The updated Ford Ranger, which has already landed in New Zealand, brings with it a new feature set to the commercial market – intelligent safety technologies.
Initially restricted to the top Wildtrak model, the Ranger gets active cruise control, forward collision warning, lane departure warning and lane keeping aid.
Holter says that with utes increasingly being ‘dual-use’ vehicles, and higher specified models being more frequently used as family cars, with family car features, this has to ultimately include safety technology.
“Not just with Ranger, but the market in general, the vehicles are becoming more car like in terms of convenience features and that naturally has evolved into safety features as well,” he says.
Of the mainstream brands, Ford has intelligent safety features on more models than most, and Holter says the brand wants to stay at the front of the trend.
“We want to be on the forefront of having these active technologies in our cars,” he explains.
“These technologies over time will start to converge into autonomous of semi automomous driving,” he says.
