Team Ford Racing announced its 2013 motorsport plans with the new Ford Ranger unveiled for the first time. Team Ford Racing also confirmed the expansion of its involvement in local motorsport with the announcement that Ford will offer a multi-million Rand driver reward programme to all Ford-driven vehicles participating in the South African National Rally Championship.

"Ford is the only manufacturer involved in the all of the top three national championship motorsport categories in South Africa," says John Nagel, Ford Racing Manager. "Globally Ford has a rich motorsport heritage and locally we have a longstanding relationship with all three categories. We are looking forward to an exciting season with two completely new vehicles and the introduction of a new rally initiative."

Team Ford Racing will be looking to mount a strong challenge in this year´s SA Donaldson Cross Country Championship with the new Ford Ranger making its global cross country debut in the Off Road series.

The team will boast a pair of Ford Rangers with Chris Visser and Japie Badenhorst and Lance Woolridge and Ward Huxtable once again competing in Class SP. They will be supported by a dedicated team of 14 full time staff in their quest for the top honours in the championship battle.

The newly designed Rangers were built in Pietermaritzburg with assistance from Ford Motor Company´s Global Product Development division. Every aspect of the new Ranger has been carefully considered and built with precision and performance in mind.

"A complex jigging system was used in the manufacturing process in order to ensure that each part was built as per the design in order to achieve the perfect fit on each vehicle built" explains Nagel. "Although the two new Rangers are locally built we received tremendous support from our global counterparts including the likes of Jamal Hameedi, the Chief Engineer of Ford´s SVT division."

Under the hood, the new Ranger boasts an impressive 5.0-litre V8 engine with variable cam timing, managed by the Magneti Marelli system. In addition to its light weight body and a chassis design that allows for a low centre of gravity, the vehicle is equipped with an independent front suspension and a solid rear axle, eight state of the art BOS dampers and front and rear anti-roll bars. Add Brembo brakes, an air-conditioned cabin, advanced onboard computer system and it is clear to see that the new Ranger has been designed with winning in mind.

The Ranger is assembled at Ford´s Silverton Assembly Plant north of Pretoria following a multi-billion rand investment by Ford Motor Company in the countries facilities.

"We are extremely excited to see the Ranger in action. Both the road-going and race-ready versions of the Ranger are locally built demonstrating the depth of skill and expertise we have in South Africa," says Nagel.

Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa President and CEO Jeff Nemeth said: "Watching the Ranger in action for the first time will be a particularly proud moment for everyone at Ford´s Struandale and Silverton operations. South Africa is one of only three markets around the globe that produces the Ranger for export. It is therefore fitting that it will make its competitive racing debut here in South Africa."