Ford’s next-generation Ranger and Everest have been awarded a five-star ANCAP rating in Australia and New Zealand continuing the legacy of the previous generation cars.
The ANCAP five-star rating applies to all Ranger and Everest models but excludes the Ranger Raptor which is not yet rated by the organisation.
Both the Next-Gen Ford Ranger and Everest achieved strong scores in adult occupant protection for frontal offset (MPDB), side impact and far-side impact tests. And both vehicles were awarded maximum (‘good’) scores for the level of child occupant protection in frontal offset and side impact collisions.
“A five-star safety rating isn’t an easy achievement, yet it is particularly important when considering the very broad range of uses for the Ranger and Everest,” ANCAP chief executive Carla Hoorweg says.
The Everest and Ranger’s advanced driver assistance systems, including Enhanced Pre-Collision Assist with Enhanced Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), lane keeping system with the ability to detect unmarked road edges, all scored highly in ANCAP tests.
“This is good news for fleets, families and tradies, as well as recreational consumers – everyone who uses these models for work and play,” Hoorweg says.
ANCAP’s current testing protocols are the strictest in the organisation’s history, making it harder to achieve a five-star rating and now include the testing of AEB performance at junctions between vehicles and passengers. Ranger and Everest’s new forward-facing wide-view camera were a key factor in helping the vehicles score highly in ANCAP’s active safety testing.
“Achieving a five-star ANCAP safety rating is great news. We know how important safety is to vehicle buyers, and we want customers to have confidence that their Ranger or Everest is watching out for them,” Ford Australia and New Zealand president and chief executive Andrew Birkic says.
To fulfill ANCAP requirements, Rangers and Everests manufactured before August 29, 2022 will require a minor Lane-Keeping System (LKS) software configuration update, which will be completed by dealers at no charge.
“As part of the development of Next-Gen Ranger and Everest, we carried out extensive crash testing in Australia, North America and Europe, covering regulatory, public domain requirements (such as NCAPs), as well as stringent corporate requirements,” Ford Ranger and Everest chief platform engineer Ian Foston says.
This testing often goes above government mandated requirements to ensure Ranger and Everest’s safety is robust.
“All of our safety teams worked tirelessly to ensure driver assist features were cutting edge and up to the standard expected of a modern vehicle buyer,” he says.