2023 Ford Maverick Tremor Review – Keeping Character Intact

by Tim Healey

Published: November 21st, 2023

Fast Facts

2023 Ford Maverick Tremor Fast Facts

Powertrain

2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder (250 horsepower @ 5,500 RPM, 277 lb-ft @ 3,000 RPM)

Transmission/Drive-Wheel Layout

Eight-speed automatic, all-wheel drive

Fuel Economy, MPG

20 city / 24 highway / 21 combined (EPA Rating, MPG)

Fuel Economy, L/100km

11.9 city / 9.9 highway / 11.0 combined. (NRCan Rating, L/100km)

Base Price

$24,455 (U.S.) / $34,200 (Canada)

As-Tested Price

$34,207 (U.S.) / $43,180 (Canada)

Prices include $1,495 destination charge in the United States and $2,195 for freight, PDI, and A/C tax in Canada and, because of cross-border equipment differences, can’t be directly compared.

2023 ford maverick tremor review keeping character intact

Sometimes, a trim level just feels unnecessary. That’s the case with the 2023 Ford Maverick Tremor.

The Maverick is so good on its own that adding the Tremor package just seems like overkill. Especially if you don’t go off-road.

Certainly some Maverick owners will take to the trails. We’re betting it won’t be many, though. Like me during my week-long test, most drivers won’t be wandering off of the pavement.

Those who do opt for this package will get a suspension tuned for off-roading with shocks and springs that differ from the other trim levels, an increased ride height, Trail Control (essentially an off-road version of cruise control), front skid plates, a locking electronic rear differential, a twin-clutch rear drive unit, off-road gauges, a heavy-duty transmission cooler, a trailer hitch, full-size spare, 17-inch wheels with all-terrain tires, a revised front bumper that improves the approach angle, front tow hooks, and a bunch of interior and exterior markings, including orange accents.

Oh, and your Tremor will be Avalanche Gray.

Other than that, you’re getting the usual Maverick experience. Which remains ever thus – a fairly car-like small truck that can still do truck stuff well. Increasing the ride height and slapping on some off-road items doesn’t really change that.

That’s a good thing. One might worry that increasing the ride height and shodding the wheels with all-terrain rubber could be detrimental to ride and handling or lead to increased tire noise, but the difference was mostly negligible. The truck still rode and handled generally well, and if there was extra tire noise it was hard to notice.

The question is, how capable is the Tremor off road? Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to find out.

Otherwise the experience was pretty standard Maverick with the 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine. While I love that Ford offers a hybrid Maverick – and I’ve heard from at least one real-world hybrid Mav user that the fuel economy numbers are great – I find the 2.0-liter to be more responsive when it comes to the type of acceleration needed for suburban cut-and-thrust driving.

The steering feels nicely dialed in, if a bit artificial at times. This remains a driver’s truck.

Outside of the Tremor décor, the interior remains nicely functional, with a few letdowns in material quality here and there. It’s a comfortable, well-designed cabin that’s a pleasant place to while away the time in traffic. And there are actual radio and HVAC knobs! Praise be. Yes, the infotainment system is glued on, but we’ll make that trade.

To get the Tremor Package, you have to start with the XLT trim. My tester came standard with a locking tailgate, LED headlamps, cruise control, single-zone A/C, USB A and C ports, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, pre-collision assist with automatic emergency braking, and a rearview camera.

I listed the basic Tremor Package above, but in addition to the functional bits, a Tremor Package with Appearance is available. The basic Tremor package is a bit under 3 grand, while opting for Tremor with Appearance will set you back $4,490 and net you, on the XLT, a hood/lower body cladding graphic and carbonize roof (there’s more if you’re base truck is a Lariat).

Other options included Ford’s Co-Pilot 360, splash guards, and a spray-in bedliner. This lead to an out-the-door price of $34,207.

I can’t imagine opting for the Tremor Package unless I had a need for some light off-roading and/or really liked the graphics. That said, if it’s necessary for you – or you just really want it – it won’t do much harm, if any, to the Maverick’s already great on-road experience. Nor will it negatively affect the rest of the truck’s utility.

The regular Maverick will be just fine for most folks – but those who tick the proper options boxes won’t regret it.

[Images: Ford]

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Tim Healey

Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.

More by Tim Healey

Comments

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3 of 70 comments

Michael S6 on Nov 25, 2023

Ford has no interest in selling many Mavericks as every Maverick represent a $10,000 profit loss on an F150 sale.

1 Reply
- Jeff on Nov 26, 2023
  
  That same argument was made by the Big 3 in the 70s that they had more interest in selling large full size cars instead of compact and subcompact cars because of the higher profit margin. The only flaw in that argument is that the manufacturers assumed that they could get the buyers of compact and subcompact buyers to buy full size cars instead. What happened instead was those buyers bought German and Japanese compact cars instead and then the Big 3 decided to make their own small cars. The other point to make is that a manufacturer needs less expensive and more affordable vehicles to get new younger buyers otherwise your customer base ages out and the manufacturer loses sales. I would be happy to see other manufacturers enter into the compact truck market if Ford doesn't want to sell Mavericks and if GM and Stellantis doesn't want to enter the compact truck market then maybe its time for the Chinese to enter the market they could always set up assembly plants in Mexico. I bought my Maverick not because it was a Ford I bought it because I wanted a smaller truck with good mpgs otherwise I would have kept the truck I had and I would not have replaced it with a full size or intermediate truck. Not everyone wants a full size pickup and not everyone can afford to pay 60k to 100k for a full size pickup.
  
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Dukeisduke on Nov 27, 2023

I've never liked the styling of the Maverick (especially the grille), and this one is especially egregious. And now the same dorkiness has infected the Ranger.

1 Reply

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