Evo Plus Ford Ranger out to challenge Gazoo Racing Toyota Hilux
All systems go for improved racing bakkie at South African Safari Rally based at Sun City.
The battle between the Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux goes beyond showroom floors and the roads of South Africa. The two marques also go head-to-head in serious competition off the road in global rally-raid events.
Using almost 30 years of competition and design experience in the rally-raid world, coupled with cutting-edge technology and a fresh new look, Neil Woolridge Motorsport (NWM) introduced its new NWM Evo Plus Ford Ranger to the market, for sale and rental worldwide.
Two NWM Evo Plus Ford Rangers will debut at the third round of the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC), the South African Safari Rally, which will take place in NWM's home country and backyard from 18 to 24 May 2025.
Brazilian Marcos Baumgart, who makes a return to the NWM paddock after spending some years driving a mix of the Toyota and Prodrive Hunter T1+ vehicles, drives the first car.
ALSO READ: Wraps come off Ford's 2025 Rally Raid Series challenger
Woolridge pilots second car
2023 South African Rally-Raid champion Gareth Woolridge pilots the second vehicle. Team partners and vehicle livery for this event will be launched in the week leading up to the event, which will be based at the Sun City Resort in the North-West Province.
In rally-raid, longevity of performance is key. NWM has invested heavily into ensuring the maximum performance from the all-new design. All this while functionality, reliability and affordability remain top considerations on the Ford Ranger.
'Two major points we identified for improvement on our current NWM Ford Ranger was firstly our suspension geometry from a performance point of view. And secondly our differentials from a reliability point of view', said Neil Woolridge, NWM director.
'In this, we took a step back to analyse exactly where we want to improve, what type of car we want to offer to the market, and how we can ensure the Ford Ranger keeps winning races and championships around the world.
ALSO READ: The workings of a Rally-Raid team: Inside Ford-backed NWM
Big changes under the skin
'While the NWM Evo Plus Ford Ranger carries over a lot of the race-proven technology and components from its predecessor, it does boast a completely new chassis. From the outside, other than the widened and redesigned side sills, the everyday fan won't notice much of a difference with the EVO Plus Ford Ranger at first glance, but under that carbon skin, it is all changed,' Woolridge explains.
'We have done just over 2 000km of testing and development thus far and acknowledge we may not have the ultimate set up for every terrain, but we have a vehicle that will take anything you throw at it,' adds Gareth Woolridge, NWM's technical head.
The tried and tested Ford 3.5-litre V6 EcoBoost twin-turbocharged petrol engine carries over into the NWM Evo Plus Ford Ranger. Along with the proven SADEV SC924 Evo gearbox, the pairing moves back a further 150mm within the newly designed chassis. This allows for an even better centre of gravity and a near-perfect weight distribution within the car.
Rally-ready Ford Ranger
The NWM Ford Ranger can also use a Ford 5.0-litre V8 Coyote naturally-aspirated engine. It is best suited for customers who prefer the ease of maintenance of the simpler powertrain system. As well as those looking to run the vehicle in domestic championships.
'We can proudly offer a top-level vehicle that will be competitive anywhere in the world. It is made with the best-quality products in the world. At a far more affordable price than our competitors,' says Neil Woolridge.
'These days, with motorsport getting more and more expensive, we really set out to make sure that our car has the highest level of build quality, reliability and performance for the driver that wants to win races or just go out and have fun. Yet the NWM Evo Plus Ford Ranger is still available at a price that our competitors producing rally-raid cars in other countries simply cannot match, and that's a big feather in our cap.'
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