Will the Electric Ford Ranger Truck Get a Reboot?

In August 2024, Ford Authority reported on rumors surrounding the news that EVinfo.net reported on two weeks ago, when Ford made it’s big unveiling of its new EV platform that has been under wraps for a few years now.

On August 11, 2025, Ford Motor Company announced a bold new chapter in its 122-year history, revealing the Ford Universal EV Platform and Ford Universal EV Production System. Together, they promise to deliver a new generation of affordable, high-quality, software-defined electric vehicles to millions worldwide—starting with a midsize, four-door electric pickup scheduled to launch in 2027.

Ford Authority guessed a year ago that the midsize, four-door electric pickup scheduled to launch in 2027 would be a reboot of the original Ford Ranger EV, which began production in the 1998 model year.

“While it didn’t come out and specifically say that this vehicle is the Ford Ranger EV, it makes sense, given the fact that the current Ranger is the automaker’s only mid-size pickup at the moment,” said Ford Authority.

In the United States, the Ranger is only available as an internal combustion engine (ICE) version, featuring the XL, XLT, Lariat, and Raptor trims.

In Europe, the Ranger is available as a PHEV (plug-in hybrid). Its 2.3-litre EcoBoost petrol engine is supported by a 75 kW electric motor driven by an 11.8 kWh usable lithium-ion battery. This combination enables up to 43 km (approximately 26–27 miles) of pure electric driving, marking a major leap in Ford’s electrification strategy for Europe’s best-selling pickup.

Ford Ranger EV: 1998–2002

The Ford Ranger EV, introduced for the 1998 model year, was Ford’s first all-electric production vehicle. Built on the same light truck chassis as the Ford Explorer, it looked nearly identical to its gasoline counterpart but swapped the engine for a 90-hp, 140-lb-ft AC induction motor and a 23-kWh lead-acid battery.

With a top speed of 75 mph, MotorTrend clocked its 0–60 run at 16.4 seconds. Range was modest, about 50 miles in mild weather, dropping to just 35 in the cold. Later, Ford upgraded to a nickel–metal hydride (NiMH) battery with roughly 65 miles of range.

MotorTrend editor Jack Keebler tested a Ranger EV in 1998 and found it surprisingly capable: “Forget any worry about holding up traffic… with so few noise cues, I kept an eye on the speedo or risked a ticket,” said Keebler.

Still, practicality had limits. The truck carried a 700-pound payload, but its $32,795 price tag (about $62,500 today) and a $5,000 battery replacement every 25,000 miles ($9,500 today) made ownership costly. Production ran until 2002, with an estimated 1,500–2,000 built, most going to fleet leases.

In the 1996 photo below, Ford Engineer Daniel Schumann appears with the Ford Ranger EV in hot weather testing at Ford AZ Proving Grounds, in Yucca, Arizona.

REVolt, the official website of the Ranger EV owners group, is intended as a gateway to a variety of resources to support Ranger EV owners. The site is dedicated to the preservation of the Ford Ranger EV and the history of the Ranger EV Development Program.

REVolt provides copies of these original Ford Brochures shown below, and much more.

Chevy’s Electric S10 Was First

Ford wasn’t the first to release a 1990’s electric truck. Its crosstown rival Chevrolet launched the S-10 EV in 1997, using a derated version of the EV1’s front-drive AC-induction motor. The base 16.2-kWh lead-acid battery managed just 33 miles of range, while the optional 29-kWh NiMH pack stretched that to 72. Fewer than 500 were built over two model years, making it even rarer than the Ranger EV.

In January 2025, EVinfo.net profiled Ryan Dela’s 1997 Chevy S-10 EV, affectionately named “Buddy.” Dela, an EV and renewable energy engineering expert, has owned the truck for 21 years and, with his wife Frances, is bringing it back to life.

GM’s EV1 Led the 90’s California EV Revolution

The Ranger and S10 were a part of a larger push for EVs at the time. In California in the 1990’s, the EV revolution was resurrected from its first iteration in the 1800’s. EV companies thrived until the gas-powered Ford Model T was released in 1908. By 1923, The Model T’s price was under $300, and many electric cars were 10 times as costly. The resulting popularity of the Model T is believed by most experts to be the cause of the EV’s downfall at the time, in favor of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.

GM’s EV1 was the leader of California’s EV revolution. The General Motors EV1, introduced in 1996, was the first mass-produced electric vehicle of the modern era offered by a major automaker. Sleek, aerodynamic, and futuristic, the two-seat coupe represented a bold step toward sustainable transportation at a time when EV technology was still in its infancy.

The EV1 delivered a range of about 70 to 100 miles on lead-acid batteries, later improved with nickel-metal hydride packs, and could accelerate from 0–60 mph in under nine seconds, impressive for its day. Despite generating passionate enthusiasm among drivers, the EV1 was never sold, only leased, and production remained limited.

By 2003, GM discontinued the program and recalled nearly all vehicles, sparking controversy and public outcry that later became the subject of Chris Paine’s documentary Who Killed the Electric Car?. Today, the EV1 is remembered both as a technological pioneer and as a symbol of the challenges and resistance faced by early electric vehicles.

In 2005, Dave Raboy, Heather Bernikoff, Marc Geller, Linda Nicholes, Chelsea Sexton, Paul Scott, Sherry Boschert, and other passionate EV drivers rallied to galvanize citizen grassroots action to form and save the EV1 and other EVs by founding DontCrush.com, which evolved into Plug In America, a well-respected non-profit organization focused on supporting EV adoption.

Sadly, the effort was not successful, and GM crushed nearly all the EV1s. The story is compelling in 2025, as GM has completely come full circle as one of America’s top EV-producing companies along with Ford, Rivian, Lucid, Hyundai, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and others. Currently, GM is the number-two EV seller in the US.

Remembering the Pioneer Electric Pickups: Ford Ranger EV and Chevy S-10 EV

Today’s electric pickups, from the Ford F-150 Lightning to the Rivian R1T, deliver well over 300 miles of range, lightning-quick acceleration, and advanced tech features. But two humble trucks from the late 1990s, the Ford Ranger EV and Chevrolet S-10 EV, paved the way for what we see on the road today. Though often forgotten, they proved that even work-focused trucks could be powered by electricity.

Will Ford Reboot the electric Ranger? Only time will tell.