Maverick Returns? Spied Tailgate Hints at Ford Pickup to Come

It’s no secret that Ford has a compact, unibody pickup coming down the product pipeline, what with well-camouflaged prototypes seen by photographers and the admission from the company that a small trucklet is something it feels is worthwhile pursuing.

A small truck based on the same platform underpinning the Escape and Euro-market Focus might well prove a valuable addition to the company’s crowded utility lineup, but we now have a fairly solid piece of evidence that this product will resurrect a bit of the past.

A spy photo published by Motor1 shows a cute little tailgate adorned with the stamped name “ Maverick.” A bare oval below the tailgate handle should leave no doubt as to the badge intended for that space.

The name Maverick, which once described a forgettable compact Ford sedan in the 1970s, was always the expected moniker for this upcoming vehicle. Ford kept the name well protected, trademarking it (or renewing the existing mark) at the end of 2016. It also trademarked the Courier name, which is something overseas buyers would recognize; not so much domestic customers. It’s possible this vehicle is bound for different sides of the Atlantic with different names (ones that resonate with local customers), or perhaps Ford was hedging its bets. Maybe the trademark timing is just a coincidence.

Whatever the truth behind that, the pickup sibling of the Bronco Sport is expected to appear in 2021, perhaps in a more rugged form than we initially assumed. Its powertrain and suspension will probably be a carry-over from the Escape’s butch sibling.

Ford’s not talking about future product (quelle surprise!), but the Maverick, if that’s indeed what it plans to go by, will give Ford the only compact pickup among the Detroit Three automakers. Just in time, too, as Hyundai’s U.S.-built Santa Cruz pickup follows pretty much the same recipe — and it’s due to land around the same time.

It’s fun to watch the (re) birth of a segment.

[Image: Ford]