2026 Ford Ranger Super Duty punished by robot test drivers
Ford Australia has turned to robot drivers for durability testing at the Blue Oval brand's You Yangs proving ground in Victoria, which is shielded from public view as the company develops its upcoming models and pulls apart its rivals.
The use of robotic drivers has enabled rigorous 24/7 testing of the hardcore Super Duty ahead of its scheduled arrival in Australian showrooms next year.
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'With robotic drivers behind the wheel, we can simulate years and years of punishment,' Ford said in a video clip released this week.
Ford Australia said it used robots to test the locally developed Super Duty to its full 4500kg GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass) while tackling the You Yangs facility's Silver Creek torture test.
'Silver Creek is our toughest man-made durability track,' said Ranger Super Duty program manager Justin Capicchiano in a statement.
'It stressed the Ranger Super Duty from the wheels to the roof, simulating the wear and tear you'd typically experience across a decade of driving on the world's harshest road conditions.'
A first of its kind in Australia, the Ranger Super Duty borrows its Super Duty name from the biggest and most capable F-Series pickups sold in the US, but its was conceived and is being developed in Australia.
Without the same towing capability from rivals like the Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max, the Super Duty will target buyers of the Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series by adding F-150 towing capability in a smaller package.
The Ranger Super Duty earns its name by employing a reinforced chassis, 33-inch wheels attached to eight-stud hubs, and uprated differentials, all of which help enable its 4500kg braked tow capacity (when fitted with a 70mm tow ball) – a full 1000kg above the standard Ranger's towing limit.
Full specifications and pricing are yet to be announced, but Ford has confirmed the Super Duty will be powered by the same 3.0-litre turbo-diesel V6 and 10-speed automatic transmission available in the mainstream Ranger lineup.
It has also announced the toughest Ranger yet will be released initially in eponymous Super Duty cab/chassis form across two-door single-cab and extended-cab and four-door dual-cab body styles, with more touring-focused XLT four-door pickup and cab/chassis versions to join the lineup in mid-2026.
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Sold from model years 2008 to 2009, until bankruptcy proceedings forced GM to shutter the Pontiac division, the G8 came after the Pontiac GTO. This was a rebadged Holden Monaro, sold during model years 2004 to 2006. After the G8's demise, Holden exported the WM Caprice to the US, where it was sold as the Caprice PPV for law enforcement agencies from 2011 to 2017. The VF Commodore was also exported to the US, exclusively with V8 power, as the Chevrolet SS for model years 2014 to 2017. Content originally sourced from: The Holden Commodore attracts its share of reckless hoons in Australia, and it evidently does the same in the US. Footage shared by ATL Muscle shows three examples of the Pontiac G8 – the short-lived rebadged version of the Holden VE Commodore sold in North America – at an Alabama venue called H-Town, advertised as America's biggest burnout/slide pit. While it's good to see hoons not clogging up streets, as they do with the all too common street takeovers in the US, this venue doesn't appear to enforce any safety standards. The video shows all three G8s sliding around as onlookers stand dangerously close to them. CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal. Passengers are also hanging out of the windows of all three sedans, in some cases with a leg swinging by the side of the car. One of these passengers can be seen putting too much of his body out of the car, to the point where he's hanging onto the inside of the G8 by his feet. He's also seen dropping what appears to be a camera. After another slide around the pit, he can be seen tumbling out of the car and then rolling on the ground. To add insult to injury, his pants also slid down, leaving him presumably embarrassed and a little bit bruised while sitting on the pavement in his underwear in front of a crowd of onlookers. Given he can be seen sitting up without difficulty, it appears he didn't sustain any serious injuries… except to his pride, and possibly some of the property he dropped out of the window. The Pontiac G8 was the second of four attempts by Holden to sell vehicles in the US via one of General Motors' other brands. Sold from model years 2008 to 2009, until bankruptcy proceedings forced GM to shutter the Pontiac division, the G8 came after the Pontiac GTO. This was a rebadged Holden Monaro, sold during model years 2004 to 2006. After the G8's demise, Holden exported the WM Caprice to the US, where it was sold as the Caprice PPV for law enforcement agencies from 2011 to 2017. The VF Commodore was also exported to the US, exclusively with V8 power, as the Chevrolet SS for model years 2014 to 2017. Content originally sourced from: The Holden Commodore attracts its share of reckless hoons in Australia, and it evidently does the same in the US. Footage shared by ATL Muscle shows three examples of the Pontiac G8 – the short-lived rebadged version of the Holden VE Commodore sold in North America – at an Alabama venue called H-Town, advertised as America's biggest burnout/slide pit. While it's good to see hoons not clogging up streets, as they do with the all too common street takeovers in the US, this venue doesn't appear to enforce any safety standards. The video shows all three G8s sliding around as onlookers stand dangerously close to them. CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal. Passengers are also hanging out of the windows of all three sedans, in some cases with a leg swinging by the side of the car. One of these passengers can be seen putting too much of his body out of the car, to the point where he's hanging onto the inside of the G8 by his feet. He's also seen dropping what appears to be a camera. After another slide around the pit, he can be seen tumbling out of the car and then rolling on the ground. To add insult to injury, his pants also slid down, leaving him presumably embarrassed and a little bit bruised while sitting on the pavement in his underwear in front of a crowd of onlookers. Given he can be seen sitting up without difficulty, it appears he didn't sustain any serious injuries… except to his pride, and possibly some of the property he dropped out of the window. The Pontiac G8 was the second of four attempts by Holden to sell vehicles in the US via one of General Motors' other brands. Sold from model years 2008 to 2009, until bankruptcy proceedings forced GM to shutter the Pontiac division, the G8 came after the Pontiac GTO. This was a rebadged Holden Monaro, sold during model years 2004 to 2006. After the G8's demise, Holden exported the WM Caprice to the US, where it was sold as the Caprice PPV for law enforcement agencies from 2011 to 2017. The VF Commodore was also exported to the US, exclusively with V8 power, as the Chevrolet SS for model years 2014 to 2017. Content originally sourced from:
