Joe Evans has had his share of Toyota four-wheel drives over the years, but when it came time to update to his new rig he strayed from the Big T.

As a builder in south-east Queensland, Joe has used 70 Series LandCruisers and HiLuxes for work and play, but when it came time for the new build he went down a different track with Ford’s new Ranger Super Duty. The Ford and Toyota 4×4 camps are akin to rugby league’s State of Origin rivalry: you’re either one or the other, and you’ll die on the field supporting your brand. So, what did it take to get Joe to switch sides?

“We purchased the Super Duty as we were in the market for a ute better suited to our touring setup towing our 21ft caravan, with better GVM and GCM ratings without having to purchase a big 2500 American ute,” Joe told us.

Those factory 4500kg GVM and 8000kg GCM ratings are the Ranger Super Duty’s key points of difference over other midsize 4×4 utes, and they make the model unique in the local market. The Ranger SD ticked all the boxes for Joe’s needs, but he had a plan to take it to another level.

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Custom Canopy and Touring Setup 

To achieve its heavy-duty capacities, the Super Duty is built quite differently to any regular Ford Ranger. It has a bigger, heavier chassis and larger differentials to haul heavy loads, and even the wheels and tyres are different spec to a regular Ranger.

As one of the early adopters of the Super Duty, Joe faced a few delays when it came to equipping his new rig, but by teaming up with the right businesses, the finished result was well worth the wait. Once Joe took delivery of his new Ford, it went straight to the workshop of Offroad Creative to start the fit-out and have its custom canopy fabricated.

With its bespoke chassis and suspension, a canopy made for a regular Ford Ranger does not fit straight on to a Super Duty cab-chassis. Offroad Creative’s usual builds are on full-size American pick-ups, so building the canopy for the SD was new to them as well.

As a custom build, the team at Offroad Creative worked closely with Joe to create a body that would suit his needs. The aluminium chassis-mount canopy includes all the usual accessories, including a storage pantry, internal lighting, sliding drawers on each side, a 120-litre water tank underneath, an 85-litre Dometic fridge, underslung toolboxes, a slide-out table and plenty of power outlets.

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Feeding the power in is a 400Ah ultra-slim battery from Custom Lithium, managed by a Victron system featuring a 3000W Victron Multiplus inverter/charger. A pair of 150W Enerdrive solar panels harvest that Queensland sun to help keep everything charged and ready to go. As well as the fridge and internal lighting, there’s an air fryer and hotplate in the canopy for bush cooking, and an ARB air compressor in one of the toolboxes for tyre inflation. All of the electronics are controlled by a Switch Pros panel in the vehicle and remotely via a phone app.

On top of the canopy and the Ranger’s cab are roof racks made by Offroad Creative, accessed via a ladder at the back. A 270-degree Bushwakker awning is mounted on the passenger side of the canopy to protect against sun and rain when camping.

Under the back of the Ford Ranger Super Duty you will usually see a low-hanging bar that mounts all of the sensors for the ADAS systems. This is in a vulnerable position for off-road driving, so the team at OC relocated it higher under the back of the canopy.

The front of the Super Duty chassis is different too, so it requires its own bullbar. Offroad Creative made the low-hoop front bar for Joe’s truck and tucked a Warn Evo 12 winch in behind it, along with Stedi cube lights in the front. A Stedi light bar sits atop the roof rack, while Stedi rock lights are used at the back and underneath.

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Powertrain, wheels and suspension

The powertrain for Joe’s Super Duty remains the 3.0-litre V6 diesel engine, 10-speed auto transmission and full-time dual-range 4×4 system that all SDs come with.

Joe wanted to improve the air intake over the standard snorkel but, again, as the Super Duty has a unique bonnet, guards and intake, and he was an early adopter of the new model, he had trouble getting the snorkel he wanted. Fabulous Fabrications came to the rescue with a 5-inch stainless steel snorkel and corresponding airbox in the engine bay. An EVC throttle controller was added to sharpen up engine response when needed.

Even the wheels on the Super Duty are different to a regular Ranger, so finding replacements wasn’t easy. With its heavy-duty axles, the Ranger SD has 8-stud hubs requiring corresponding wheels. The stud pattern isn’t totally unique globally, and Joe was able to settle on a set of DMC Mayhems from Dynamic Wheel Company, shod with 295/70R18 Mickey Thompson Baja Boss all-terrains.

The Mickey Thompson tyres are fitted with Apex Designs valves for quick deflation when hitting the beach. Joe commented when he hit the sand for our photos that they “lowered our pressures from 42psi to 22psi in about three to five seconds per tyre, which was surprising and extremely impressive!”

Heavy-duty suspension is part and parcel of the Super Duty package, but some owners towing large vans were complaining of sag in the rear end when loaded. Joe was on the front foot to combat this before his SD was finished, and had SNC Automotive bolster the rear end with a reset leaf pack that includes an extra leaf, plus a set of Boss airbags to level things out when towing.

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Towing and daily duties

Following our photo shoot on the beach, Joe and his wife Kylie hooked up their 3.5-tonne dual-axle caravan and set off to Coffs Harbour for a shakedown run.

After which he said: “We couldn’t be happier! Resetting the leaf pack and adding an extra leaf made a hell of a difference, and there was no need to add air into the bags when hooked up as there is absolutely no sag under load now and you hardly know the caravan is there.”

As for the other accessories fitted to the SD, he said: “We are absolutely loving the canopy setup! Having 400Ah of lithium power to play with is very comforting, knowing we have plenty of juice to use at all times.”

Joe has also been using the truck for work duties and reports that it performs well there, too. “I also run the Super Duty daily for work, loaded with tools and equipment, and it is extremely easy to work out of as a builder and super comfortable to drive. The tech is very impressive compared to my HiLux.”

Could the acquisition of the Ranger SD signal a changing of the guard in the Evans garage? It’s looking that way.

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Upgrades and accessories

  • Offroad Creative custom aluminium chassis-mount canopy
  • Custom Lithium 400Ah ultra-slim lithium battery
  • Victron 3000W Multiplus inverter/charger
  • Victron electrical management system
  • Two Enerdrive 150W solar panels
  • Switch Pros control panel
  • 85-litre Dometic fridge
  • ARB air compressor
  • Offroad Creative roof racks
  • Bushwakker 270-degree awning
  • Offroad Creative relocated ADAS sensor bar
  • Offroad Creative low-hoop bullbar
  • Warn Evo 12 winch
  • Stedi cube lights
  • Stedi light bar
  • Stedi rock lights
  • Fabulous Fabrications 5-inch stainless steel snorkel
  • Fabulous Fabrications custom airbox
  • EVC throttle controller
  • DMC Mayhem wheels from Dynamic Wheel Company
  • 295/70R18 Mickey Thompson Baja Boss all-terrain tyres
  • Apex Designs tyre valves
  • SNC Automotive reset rear leaf pack
  • Boss airbags
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