2026 Ranger changes / upgrades / info?

[BLIZZARDIBLO]

Most important of all, are there new information regarding model year 2026?
I have mine ordered and still not know what differences there will be

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[purdyd]

I imagine it would only take one missing part to stop delivery.

it could be the truck has been built and waiting for wiper blades or some such nonsense

I’d be surprised if any 2026 build shows up before calendar year 2026.

i hope I’m wrong.

 

[Deleted member 13545]

I'm new to this forum (1st post here) and have been keeping up looking for changes for about a month now and so far nothing has shown up. I did notice that the 2026 Maverick changes were shown/leaked yesterday and it gives me hope for the Ranger to come up fairly soon.

I am going to be buying a Ranger Raptor and waiting til the 2026 changes are announced to see if there are any other colors that I like before making a decision. I'm really hoping Code Orange comes to the US but open to other colors too. Right now I really only like Velocity Blue for the 2025's (also liked Cactus Gray for 2024) but my wife is a bit sick of blue vehicles (she drives a sky-blue Pilot TrailSport and I had a 2024 Blackwing in a color very close to Velocity Blue) so I'm hoping something more colorful comes for 2026.

 

[pkvir]

I'm new to this forum (1st post here) and have been keeping up looking for changes for about a month now and so far nothing has shown up. I did notice that the 2026 Maverick changes were shown/leaked yesterday and it gives me hope for the Ranger to come up fairly soon.

I am going to be buying a Ranger Raptor and waiting til the 2026 changes are announced to see if there are any other colors that I like before making a decision. I'm really hoping Code Orange comes to the US but open to other colors too. Right now I really only like Velocity Blue for the 2025's (also liked Cactus Gray for 2024) but my wife is a bit sick of blue vehicles (she drives a sky-blue Pilot TrailSport and I had a 2024 Blackwing in a color very close to Velocity Blue) so I'm hoping something more colorful comes for 2026.

I bet the biggest change will be the price. When comparing the top GM and Toyota midsize trucks, which I feel the RR is superior, the RR is underpriced.

 

[AlloyPony]

My condolences to you on your Lightning lease. You're very likely to be disappointed in it's inability to live up to its hype.

Well so far I love it. And to demonstrate how awesome the truck is....my wife smiles when she's in it and that woman isn't positive about ANYTHING.

We just got home last night from our annual lake trip with our friends. 280 miles round trip, didn't hit a public charger once. Then drove it to work today too. All on $13 bucks worth of electricity.

It's a little roomier than the Ranger, TONS more features and driving aids, 6" longer bed (not the 6' I wanted, but better than 5'!), has way more storage due to the Frunk being genuinely useful, and this thing is FAST. My goodness I think if I lined my 392 Hemi Challenger up against it my car would be in trouble.

Ford gave me $8,500 in tax credits and discount, waved the $6k down payment they advertise on the official lease deal, gave me a $500 level 2 charger for free, AND they're covering the cost to have an electrician install it. Dealership gave me a spray in bedliner, step rails, window tint, and paint protection thrown in. I couldn't pass it up. I got twice the truck for less monthly cost. And when I do the math, I figure I'll save nearly $200 in fuel costs monthly too.

Loved the new Ranger when I drove it. Love the Lightning more.

 

[HighDesertRanger]

There might be a reason they’re basically paying you to drive it

 

[LantaLurker]

Well so far I love it. And to demonstrate how awesome the truck is....my wife smiles when she's in it and that woman isn't positive about ANYTHING.

We just got home last night from our annual lake trip with our friends. 280 miles round trip, didn't hit a public charger once. Then drove it to work today too. All on $13 bucks worth of electricity.

It's a little roomier than the Ranger, TONS more features and driving aids, 6" longer bed (not the 6' I wanted, but better than 5'!), has way more storage due to the Frunk being genuinely useful, and this thing is FAST. My goodness I think if I lined my 392 Hemi Challenger up against it my car would be in trouble.

Ford gave me $8,500 in tax credits and discount, waved the $6k down payment they advertise on the official lease deal, gave me a $500 level 2 charger for free, AND they're covering the cost to have an electrician install it. Dealership gave me a spray in bedliner, step rails, window tint, and paint protection thrown in. I couldn't pass it up. I got twice the truck for less monthly cost. And when I do the math, I figure I'll save nearly $200 in fuel costs monthly too.

Loved the new Ranger when I drove it. Love the Lightning more.

Little more room? Dude the backseats in the f150 are basically a full sized apartment compared to the ranger lol

 

[AlloyPony]

There might be a reason they’re basically paying you to drive it

Might be. But if it's doing everything I need and they're paying me to drive it, is that a bad thing?

 

[Ranger XLT Fan]

But I was told we wouldn’t be paying for these tariffs.

Exactly. I think China has to pay for all of the tariffs...like how Mexico was going to pay for the wall.

 

[AlloyPony]

My condolences to you on your Lightning lease. You're very likely to be disappointed in it's inability to live up to its hype.

Well so far I love it. And to demonstrate how awesome the truck is....my wife smiles when she's in it and that woman isn't positive about ANYTHING.

We just got home last night from our annual lake trip with our friends. 280 miles round trip, didn't hit a public charger once. Then drove it to work today too. All on $13 bucks worth of electricity.

It's a little roomier than the Ranger, TONS more features and driving aids, 6" longer bed (not the 6' I wanted, but better than 5'!), has way more storage due to the Frunk being genuinely useful, and this thing is FAST. My goodness I think if I lined my 392 Hemi Challenger up against it my car would be in trouble.

Ford gave me $8,500 in tax credits and discount, waved the $6k down payment they advertise on the official lease deal, gave me a $500 level 2 charger for free, AND they're covering the cost to have an electrician install it. Dealership gave me a spray in bedliner, step rails, window tint, and paint protection thrown in. I couldn't pass it up. I got twice the truck for less monthly cost. And when I do the math, I figure I'll save nearly $200 in fuel costs monthly too.

Loved the new Ranger when I drove it. Love the Lightning more.

Six weeks and 1,500 miles in now. I'm finding that I love the Lightning more than I even expected to. I spent $50 "filling it up" over the last six weeks combined. Much better than $85-100 PER fill-up with my prior truck. We've taken it on long a long trip. I've towed my 26' enclosed car hauler with it. I've commuted to work and back in it. I've done everything with this truck that I did with my prior midsize and fullsize trucks without skipping a beat. The power and acceleration is addictive. My wife refuses to use the term "frunk" to describe the storage up front, but she loves having that extra space. I'm still getting adjusted to how quiet and peaceful it is from the driver seat. All you can hear are the tires rolling over the gravel roads and the wind noise whipping around the mirrors when on the interstate. Otherwise it's almost dead silent inside which takes getting used to.

Had I known that 2026 was going to bring a new STX trim with 18" black wheels, A/T tires, e-locker, cool 1980s graphics, etc. for less money I would have waited! That's my only regret right now. Oh well, I've got a leveling kit to put on it next week and when these tires wear down I'll get some good A/Ts.

With all the tax rebates and discounts it made the Ranger a poor decision. BUT...that all ends next week so I'm guessing that Ford isn't going to move as many Lightning trucks from now on. A lot of buyers will go back to Ranger and/or F-150s with gasoline engines.

 

[ChronciallyChronic]

Six weeks and 1,500 miles in now. I'm finding that I love the Lightning more than I even expected to. I spent $50 "filling it up" over the last six weeks combined. Much better than $85-100 PER fill-up with my prior truck. We've taken it on long a long trip. I've towed my 26' enclosed car hauler with it. I've commuted to work and back in it. I've done everything with this truck that I did with my prior midsize and fullsize trucks without skipping a beat. The power and acceleration is addictive. My wife refuses to use the term "frunk" to describe the storage up front, but she loves having that extra space. I'm still getting adjusted to how quiet and peaceful it is from the driver seat. All you can hear are the tires rolling over the gravel roads and the wind noise whipping around the mirrors when on the interstate. Otherwise it's almost dead silent inside which takes getting used to.

Had I known that 2026 was going to bring a new STX trim with 18" black wheels, A/T tires, e-locker, cool 1980s graphics, etc. for less money I would have waited! That's my only regret right now. Oh well, I've got a leveling kit to put on it next week and when these tires wear down I'll get some good A/Ts.

With all the tax rebates and discounts it made the Ranger a poor decision. BUT...that all ends next week so I'm guessing that Ford isn't going to move as many Lightning trucks from now on. A lot of buyers will go back to Ranger and/or F-150s with gasoline engines.

It kind of sounds like you're saying that without the government money and Ford money on the hood it isn't competitive? For the money you paid, yup it's good. At full retail price, no it isn't good?

 

[cc1999]

Sorry to try and bring this thread back on topic. LOL
Anyone spot any news on 2026 Rangers?
I was sort of expecting to at least be seeing order guides come out any day now, those normally come out soon as the prior year (2025) order bank closes which my Ford fleet rep said a few weeks ago that was happening on the September 22nd, I was expecting that new 2026 order guide to be out this week if that were case.

 

[mar_kelp]

Take it with a grain of salt, but Car & Driver showing no changes (page updated 4 days ago):

"What's New for 2026?
The Ranger carries over unchanged for the 2026 model year."

https://www.caranddriver.com/ford/ranger-2026

 

[cc1999]

Take it with a grain of salt, but Car & Driver showing no changes (page updated 4 days ago):

"What's New for 2026?
The Ranger carries over unchanged for the 2026 model year."

https://www.caranddriver.com/ford/ranger-2026

Good article, thanks.

Probably going to need that 26 order guide to figure out if they changed any of the packages or options around. I was in hopes we would see the push button start either added to the XLT tech package or made a standalone option. As it stands now for 2025 models you can only get push button start in a Lariat or Raptor.

 

[HighDesertRanger]

Good article, thanks.

Probably going to need that 26 order guide to figure out if they changed any of the packages or options around. I was in hopes we would see the push button start either added to the XLT tech package or made a standalone option. As it stands now for 2025 models you can only get push button start in a Lariat or Raptor.

I'm not holding my breath, but that would be nice to see. The switchblade key on the XLT and STX always seemed like an odd choice in 2025.

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