Video: Ford Ranger tested to hell and back

The next generation of the Ford Ranger pickup will be sold in 180 countries worldwide, which means it has to be near-perfectly constructed to withstand all kinds of environments. In the video, Ford tells us what it put the new Ranger through to achieve unparalleled durability.

Prototypes of the truck were even stress-tested in a scorching desert, where every 10,000 kilometers (6,200 miles) put about as much strain on the vehicle as 1,250,000 kilometers (777,000 miles) of normal use. Throughout the exhaustive tests, pickups needed to withstand temperatures rising to +50 ºC (+122 ºF) and above, while some of them had to climb over mountain passes in these weather conditions.

Virtual reality simulations were also a thing: the engineering department of Ford used computer-based modeling to speed up development and narrow down the choices of parts and technologies used by eliminating obviously subpar ones. Finally, the dev team used robotic equipment to simulate off-road driving in a laboratory environment, tracking the performance of the suspension day and night and making adjustments.

Ford remains tight-lipped about the launch date of the new Ranger, but it looks right around the corner.