2026 Ford Ranger Wildtrak V6 review

Our Verdict

The Ranger Wildtrak V6 is the ute you buy when you want one vehicle to do school runs, tow the van and still feel like a treat on a Saturday morning. Nothing else in the segment drives with this much polish, and the V6 makes every other engine here feel like a compromise.

The catch is sitting in the same showroom. Ford's plug-in hybrid Wildtrak has the same kit, the same towing number and is cheaper, which makes the diesel's price look like a loyalty tax.

What does the Ranger Wildtrak V6 cost in Australia?

The MY26.5 Ranger Wildtrak V6 costs $75,090 before on-road costs. That puts it just under $6,000 below the Platinum but well above the increasingly crowded middle of the dual-cab market.

For MY26.5, the V6 is standard fitment here, along with Matrix LED headlamps and the Bang and Olufsen stereo that used to cost extra.

View Ranger driveaway pricing and specifications →

There is plenty included for the money. A power roller shutter can easily cost $1500 to $3000 aftermarket, and the Wildtrak also comes with a 360-degree camera, tyre pressure monitoring, Pro Trailer Backup Assist, a towbar with an integrated brake controller and a 400W outlet in the tub.

That equipment goes some way towards explaining the price.

The problem is that the Wildtrak Hybrid carries the same gear and a driveaway price that lands close to $10,000 under the diesel once registration and stamp duty are done.

What does the Ranger Wildtrak V6 look like?

Ford hasn't touched much, which is the correct call for a shape that has been outselling everything in the country for years.

The MY26.5 changes amount to a darker honeycomb grille treatment, fresh nostril accents and Ignite Orange as the new hero colour.

It still looks good in the metal. The black 18-inch wheels, floating sports bar and darker Wildtrak badging give it enough attitude without looking overdone.

The Matrix LED headlights are also excellent. Their adaptive high-beam works particularly well on dark country roads, and lighting this good is still uncommon in a dual-cab ute.

Four years into this generation and nothing has come along to change our view: the Wildtrak is the best looking ute in the segment.

What is the Ranger Wildtrak V6 like inside?

The Wildtrak feels more like an SUV inside than most dual-cabs. The leather-accented sports seats are supportive, the driver gets eight-way power adjustment and heating, and there is plenty of usable storage across the dash and centre console.

The 12-inch portrait touchscreen running SYNC 4A remains one of the better systems in any vehicle at this money, ute or otherwise. Wireless CarPlay connects quickly, the climate controls stay pinned to the bottom of the screen, and there are still physical knobs for volume and temperature.

One genuine gripe. The V6 Wildtrak keeps an 8-inch digital instrument cluster while the MY26.5 Hybrid Wildtrak now gets a 12.4-inch unit, which is a strange place for Ford to save money.

Fit and finish is solid rather than plush. Hard plastics still appear low on the doors and around the transmission tunnel, but everything is screwed together tightly and the switchgear feels like it will survive a decade of muddy fingers.

How practical is the Ranger Wildtrak V6?

The tub measures 1464mm long and 1520mm wide, with enough width between the wheel arches to take a standard Australian pallet. Payload is 923kg, which is respectable for a well-equipped dual-cab but short of a tonne.

Towing capacity is 3500kg braked, with a 3350kg GVM and 6400kg GCM. That last figure matters. With a trailer loaded to its full 3500kg ATM, the GCM leaves just 473kg beyond the Ranger's 2427kg kerb weight for passengers, luggage and accessories. Towball download also counts against the vehicle's payload and GVM, so a family, some touring gear and a heavily loaded caravan can eat through those limits very quickly.

The back seat is fine for adults on a two-hour run and excellent for kids, with rear air vents and a flat floor. The bench is upright and the base is short on under-thigh support, which is the one area where a proper seven-seat SUV still wins.

There are ISOFIX and top-tether points on both outer rear seats, but no top-tether point in the centre, so Ford says not to install a child seat there.

Storage is genuinely thoughtful. Deep door bins, a cavernous centre console, wireless charging that actually holds a phone on corrugations, and a tailgate with a lift-assist ram and moulded cupholders for when the tub becomes a bench seat.

The tub is equally well thought out, with an integrated rear access step, adjustable tie-down cleats, a power roller shutter and the 400W outlet.

What is the Ranger Wildtrak V6 like to drive?

The V6 is the reason people spend the money and it still delivers.

The 3.0-litre turbo-diesel makes 184kW and 600Nm, sent through a 10-speed automatic and full-time 4WD.

Peak torque arrives from 1750rpm and the V6 feels strong almost everywhere. Put your foot down and it responds quickly without needing to rev hard.

The 10-speed automatic suits it well too. Around town it changes gears smoothly and on hills it rarely leaves you waiting for the right ratio.

The steering is another strength. It is light enough around town without feeling vague, and the Ranger is easier to place on a narrow road than its size suggests.

The ride is still firm when the tray is empty, particularly over sharp bumps and speed humps. Put some weight in the back and it settles noticeably.

Wind noise at highway speed is the only other niggle worth flagging, and even that is better than most of the segment.

Off-road, the full-time 4WD system with a locking rear diff, 234mm of ground clearance and 800mm of wading depth covers everything short of serious rock work. The all-terrain tyres and six drive modes mean most owners will run out of nerve before the Wildtrak runs out of ability.

How efficient is the Ranger Wildtrak V6?

Ford claims 8.3L/100km combined. In the real world, expect 10 to 11L/100km around town and closer to 9L/100km on a highway run, with the 80-litre tank giving you a usable 750km or so between fills.

Tow anything meaningful and you will see the mid-teens, which is the physics of a 3500kg load rather than a criticism of the engine.

Servicing runs to 12-month or 15,000km intervals, and Ford gives you two ways to pay for it.

The prepaid plan is the obvious move if you're keeping it past three years. You save $399 against the capped rate and the brake fluid change is folded in, which is the one item that usually arrives as an unwelcome extra on the Year 3 invoice.

Ford also now offers up to seven years of unlimited-kilometre warranty coverage on vehicles delivered from 1 September 2026, provided all scheduled servicing is completed through an authorised Ford dealer. That puts the Ranger among the stronger ownership propositions in the segment, particularly for buyers who rack up big kilometres.

Dealer servicing also renews Ford Roadside Assistance for another 12 months, up to seven years.

Is the Ranger Wildtrak V6 safe?

The Ranger holds a five-star ANCAP rating from its 2022 local testing which remains current across the range with the exception of the Raptor. Nine airbags are standard, including full-length curtains.

The Wildtrak gets the full assistance suite: intelligent adaptive cruise with stop and go, lane centring, road edge detection, autonomous emergency braking with junction assist, blind-spot monitoring with trailer coverage, a 360-degree camera and tyre pressure monitoring.

Calibration is the important part and Ford has it right. The lane-keeping system nudges rather than fights, the speed sign recognition is easy to silence, and the adaptive cruise handles a trailer without the panic braking that plagues some rivals.

What are the main competitors to the Ranger Wildtrak V6?

The Ford Ranger Wildtrak Hybrid is the rival that should worry Ford most. It's cheaper, it has the same towing capacity, the same roller shutter and stereo, a bigger instrument cluster, 6.9kW Pro Power Onboard with two 3.45kW tub outlets and around 49km of electric range. Treat it as a torquey ute with a useful commuting trick rather than an EV and it is the smarter buy.

The Toyota HiLux has finally addressed its ride quality with comfort-biased suspension from SR5 up, and the dealer network and resale story remain unmatched. It still cannot match the Ranger's cabin, its screen or its V6, but for high-kilometre regional buyers the argument is not purely rational.

The Volkswagen Amarok shares its bones with the Ranger and offers the same V6 diesel, usually with a slightly more road-focused character and a different flavour of interior. Cross-shop it if you prefer the styling, but the Ranger's spread of grades and accessory support is deeper.

The BYD Shark 6 Premium undercuts the Ranger with huge outputs and useful electric range. Its 2500kg towing capacity still leaves daylight to the Ranger for serious towing, although the newer Shark 6 Performance lifts that figure to 3500kg. For a suburban family that tows occasionally, the value equation is hard to ignore.

The Kia Tasman is also worth a look. It is well priced, has a roomy rear seat and comes with a strong warranty. The looks divide people and it cannot match the Ranger's road manners, but it gives you plenty for the money.

Should I buy the Ranger Wildtrak V6?

Yes, but only if the V6 matters to you. There is no other engine in this segment that turns a work vehicle into something you actively enjoy driving and the Wildtrak wraps it in enough equipment that you never feel like you compromised to get a tray.

The Ranger is still the dual-cab everyone else is chasing. It steers well, rides better than most of its rivals and the Wildtrak has enough equipment inside to justify stepping up from the cheaper grades.

The decision really comes down to how you will use it. If you tow regularly, cover big distances or spend a lot of time outside the city, the V6 diesel still makes sense.

If most of your driving is school runs and commuting with the occasional weekend away, the Hybrid is harder to overlook.

That's the strange position Ford has engineered for itself. The best ute in Australia has been undercut by the best ute in Australia.