Viva La Coupe Utility

I have been yearning for the return of compact pickups. It may soon come to pass!

Owning several Rangers thru the years, the first of which replaced a Ranchero that was violently taken from me in a rear end collision, I am confident this is all the utility I require on a day to day basis. I don't want a mid-size, let alone full size pickup. And I certainly don't want to pay the price tag for more truck that I use.

I am not sure why I am just now hearing about Ford's new Focus platform based ute, as apparently there have been rumors floated about since last July which never reached my ears....has it been discussed here previously and I missed it? I have repeatedly muttered to myself and many others that Ford should chop up a Transit Connect and give us a new mini-truck. Perhaps they have finally heard my lamentations.

https://www.motor1.com/news/302288/ford-focus-pickup-announcement/?fbclid=IwAR125rdOxuk7919H_uARNZG0K_WBarJRK47EtEjWUNuWvSx0QlSC-mqjJGY

It's like a not-cool version of a Baja. 

I dig the Ford from the front wheel to the back wheel (and the general concept), but the front and rear ends are hideous.  I guess Ford's focus groups have told them there is a market for this thing, but it kind of seems like the answer to a question that nobody here in the US had ever asked (well, you excepted apparently!). I'm sure it will be a top seller in South America, however. Wonder if it will actually sell here any better than the Baja did.

This is also the first I've heard of it, which makes me wonder: if you and I (who are car people and like small pickups) have never heard of it, maybe that's because nobody really cares. I kind of wonder if this somehow helps Ford's fleet MPG numbers somehow (will it be classed as a pickup or a car?) and that's the reason they're bringing it here. 

In reply to irish44j :

I don't think anything has been revealed about it, other than the fact that it will likely exist at some point. Certainly nothing that you could use to determine whether you like the styling or not. Any pictures you've seen are just renders of what random people think it could be.

^^ point taken. The "fan art" is getting so good these days I sometimes forget they may not be grounded in anything other than imagination. 

I always lust after these when I’m south of the border.  The a dub nerd in me wants a Tarok so I have a truck with check engine light.

I wouldn't care if they offered the more door version to grab sales, but I'm really after a Ranchero reboot. A coupe utility, not a sedan utility! 

Two doors, 2-3 seatbelts, manual trans, and enough bed to haul

• A fully assembled mountain bike or,
• a complete engine and trans or,
• 4 wheels and tires or,
• a couple sheets of OSB/drywall
• etc

You know, normal day to day hauling without having to deal with a huge truck the rest of the time. I use my Ranger regularly, I don't need an Escape with an exposed cargo area. 

I can't be the only one who thinks a Courier ST1 would be a kick ass daily use vehicle, otherwise Smyth Performance wouldn't exist!

Spacecadet and I were just talking about this last weekend. Having grown up in a Dodge Rampage I'm 100% on board with this. But I want a single cab and more bed space not a double cab and a three foot bed. The Baja would have been brilliant with two less doors. Part of me wonders if the longer cab is needed for structural reasons on a unibody truck, a lot like the buttresses on the first gen Ridgeline. 

The XJ based Comanche was 1/2 unibody and 1/2 body-on-frame correct? Seems like a good way to create something actually useful rather than different for different’s sake.

”Concerned that traditional unibody architecture would not be up to the rigors of being a trail rated Jeep, AMC’s engineers and Dick Teague’s designers came up with what they called a Uniframe assembly. Essentially that involved integrating and welding a traditional ladder frame into the unibody structure.”

I'm about 》《 close to cutting up a 1st gen transit connect and making one myself.  If I could find someone in Europe willing to ship me the front 3' of a SWB roof I would be car shopping right now. 

irish44j said:

It's like a not-cool version of a Baja. 

I dig the Ford from the front wheel to the back wheel (and the general concept), but the front and rear ends are hideous.  I guess Ford's focus groups have told them there is a market for this thing, but it kind of seems like the answer to a question that nobody here in the US had ever asked (well, you excepted apparently!). I'm sure it will be a top seller in South America, however. Wonder if it will actually sell here any better than the Baja did.

I own a Baja. There's a reason they didn't sell well. They suck. Absolutely gutless and slow, only seats 4 people and with less rear legroom than a Legacy, worthless bed space that's probably smaller than a Legacy wagon's and not covered in abd weather. It's the worst of both worlds. Cargo capacity and ground clearance of a car, fuel economy of a truck. 

mazdeuce - Seth said:

. The Baja would have been brilliant with two less doors. Part of me wonders if the longer cab is needed for structural reasons on a unibody truck, a lot like the buttresses on the first gen Ridgeline. 

I love my I Pad so much, it seemed to post on a whim. I was thinking the Baja was more a reaction to the Chicken Tax.

Ford wants to get rid of cars and go all trucks and suvs, why not run out some Focus parts on a line of Utes?  The tooling is just sitting there in Australia.  The ST and RS versions would be MUCH better than an ST Explorer. 

Rons said:

mazdeuce - Seth said:

. The Baja would have been brilliant with two less doors. Part of me wonders if the longer cab is needed for structural reasons on a unibody truck, a lot like the buttresses on the first gen Ridgeline. 

I love my I Pad so much, it seemed to post on a whim. I was thinking the Baja was more a reaction to the Chicken Tax.

No, that was the BRAT. Which was a standard cab with seats in the bed. The Baja was the cut-down Legacy wagon, that they made just for E36 M3s and giggles. The concept version of the Baja was met with lukewarm reception at auto shows, with everyone wondering what the point of it was, and they still went ahead and put it into production, and then it sold terribly, even with the addition of turbo XT models later in life.

pinchvalve said:

Ford wants to get rid of cars and go all trucks and suvs, why not run out some Focus parts on a line of Utes?  The tooling is just sitting there in Australia.  The ST and RS versions would be MUCH better than an ST Explorer. 

 

Good grief! I have sworn off new cars but that would have me in the hellhole that is a dealership in a heartbeat.

The Aussie Ute version looks good, the red Focus looks awful. 4 doors and a tiny cargo box is useless to me. The Chevrolet Montana from Mexico is something I'd like to see here.

In reply to oldopelguy :

As someone who works out of a first gen transit, get a better engine and trans. 130 hp and 125 lb ft paired up with a turdy 4 speed do not a good truck make.

Lets get serious. Bring back the BRAT.

Don't hold your breath waiting for a 2 door micro truck.  Not going to happen.

2002maniac said:

Don't hold your breath waiting for a 2 door micro truck.  Not going to happen.

Yeah, the 2020 Brat would have 4 doors, a Diesel option, weigh 5,600 lbs and have more electronic wizardry than a Mercedes. Oh, and no manual option.

NickD said:

irish44j said:

It's like a not-cool version of a Baja. 

I dig the Ford from the front wheel to the back wheel (and the general concept), but the front and rear ends are hideous.  I guess Ford's focus groups have told them there is a market for this thing, but it kind of seems like the answer to a question that nobody here in the US had ever asked (well, you excepted apparently!). I'm sure it will be a top seller in South America, however. Wonder if it will actually sell here any better than the Baja did.

I own a Baja. There's a reason they didn't sell well. They suck. Absolutely gutless and slow, only seats 4 people and with less rear legroom than a Legacy, worthless bed space that's probably smaller than a Legacy wagon's and not covered in abd weather. It's the worst of both worlds. Cargo capacity and ground clearance of a car, fuel economy of a truck. 

lol. I didn't say they were good. I just said they were cool - primarily from the 'unusual and oddball" aspect. The only Baja I've ever driven was a turbo one, with M/T, so it didn't suck quite as much as most of them ;)

As someone who would love a new Rampage, or even Ranchero, I fear the 2 door truck is newly dead, just like the 2 door automobile.

Witness the new Gladiator.  I would even be a bit surprised if the touted new Bronco was a two door...

Cooter said:

I would even be a bit surprised if the touted new Bronco was a two door...

Heresy!

LOL. I don’t know who did that rendering, but it looks absolutely nothing like that in reality. 

I’ve seen a few Holden Utes at various car shows with local tags but haven’t succeeded in speaking to the owner about how they got it legally.

In reply to 84FSP :

There's one I see semi regularly that lives within a couple of miles of me.