter with a manual vehicle, this being only one of the available options with the right-hand display.

In keeping with the model’s rough-and-ready appearance, there is still a hard-wearing, utilitarian quality to most of the Wolftrak’s cabin materials, although you do get some leather on the doors and steering wheel. The latter item has a nice chunky feel to it, as do the indicator stalks, which adds reassurance when driving along. 

Unlike the Stormtrak, which gets the 213hp diesel engine that tops the Ranger range, the Wolftrak has to settle for the lesser 170hp unit, but this still offers decent performance, although you do get a bit of a droning engine note at motorway speeds. The Wolftrak is available with ten speed automatic transmission, but our test vehicle came with the standard six-speed manual, which is easy enough to use.

The truck’s underlying ride quality is reasonably firm, but those big off-road tyres do add a layer of extra cushioning and comfort when traversing road surface imperfections. On the other hand, those tyres do mean a little of the crispness we normally associate with the Ranger’s steering is lost, but it’s still an impressive system overall, allowing the Wolftrak to be placed precisely on the road. As a further aid to manoeuvrability, the Wolftrak also benefits from rear parking sensors.

One other thing that is worth noting, in these times of seemingly ever-increasing fuel prices, is that big chunky off-road tyres are not necessarily good for fuel economy, with the Wolftrak’s 33.6mpg official figure a bit worse than its equivalents with the same engine in the regular Ranger line-up, as indeed is a 220g/km CO2 emissions figure.

Ford Ranger Wolftrak 2.0L EcoBlue 6 Speed Manual

Price (ex VAT) £29,841