Drove A Maverick Today (Pics)

[Dr. Zaius]

So my dealer called me yesterday to let me know that they had a Maverick Demo in stock.

I went up and checked it out.

It was a sparsely optioned XL with only the 2.0 Ecoboost engine and CoPilot 360 for options.

Several Initial Impressions

Interior: Surprisingly nice for a basic vehicle.
The interior plastics had a nice finish and didn't look cheap at all. I really liked the door pulls.
Seats were comfortable and the interior was roomy, near to or better than the Ranger in the rear and maybe slightly more snug in the front.
REAL KNOBS for the climate control
Rotary shifter will take some getting used to.
Rear seat understorage is light years better than Ranger, though still no split rear seat. Maybe on Lariat?
The gauges seemed to be angled downward. To minimize reflections?

Bed: Bigger than I expected. Perfect for the weekend homeowner trips to the DIY warehouse. Since this was an XL it didn't have any of the gee-whiz options in the bed. I was surprised at just how much lower the bedsides and tailgate were than the Ranger. NO TAILGATE DAMPER (I almost dropped it. My arm muscle atrophy must be real)

Power and Drive: It felt at least as strong as a stock Ranger. I couldn't really gauge off the line acceleration because this one was FWD and the electronic nannies kicked in at any hint of wheelspin. The ride and handling were better which is not surprising since it is not a body-on-frame platform.

My Verdict: Ford is going to sell the devil out of these. Nice running, nice driving, and a relative bargain price = a Home Run by Ford. I liked this better than the Santa Cruz I drove. This had much better visibility and the Santa Cruz really suffers from numerous identical touch sensitive switches so you have to look at the controls whenever you change something. The SC I drove was a Limited so it had all the yee-haw options and was better equipped so I'm looking forward to checking out an AWD Lariat version. The Lariat trim in these appears to use the same instrument panel just with a bigger center screen (yes!).

The dealer already had a $2k "Market Adjustment" on the price so it'll probably be a bit before you can get one at MSRP. Little did they know that the "Market Adjustment" they placed on their pricing just eliminated them from my future shopping lists. There's plenty of profit in the MSRP. Blatant cash grabs mean I'll go somewhere else.

This also pulled up as I was about to leave.

I would have driven it as well if it had the 2.7 EB.

Sorry for the long winded post but I thought some might want a bit of info on the new kid on the block.

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[ranger4x]

Good feedback, thanks for sharing the recon

 

[staryoshi]

The rear cabin has a little more leg and head room than the Ranger. Fit and finish in the Ranger is outdated but a little better quality imo.

I agree that it's "gonna be yuuuuge."

 

[dondonbabyraptor]

Lovely detailed feedback. Could be a Car & Driver review. Sexy blue bronco at the end ?

 

[Waxthis]

Great review, and I agree. Ford WILL sell a crap ton of these things.

 

[AdamHarris]

I believe that 2.0 is not an option but just the only engine you can get right now correct? Hybrid comes a little later.

 

[MXGOLF]

Awesome review! Thanks, Not my cup of tea at this time but yes they should sell a bunch of Mavericks.

 

[ranger4x]

I believe that 2.0 is not an option but just the only engine you can get right now correct? Hybrid comes a little later.

I believe you are correct. The hybrid is, obviously, supposed to be the base engine but not yet available.

 

[RecoilOperated]

Very nice, though the blue interior plastics are a touch too reminiscent of 80s/90s Ford where every surface of the interior was blue from the carpet to the headliner (maybe with a dash of plasti-wood if you were fancy)

 

[Tracy Bowman]

So my dealer called me yesterday to let me know that they had a Maverick Demo in stock.

I went up and checked it out.

It was a sparsely optioned XL with only the 2.0 Ecoboost engine and CoPilot 360 for options.

Several Initial Impressions

Interior: Surprisingly nice for a basic vehicle.
The interior plastics had a nice finish and didn't look cheap at all. I really liked the door pulls.
Seats were comfortable and the interior was roomy, near to or better than the Ranger in the rear and maybe slightly more snug in the front.
REAL KNOBS for the climate control
Rotary shifter will take some getting used to.
Rear seat understorage is light years better than Ranger, though still no split rear seat. Maybe on Lariat?
The gauges seemed to be angled downward. To minimize reflections?

Bed: Bigger than I expected. Perfect for the weekend homeowner trips to the DIY warehouse. Since this was an XL it didn't have any of the gee-whiz options in the bed. I was surprised at just how much lower the bedsides and tailgate were. NO TAILGATE DAMPER.

Power and Drive: It felt at least as strong as a stock Ranger. I couldn't really gauge off the line acceleration because this one was FWD and the electronic nannies kicked in at any hint of wheelspin. The ride and handling were better which is not surprising since it is not a body-on-frame platform.

My Verdict: Ford is going to sell the devil out of these. Nice running, nice driving, and a relative bargain price = a Home Run by Ford. I liked this better than the Santa Cruz I drove. This had much better visibility and the Santa Cruz really suffers from numerous identical touch sensitive switches so you have to look at the controls whenever you change something. The SC I drove was a Limited so it had all the yee-haw options and was better equipped so I'm looking forward to checking out an AWD Lariat version. The Lariat trim in these appears to use the same instrument panel just with a bigger center screen (yes!).

The dealer already had a $2k "Market Adjustment" on the price so it'll probably be a bit before you can get one at MSRP. Little did they know that the "Market Adjustment" they placed on their pricing just eliminated them from my future shopping lists. There's plenty of profit in the MSRP. Blatant cash grabs mean I'll go somewhere else.

This also pulled up as I was about to leave.

I would have driven it as well if it had the 2.7 EB.

Sorry for the long winded post but I though some might want a bit of info on the new kid on the block.

Very nice. Thanks for that!

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

Great review - thanks Dennis!

 

[Dr. Zaius]

Very nice, though the blue interior plastics are a touch too reminiscent of 80s/90s Ford where every surface of the interior was blue from the carpet to the headliner (maybe with a dash of plasti-wood if you were fancy)

They didn't look blue when driving it, more of a slate gray.

They look very blue in the pics when the sun is on them.

 

[bfastr]

excellent review. thanks. And for just over 20 grand they are going to sell a lot of them. once they get over themselves with added value markups. but seriously, I might have considered it if they were on the lot in April. thanks for the pictures and the write up.

 

[Trigganometry]

Dennis, nice write-up appreciate the deed. Ford still is in the process of building new battery plants. It’s going to be at least a year before any volume of energy packs and the motors are prime time ready. Like you said, these won’t stay on the lots. Probably be special order for many months = home run!

 

[staryoshi]

The doors have the satisfying heft of a midrange crossover. The engine bay indeed looks like a half-eaten plate of spaghetti.

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