We’ve heard a lot of rumors about Ford developing a small, car-like unibody pickup truck that it might actually sell here as well as abroad. If history is any indication, the trucklet could use the “Courier” name and ride Ford’s wave of new truck and SUV launches in the coming years. A fresh new Automotive News report adds a few details to that story line and includes the company’s thinking behind where the little truck would slot following a meeting in which company execs showed the new vehicle to dealers.
Automotive News (subscription required) reports that the compact truck will be priced under $20,000 and is code-named P758. It will take an entry-level slot in the lineup alongside the tiny EcoSport subcompact crossover. With the death of the Focus and Fiesta car lines at the bottom of Ford’s model hierarchy, the Blue Oval and its dealers are understandably eager to offer at least some kind of low-cost vehicle to draw in new and younger buyers.
That all is more detail on this vehicle than we had previously, although we must reiterate that the small Ford pickup has been a poorly kept secret for a while. Ford’s rapidly changing model plans—remember the Subaru Crosstrek-style Ford Focus Active? Oh, you’ve already forgotten!—have kept the P758’s positioning in flux. But, if you consider the company’s international footprint, things start to come into focus (no pun intended). In other markets, Ford has sold a Fiesta-based unibody pickup and van called the Courier, a historic name that was once attached to a badge-engineered Mazda pickup sold in the U.S. in the 1970s while the original Ranger was under development.
That Fiesta-based Courier went out of production in 2013, but still today there are plenty of markets where little vans and delivery trucks are very popular. Back in 2018, we reported that what we now know as P758 was in development to replace the Brazilian-built Courier. It’d be larger than the previous vehicle, which was tiny, so that bodes well for both European and especially American markets. In fact, it’d be Focus based, which seems like the right platform to choose for a trucklet that’ll slot below the new Ranger. Besides, the Transit Connect work van was originally spun off the Focus platform, and therefore might offer a decent starting point for the truck.
So, how much cheaper would a P758 be than the Ranger? Automotive News says that Ford is aiming to price the P758 $5,000 under the Ranger, which currently starts at around $25,000. The small pickup would be built in Mexico, and annual production volume could be as high as 100,000 units. Despite the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal’s stricter requirements for North American–sourced component contents, the Ford trucklet will almost certainly still avoid the so-called Chicken Tax tariffs that hobble low-cost truck imports from outside the trade zone.
The only question we have is how Ford will market and style the thing. Will Ford will apply the Bronco Sport branding or styling elements to the trucklet and bring back the Courier name to this market, or perhaps it will dredge up the awesome Ranchero name from the company’s past? Automotive News’ dealer sources couldn’t shed much light on the subject other than noting the vehicle carries a vague resemblance to the original Ranger. Given the steady drip of leaks about upcoming Bronco and Bronco Sport, we shouldn’t have too long to wait for more.
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Source: WORLD NEWS
