In the realm of Aussie workhorses, taking on the legendary 70-series Land Cruiser is akin to bringing a knife to a gunfight. Ford Australia, however, implies that its first Super Duty-branded Ranger isn’t merely holding its ground but significantly outselling established rivals.
“A lot of commercial/industry customers are buying the Super Duty,” said Fadi Mawal, the prez and chief exec of the Ford Motor Company in Australia and New Zealand. “The mix will probably end up being maybe 50:50 over time,” he told Australian motoring publication Drive.
The mix in question refers to an even split between private and commercial buyers. Considering that only Ford produces a mid-sized truck with proper heavy-duty underpinnings, who can blame those customers for choosing the Ranger Super Duty over the incredibly durable 70-series Land Cruiser?
Ford’s sales momentum arrives at a vulnerable moment for Toyota. According to VFACTS registration data, Land Cruiser 70 ute deliveries plummeted below 200 units per month, specifically record lows not seen since 2001. The slump reflects supply constraints rather than waning enthusiasm for the oldest design in the segment.
Toyota paused 70 series production back in 2025 to fit SCR goodies in order to comply with stricter heavy-duty emission regulations. With production only resuming this month and the order books periodically frozen as wait times stretched past 12 months, Ford simply identified a massive opening to capture market share.
Photo: Ford Australia
Beyond trade outfits and mining sites, overland campers and caravan lovers are migrating to the Ranger Super Duty to secure big-rig capacities without making the jump to half-ton American pickups. The Ranger Super Duty comes exclusively from Thailand, with production handled by the AutoAlliance Thailand plant in Rayong.
Already a major Ranger production hub, Thailand further made sense for the Ranger Super Duty because it was primarily designed in Australia for Australian needs. Rather than creating a dedicated production line for a specialized derivative, it makes a lot more sense to leverage AutoAlliance Thailand’s manufacturing capability.
To earn its badge, the Ranger Super Duty ditches light-duty parts for commercial-grade componentry. From the strengthened ladder frame with thicker gauge steel to its heavy-duty axles, driveshafts, eight-stud wheel hubs, and beefier brakes, every mod was implemented for improved capability. Riding on widened tracks, the Ranger Super Duty offers 300 millimeters (11.8 inches) of ground clearance.
Boasting an 850-millimeter (33.5 inches) wading depth, the heaviest Ranger of them all pushes the midsizer far beyond segment boundaries. The gross vehicle weight and gross combined mass ratings, for example, are 4,500 and 8,000 kilograms, meaning 9,921 and 17,637 pounds by American standards.
Good for up to 4,500 kilograms of braked towing capacity, the Ranger Super Duty nets 1,982 kilograms (4,370 pounds) of payload on single-cab chassis models. Only available with V6 turbo diesel muscle, this fellow carries a long-range fuel tank with 130 liters (34.3 gallons) to its name. As of this writing, Super Duty prices kick off at AUD 82,990 excluding on-road costs and tray fitment.