Determined not to let Toyota Gazoo Racing SA’s Hilux have things all its own way in the freshly renamed South African Rally-Raid Championship, Ford has revealed its aggressive new 2022 T1+ Ranger…

The NWM Ford Castrol Team has taken the wraps off its new Rally-Raid Ranger as it bids to wrestle the title from Toyota Gazoo Racing SA in the 2022 edition of what used to be called the South African Cross Country Series.

Now renamed the South African Rally-Raid Championship (SARRC), the 2022 season sees the introduction of a new FIA T1+ class as the premier category. With Toyota Gazoo Racing SA’s Henk Lategan having won the title in 2021 in a Hilux ahead of Ford, the Blue Oval brand is champing at the bit to debut its “extensively revised and upgraded” V6-powered Ranger.

Designed, developed and built by Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM), the new Rally-Raid Ranger is a whopping 300 mm wider than before and complies with the latest T1+ regulations introduced for the 2022 Dakar Rally. Lance Woolridge and Elvéne Vonk, along with teammates Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer, will drive the new Ranger for the 2022 SA Rally-Raid season.

“The new T1+ Ranger is a significant change from last year’s car, but it builds on what was a very successful and competitive platform that took us to two race wins, three podiums and a championship fight that went right down to the wire,” said Neil Woolridge, team principal of the NWM Ford Castrol Team.

Woolridge explained that the T1+ category was introduced for the 2022 Dakar Rally to “level the playing field between the two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive vehicles”, standardising larger 37-inch tyres and longer-travel suspension that had “given the lighter two-wheel-drive vehicles a major advantage in recent years”.

Under the new T1+ regulations, the minimum vehicle weight is now pegged at 2 000 kg, which is an increase of 150 kg. While the twin-turbocharged 3.5-litre V6 EcoBoost petrol engine remains largely unchanged, running according to the same balance of performance rules with peak outputs of 300 kW and 600 Nm (interestingly,very similar figures to those of thenew Ranger Raptor), a raft of other upgrades have been made.

In line with the latest international rally-raid rules, the Ranger’s top speed is now electronically limited to 170 kph (down from 180 kph), while its gear ratios have been suitably revised. But the most obvious change is the significantly wider stance and more muscular design overall.

To accommodate the wider track and the 37-inch tyres on 17-inch wheels (which incidentally allow the fitment of larger 355 mm brake discs), the new T1+ Ranger gains aggressively flared wheel arches. As with the Ranger racer it replaces, the bodywork and cabin have been fashioned from carbon-fibre and aramid weave, while the butterfly-style doors have been retained.

In addition, to allow for an increase in wheel travel from 280 to 350 mm as per the updated regulations, Woolridge says the team “totally redesigned” the suspension, interestingly opting to employ a new single-damper per wheel set-up at the expense of the old dual-item arrangement.

“South African cross-country racing, or rally-raid as it is commonly known overseas, is renowned as one of the most competitive and professional domestic championships in the world, with South African teams producing exceptional vehicles that dominate the local series as well as international racing in this category,” said Woolridge.

“We are delighted that the organisers of the South African championship have aligned our series with the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship, which will give us greater exposure on a global scale, and raises the bar further for competitors,” Woolridge added.

The opening race of the 2022 South African Rally-Raid Championship is the Mpumalanga 400, which takes place in Dullstroom on 25 and 26 March.