Ford will build the Ranger in China

Ford has confirmed its strong-selling Ranger ute will be built in China, for China.

The plan, announced this week at the Shanghai motor show, will see the Ranger ute introduced to China “soon”. It also promised to provide a range of accessories homologated specifically for the Chinese market.

Our Ranger comes from Thailand like most dual-cab utes, although it’s also produced in South Africa and Vietnam for some markets. The USA still gets an older Ranger, made in Michigan.

The Blue Oval hasn’t confirmed where in China it’ll build the Ranger. It has two joint ventures with Chinese brands however – one with Changan, which has been around since 2012, and another with JMC that was confirmed in January 2022.

Given JMC manufactures a version of the ute-based Everest for China, and has experience with commercial vehicles through its own utes and vans, it seems likely the JMC Ford Technology joint venture will be responsible for building the Chinese Ranger.

The Ranger will take on the GWM Ute Cannon, the LDV T60 and its MG Extender twin, and the JAC T9 when it hits Chinese showrooms.

The Ranger will sit alongside a line-up of familiar names, some of which are applied to unfamiliar cars in the Chinese market.

Ford offers cars wearing the Escort, Edge, Mondeo, Explorer, Mustang Mach-E, and Territory badges in China, as part of a sprawling range.

While the Explorer, Mondeo, and Mustang Mach-E will look familiar to Western buyers; the Escort, Edge, and Territory are unique to that part of the world.

Chinese buyers also get access to the F-150 Raptor and Mustang as imported models.

MORE: Everything Ford Ranger