Ford Maverick (US) review

It’s the Ford Maverick, the Steve Rodgers to the F-150 Raptor’s Captain America. Like its comic book analogue, what it lacks in brawn it makes up in heart, thanks to a high level of versatility engineered into a small package.

Since its debut in 2021, the Maverick quickly found its audience of drivers in need of a pickup truck’s utility but not the usual massive footprint that accompanies it. For 2025, Ford has refined the Maverick’s offerings by tweaking the existing line-up in response to customer feedback, as well as adding two new models that address both sides of the pickup’s personality.

Sounds neat. What are the details?

The Maverick comes in one unibody configuration, a four-door, five-seater supercrew cab with a 54.4-inch truck bed. Its standard powertrain is its hybrid setup consisting of a 2.5-liter I4 paired with an e-motor that provides a total of 191hp and 155lb ft of torque.

The other engine option is a 2.0-liter turbo 4 EcoBoost that gins up 250hp and 277lb ft. The former is married to a CVT transmission while the latter connects to a traditional eight-speed auto box, and the new Lobo Maverick gets its own seven-speed.

From the start, the hybrid Maverick was only available as a front-wheel drive option while the EcoBoost could be ordered with either FWD or AWD, much to the lament of the ever-growing Maverick fanbase. Those cries were heard and now AWD is available on the hybrid model as well.

With this established, the Maverick now has its own off-the-shelf specialty models, the off-road ready Tremor and the street-styling Lobo, a low-riding autocross-capable edition for more urban adventuring.

Hang on, did you say autocross?

We did! The Maverick Lobo is an EcoBoost powered version of the truck with a tuned-up suspension, enhanced brakes borrowed from the Focus ST, and a twin-clutch rear drive unit tweaked to provide torque vectoring. These mechanical changes turn the mini-pickup into a drift-capable plaything, helped along by its slide-friendly “Lobo mode” drive setting.

It’s a half inch lower in the front and more than an inch lower in the back, so it’s not slammed, but the dimensions do technically make it SCCA compliant, if you wanted to take it to autocross events.

So how is it to drive?

In all its iterations, the Maverick retains its truck-like handling though it does feel quite analogous to a compact four-door more often than not, almost as if you were sat in a lifted Honda Civic. With that said, it’s super approachable for those put off by the idea of driving something the size of its heftier siblings.

While the popular hybrid is perfectly suitable and indeed the darling to those angling to keep fuel costs at bay, it predictably lacks any substantial grunt past the mid-range requiring a full-flat foot to muster up highway merging speeds. The EcoBoost engine fares a bit better, but it’s not a rocket by any stretch, and apart from the modicum of extra pull, the true advantage of this powertrain is its marriage with a traditional automatic gearbox. This gives anyone trying to wrench out some spirited driving more control over the performance thanks to the paddle shifters.

When it comes to going off-road, there’s enough capability to handle most dirt-driving and hill-climbing needs, and though it would likely give a valiant effort, real heavy-duty terrain is out of its scope. Would be fun to try though if you had a Raptor handy to spot you.

Lastly, the Maverick Lobo adds a good deal of character to an already charming ride thanks to its unique style accessories and playful handling. It might not be the car we would choose for a backroad thrash but a fun stretch of switchbacks isn’t wasted if you’re behind the wheel of this Mav when encountered.

A pocket knife is often more handy to have than a machete. Similarly, the Ford Maverick is a brilliant utility solution that doesn’t ask for much of a compromise in lifestyle. For the most part, it drives and behaves like an affordable, compact car, it just so happens to have a truck bed. This makes it much more approachable than larger trucks in terms of usability and far less intimidating to those put off by the monstrousness of today’s typical pickup. Something worth considering for city-dwellers looking for something a little more useful and rugged that won’t take up precious space.

Whatever the task may be, you’ll find it to be quite versatile in terms of storage solutions and utility, even – or more accurately in spite of – its compact nature. It’s likely to be seen more on the street than off, but the option to have it off-road capable is useful, particularly for those in rural areas who just need something to tackle small jobs or adventures just beyond the beaten path.