I don't think the CHMSL will move up to the roof. The Gladiator gets away with having it on the tailgate, and adding a hole to the back of the cab is undesirable engineering cost. I'd expect trailer connectors to move above the bumper step.
Waiting for the whole next crop- I have my first AT vehicle in several years and I'm not loving it. In the next 2 years, we are supposed to get:
A new Ranger, that might just have a 7spd/Turbo motor.
A new Tacoma, probably also with a turbo-4, MT is a big question mark. Needs a bigger back...
The axle itself is curious to me- your Australasian market Rangers get a Banjo axle, while US models get a Dana Advantec 220 (D44 equivalent Salisbury axle. Unless someone decided that the US Raptor and Warthog would get Banjo axles, this isn't US spec truck.
That Extended cab was definitely a manual, one with a very deep 1st gear. I'm not convinced it's a diesel- the 2.3EB wrapped up with little load on it will sound that way, too. I don't think there's any way Ford would have spent as much on the Bronco 7-speed without expecting to use it in the...
