Is the Ford Maverick a Good Pickup Truck?
- Small interior touches, a fresh face, a new Lobo performance trim level and the addition of available all-wheel drive for the existing hybrid drivetrain make the updated 2025 Ford Maverick one of the most compelling affordable vehicles on the market.
How Does the Ford Maverick Compare With Other Pickup Trucks?
- Competition in the compact truck class is scarce in the U.S. For now, it’s just the Hyundai Santa Cruz facing down the Maverick, and the Ford is far, far more compelling from a presentation, packaging, capability and affordability standpoint.
Oh heck yeah. The 2025 Ford Maverick finally offers all-wheel drive with its hybrid powertrain, and there’s a new performance-oriented variant? Talk about listening to your customers. These major additions, along with a larger standard infotainment screen and some minor stylistic tweaks, significantly elevate what was already one of the most compelling sub-$30,000 vehicles on the market.
Related: 2025 Ford Maverick: Mini Truck, Max Utility
What Engine Does the Ford Maverick Hybrid Have?
Let’s kick it off with the hybrid. The powertrain is untouched, the core of which remains a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine augmented by a transmission-mounted electric motor, a setup Ford calls an “eCVT.” Unlike traditional belt-driven continuously variable transmissions, Ford’s eCVT is simply a planetary gearset with an integrated electric motor, making it both simpler and more robust than its belted cousins.
That’s old news, as that’s been in the front-wheel-drive Maverick hybrid since day one. Now, this same powertrain can incorporate a mechanical clutch and driveshaft that routes power to the rear wheels when slippage is detected. This is a welcome alternative to the e-AWD systems found in some hybrid models like the popular Toyota RAV4 Hybrid; though certainly effective in some environments, the rear-electric-motor-based e-AWD system has proven less flexible and adaptive than the classic driveshaft-based setup.
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How Does the Ford Maverick Hybrid Drive?
Not that you’ll notice much difference during day-to-day driving. After putting close to 1,000 miles on a FWD Maverick hybrid when it launched a few years ago, the differences in character with the new AWD system are nearly imperceptible. And, that’s just the way I like it; the FWD electro-Mav remains one of the better-driving affordable hybrids on the market.
The handoff between the initial surge from the electric motor to the gas four-cylinder is near-seamless, with the combined 191 horsepower providing more than enough gumption for relatively confident merging and attentive passing. It ain’t quick, but there’s plenty of motivation for virtually any daily scenario, even while hauling a passenger or two.
If you do end up constantly burying the accelerator pedal, you won’t simultaneously reach for hearing protection as you might in other budget-oriented, CVT-backed vehicles. The 2.5-liter engine is well isolated from the cabin, and the eCVT is less screamy than a traditional belt-driven CVT powertrain like the kind in, say, an autowriter’s personal Subaru Crosstrek Sport.
Brake blend between pure regenerative resistance and the physical brakes is excellent, too. I believe the customer overlap between trucklet-seeking Maverick buyers and dedicated hybrid seekers is fairly narrow, so a low hybrid learning curve is ideal for the typical Maverick driver. Do you feel the mass of the AWD system’s extra 200-ish pounds? Maybe, but the bulk adds minimal heft to the Maverick’s crossover-like handling character, with the only thing reminding you of the truck bed out back is a glance at the rearview mirror.
Everything else is right where you left it in 2024, including the terribly clever interior packaging and rugged materials. However, fuel efficiency does take a small hit when you jump from FWD to AWD, with EPA-estimated combined gas mileage dropping from 38 to 37 mpg.
What Is the Ford Maverick Lobo?
So while the new AWD Maverick hybrid offers big benefits with little change in the truck’s real-world character, elsewhere in the lineup, the new Lobo sport trim seeks big change with its suite of performance-minded upgrades. It’s been repeated ad nauseam at this point, but think of the Maverick Lobo as a descendant of the sport compact trucks of the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s, a time when automakers infused small trucks like the Ford Ranger and Chevrolet S-10 with style and performance packages.
Naturally, this followed the vibrant mini- and sport-truck subculture that saw passionate enthusiasts swappin’, slammin’ and airbrushing their trucks to match the contemporary hot-rodding trends. This era arguably hit its apogee in the ‘90s with the GMC Syclone and first-generation Ford F-150 Lightning, where power and presence were prioritized over handling.
The Maverick Lobo switches this up. It’s offered exclusively with the Mav’s available turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 250 hp and 277 pounds-feet of torque, but this engine’s familiar eight-speed automatic transmission has been replaced with a seven-speed automatic shared with the European Focus ST. Also from the Focus are the front twin-piston brake calipers, complemented by a revised steering rack and a suspension drop of 0.5 inches in the front and just over 1.1 inches in the rear that adds both stiffness and visual rake.
The Lobo also uses the twin-clutch rear differential from the Maverick Tremor and certain iterations of the Bronco Sport — and, if you go back far enough, you can trace some of its DNA from the bygone Focus RS. The differential’s torque-vectoring capability is active when the track-focused Lobo mode is engaged. Lobo mode also reduces stability-system intervention.
Is the Ford Maverick Lobo Fast?
All this and some style thanks to a unique front end, special interior accents, body-color trim and wicked monobloc-style 19-inch wheels. It’s quite the compelling sport trucklet on paper and in person, but I’m afraid it’s far from the hot hatch (hot tailgate?) both myself and other enthusiasts wished for.
Despite the new transmission, the Lobo feels no quicker in a straight line than a regular turbocharged Maverick, which accelerated from 0-60 mph in 6.4 seconds when we last tested a 2022 model. The engine sounds a bit gruffer when on the move, but the tone is neither very aggressive nor particularly “cool.” Steering is modestly improved in terms of weight and feel, and the reworked suspension does cut down on some body roll, but the Lobo still feels very much like a vehicle forced to exercise when it really, really doesn’t want to.
Rainy conditions meant I didn’t get to smash ‘n scream through an autocross course, but a good eight or so hot laps riding shotgun with a Ford dynamics engineer proved its capability is indeed elevated above a non-Lobo Maverick. Still, it’s also no match for any hot hatch.
I asked one of the Ford engineers why the Lobo doesn’t wear the vaunted ST badge, considering the automaker’s Explorer three-row SUV offers an ST variant. He told me the ST development team is a close-knit one and that there are internal directives and checklists that an ST product must meet for approval. Considering the semi-parts-bin nature of the Lobo treatment, it starts to make sense.
I’m glad the Lobo exists, and I’m sure there are plenty of Ford and Maverick enthusiasts who are counting down the minutes until their order is fulfilled, but I wish it went a bit further — especially with the Focus RS’ 350-hp, turbo 2.3-liter four-cylinder sitting right there. Alternatively, I bet there’s a way to crank the truck’s turbo 2.0-liter up a bit.
Actually, I’m sure of it, and I think Ford is, as well. The Lobo feels purpose-built for the nascent Maverick tuning community, and I expect the aftermarket will have an absolute field day with the long-proven powertrain. This makes a whole lot more sense to me than how the Lobo is right out of the box; get some real tires, a bigger suspension drop, a reflash, a gnarly turbo and a comprehensive exhaust, and you should be picking on Ford Mustang GTs in no time.
Don’t get it twisted — the Lobo is still a Maverick, which means it’s a fantastic little truck. It still possesses all the brilliant packaging, excellent ‘round-town usability and weekend-warrior utility that’s ensconced it as Ford’s affordable giga-hit. Now, with a sport-oriented trim sitting pretty with the off-road Tremor, luxe Lariat and AWD hybrid models, there’s truly a Maverick for everyone.
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