Ford Ranger snubbed at design awards

THE only Australian-designed vehicle entered in the finals of the Australian International Design Awards, the Ford Ranger ute, has missed out to imported cars designed in Europe.

The top gong in the Automotive and Transport category went to the Audi A7 Sportback, ahead of the Kia Optima and Peugeot 3008. All three of these vehicles were acknowledged with Design Awards.

The Ranger – designed and engineered by Ford Australia at its Melbourne headquarters – had to settle for an also-ran Good Design award, as did the Peugeot RCZ and Hyundai Elantra.

The last Australian-designed car to win the top award at the design competition was the VE Holden Sportwagon in 2009.

Organised by Good Design Australia and spun off from Standards Australia last year, the awards cover a wide range of industrial design, from medical equipment to heavy machinery and consumer goods, and are open to all comers from around the world.

The $142,750 Audi A7 Sportback, a four-door luxury hatchback launched in Australia earlier this year, was designed in Germany, as was the Kia Optima, the latter by former Audi stylist Peter Schreyer.

From top: Audi A7, Kia Optima, Peugeot 3008.

The French-designed Peugeot 3008 crossover vehicle was singled out for praise by the design awards judges for its panoramic sunroof.

Aside from the six vehicles in the final round, the automotive and transport category at this year’s awards also attracted three Safe-n-Sound child car seats, as well as new type of cargo container, SFC Group’s Superlite, with hard plastic side doors in place of vinyl sides.

The awards ceremony in Melbourne was opened by the Victorian premier Ted Ballieu, who said his government was targeting growth in the design industry in the southern state.

All three Australian motor manufacturers – Toyota, Holden and Ford – have design studios in Melbourne. Holden and Ford in particular have secured major global design jobs from their parent companies, winning international praise for their results.

Fresh from its Ranger project, Ford Australia is now working on other derivatives of the locally engineered T6 light truck platform that spawned the Ranger, including an SUV.

The Thai-built Ranger is set to go on sale in Australia within two months, with Mazda’s T6-based sister ute, the BT-50, following later in the year.

The Ford Ranger will be sold in dual-cab, single-cab and super-cab configurations in two- and four-wheel drive, with a choice of three engines – a pair of turbo-diesel engines in 147kW/470Nm 3.2-litre five-cylinder or 110kW/375Nm 2.2-litre four-cylinder guise, and a 122kW/226Nm 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol.