The Ford Maverick Lobo Looks Sweet But It Isn’t The Best Maverick

Maybe it’s because I’m a child of the early 2000s, but I absolutely love a street truck. If you don’t live anywhere near proper trails but need a compact truck, why not go for one that looks sweet? Color-keyed cladding, alloy wheels, maybe a little drop. Think Chevrolet S-10 Xtreme and Dodge Dakota R/T. While the segment’s been presumed dead for ages, the Ford Maverick Lobo is single-handedly bringing it back.

On paper, it seems like an intriguing alternative to the Subaru WRX. An all-wheel-drive turbocharged machine with sports suspension, a trick differential, and a distinct air of nu metal. However, by adding some performance hardware, it loses some of its mulch-hauling capability. So, is the tradeoff worth it? I spent a week in one to find out.

[Full disclosure: Ford Canada let me borrow this Maverick Lobo for a week so long as I kept the shiny side up, returned it reasonably clean with a full tank of fuel, and reviewed it.]

The Basics

Engine: Two-liter twin-cam 16-valve turbocharged intercooled inline-four.

Transmission: Seven-speed torque converter automatic.

Drive: Full-time all-wheel-drive with torque vectoring rear differential.

Output: 250 horsepower at 5,500 RPM, 277 lb.-ft. at 3,000 RPM.

Fuel Economy: 21 MPG city, 30 MPG highway, 24 MPG combined (11.2 L/100km city, 7.8 L/100km highway, 9.7 L/100km combined)

Base Price: $37,775 including freight ($44,395 in Canada).

Price As-Tested: $43,270 including freight ($50,395 in Canada).

Why Does It Exist?

It feels cliché to say, but the Ford Maverick really did break the internet when it came out. A proper compact truck for America at a reasonable price with turbocharged or hybrid power, it’s no wonder it had a huge waitlist at launch. Striking with the ink barely dry, Tucci Hot Rods then built a Maverick street truck for the SEMA show in 2021, slamming it to the ground on turbofan wheels and giving it a proper body kit. It basically reignited the street truck craze in popular car culture, and the Lobo is Ford taking that idea in-house.

How Does It Look?

As far as modern street truck visuals go, the Maverick Lobo goes hard. It’s almost like Ford looked at the Tucci SEMA truck and enacted a mandate of “don’t change anything unless you absolutely have to.” Although the fluted vertical grillework won’t be to everyone’s tastes, the color-keyed bumpers and skirts put in overtime work on this trucklet. Oh, and I haven’t even mentioned the turbofan-look wheels, which seem to have burst to life straight out of an ’80s fever dream. Someone call Derek Zoolander, because this thing’s really, really ridiculously good-looking.

What About The Interior?

Slide behind the wheel of Ford’s smallest street truck, and you’ll find generally the same hardwearing interior as the standard Maverick, but with a few choice alterations. Firstly, check out the lime-and-blue stitching on the Lobo. That’s pretty swish, the sort of thing exotic carmakers would charge exorbitant sums for. At the same time, some of the light trim you’d find on a mid-range XLT model has been strategically darkened, with the most noticeable change being the console insert going from blue to black. It all adds up to a rather tasteful package, and one that comes with all the benefits of a regular Maverick.

We’re talking exceptionally comfortable seats, loads of interior storage, more rear seat space than in many midsize trucks, and solid visibility. A power-sliding rear window and sunroof on my tester really opened up the cabin for flow-through breezes, and the result is a pleasant place to watch the miles tick by.

How Does It Drive?

Even though the Maverick Lobo gets the same sort of two-liter, 250-horsepower turbocharged inline-four offered in every other Maverick, it does get some proper performance hardware downstream of it. We’re talking about a proper torque vectoring rear differential, bigger brakes, reworked steering, and a new suspension package that drops the little truck lower to the Earth. However, if you were expecting this hunkered-down Maverick to be a Subaru WRX competitor, you’d be mistaken.

For one, there’s the gearbox. Ford’s effectively locked a ratio out of its eight-speed automatic to create a quick-shifting seven-speed, and while that’s all well and good, the paddle shifters are merely a suggestion at times. You simply cannot force it to downshift into first until a comically low speed, below 10 MPH. On the other end of the spectrum, the gearbox will automatically upshift at redline in manual mode. Not optimal, especially if you find yourself in a position to use the Maverick’s “Lobo Mode.” Basically, it’s a drive mode that puts the torque vectoring rear differential to work, relaxes the stability control, and calls up more aggressive gearbox mapping. Unfortunately, it also pipes in some loud, hilariously mismatched fake V8-sounding engine noises. Come on, Ford.

Credit where credit’s due, the Maverick Lobo does remain remarkably level in the bends, but it’s also severely limited by its tire choice. We’re talking 680-treadwear highway tires that roll quietly, but give up early and often when the pace picks up. Combine that with steering that’s seriously heavy and less feelsome than you get in a standard Maverick, and the result just isn’t a big boost of fun. On the plus side, the on-road experience is fairly comfortable, but so is a standard Maverick, which can be optioned to tow 2,000 pounds more and haul 455 pounds more than the Lobo.

Does It Have The Electronic Crap I Want?

Depending on how deep your pockets go, largely. This high-series Maverick Lobo came rather well-equipped, with some weird exceptions. On the one hand, you get a real list of gadgets. A 360-degree camera system, a multi-stage heated steering wheel, trailer back-up assistance that turns the truck and trailer in the same direction you turn a dashboard-mounted knob, a big infotainment screen, a digital cluster, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a litany of USB-C and three-pin household sockets, push-to-start, that sort of stuff. However, the rearview mirror is of the old-school lever-flip day/night variety, and the power windows only have auto-down, not auto-up. Slightly nicer switches would’ve cost what, a few extra cents? Hard to justify in a base Maverick, but at this price level, surely an exception can be made.

My loaded Lobo test truck also came with the optional eight-speaker B&O sound system, which is very loud. Is it very good? No, but it’s loud enough to cave in your neighbor’s front window. Plenty of volume, warm bass, but poor overall imaging with noticeable distortion. There’s definitely an increase in performance over the base sound system, but it’s amazing Bang & Olufsen’s willing to brand this with its initials.

Three Things To Know About The 2026 Ford Maverick Lobo

1. There’s some interesting hardware in addition to those magazine-good looks.
2. It takes a serious towing and payload hit over a regular model.
3. Don’t expect it to be massively more engaging than a standard Maverick.

Does The Ford Maverick Lobo Fulfil Its Purpose?

Sort of. The Ford Maverick Lobo is a weirdly compromised thing. It can’t be optioned with the 4,000-pound towing package you can get on most other models, it takes a substantial payload capacity hit, and its performance features just don’t feel fully fleshed out. It’s neat to see Ford take a swing at this, but I can’t help but get the feeling that the Lobo would’ve made more sense as an appearance package, because its best asset is its rakish visual package. At an as-tested price of $43,270, if you’re looking for an engaging yet reasonably practical daily driver, a Hyundai Elantra N, Subaru WRX, or Volkswagen Golf GTI is probably more in your wheelhouse. Likewise, if you’re looking to do trucky stuff, a Maverick XLT EcoBoost AWD with the 4K Tow Package is less expensive and probably a better pick. An extra 455 pounds of payload capacity goes a long way.

What’s The Punctum Of The Ford Maverick Lobo?

It looks great, but the performance-lite treatment doesn’t go far enough to justify the Maverick Lobo’s capability compromises.

Top graphic image: Thomas Hundal