SDAC-Ford (Sime Darby Auto ConneXion-Ford) recently organised a beginner's off-road driving experience for a group of Ford Ranger owners.
As part of the Ford Ranger Getaways with the tagline “Living the Ranger Life”, the latest 'getaway' was organised at the M4TREC Beginner 4WD Course located in Semenyih, Selangor. We met up with a group of excited Ranger owners to experience what their trucks are capable of in off-road conditions.
It wasn't surprising to see that almost all of the Ford Ranger owners of different generations, models, and variants have never taken their more-than-capable pickup trucks away from the paved roads. The M4TREC 4WD Course was indeed a good start to 'pop their cherries' in driving off-road with a multitude of obstacles set to ease their way into experiencing what their trucks were truly capable of for themselves.
A simple briefing from a master off-road expert kicked off the day before moving on to hands-on learning and working out the methods for basic off-road driving and what to do in different driving situations and road conditions.
In other words, it was time to switch the gears over to 4H and 4L, baby. That in itself was an exhilarating start for most of the folks who joined the course as it was their first time using the offroad settings that they'd never used before, particularly the rear diff lock.
Things started out with a simple hill climb to showcase the Ranger's Hill Start Assist followed by driving through V-shaped gullies. This is when the drivers worked on the suitable approach or departure angles as well as anticipating possible sliding (and how to counter them).
Moving to the more advanced side slopes, we can see that even though most of the owners have never gone through this particular driving condition, their more-than-capable Ford Rangers (along with clear instructions from the very experienced instructor) were able to tackle the side slopes with ease.
Other obstacles that were involved during the session were driving through muddy ridges, water wading, hill descent, and hill climbs. It was indeed a great experience for everyone who joined the course that day where they finally get to experience what their Rangers were designed for when going through roads that are less travelled (or paved for that matter).
There will be many more Ford Ranger Getaways that SDAC-Ford will organise in the near future. Fancy a driving trip to Gunung Jerai or another offroad course with a durian buffet? Head over to SDAC-Ford's official website to know more.
Keyword: SDAC-Ford organises beginner's off-road experience for Ford Ranger owners