(Updated) Ford Hires Independent Investigators to Look Into Possibly Misleading Fuel Economy Reporting: Ford Ranger MPG Under Microscope

Ford hires an independent outside company and lab to investigate and verify the company’s fuel economy and emissions modeling and reporting process. The 2019 Ford Ranger is the first vehicle that is being put under a microscope.

Ford reports that several employees raised concerns about the company’s mpg and emissions modeling processes in September 2018.

Ford Ranger MPG and emissions: being investigated

Here is the complete Ford media statement on this matter.

Ford states that there are no emission “defeat devices” involved. The issue appears to be with computer modeling and physical testing of several driving cycles as they relate to fuel economy estimates. The driving cycles in question are: road load and coastdown testing.

The new Ford Ranger and possibly other vehicles will be investigated.

Ford has notified the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and CARB (California Air Resources Board) officials of this matter.

The EPA currently certifies

  • 2019 Ford Ranger 2WD: 21 mpg city / 26 mpg highway / 23 mpg combined.
  • 2019 Ford Ranger 4×4: 20 mpg city / 24 mpg highway / 22 mpg combined.

We drove a new 2019 Ford Ranger crew cab 4×4 Lariat from Los Angeles, CA to Denver, CO on a road trip of approximately 1,147 miles with an average 20.7 mpg. The average driving speed of this test was 53.3 MPH, see the results in the video below.