Automotive subcultures never die. They wane and wax. When they wane, there’s always a tuner in a garage somewhere working on the form few remember. When they wax, automakers jump on board, building versions straight from the factory.
It’s the street truck’s time once again.
Street trucks – speedy trucks, often lowered, built for life on pavement – never really disappeared. The subculture is still large enough to support a small magazine and a bustling parts industry. But they’ve been out of the spotlight for years.
They’re coming back like big pants. So back that Ford has released a factory street truck. Meet the 2025 Ford Maverick Lobo.
Ford doesn’t view the Lobo as a finished truck. Instead, the company says, it’s a “new canvas for modern street truck builds.” But you could buy one and drive it for years unchanged, looking pretty cool.
The Lobo will start at $36,595 (including a $1,595 destination charge). You can order one starting today, with deliveries set for early 2025.
Upgraded Suspension, Brakes, Torque Vectoring
The 2025 Ford Maverick, unveiled yesterday, will continue to offer either a hybrid powertrain or a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine. The Lobo edition will be turbo-only.
The heart of the truck doesn’t change. It’s the same 238-horsepower 2.0-liter turbo 4-cylinder engine under the hood. But it’s modified with the radiator and fan from the Maverick towing package to keep the engine cool when pushed harder. It sends power through a 7-speed automatic transmission not available on other Maverick trims.
Shift paddles show its sport nature. The Lobo is all-wheel-drive.
A twin-clutch rear drive unit borrowed from the Bronco Sport enables torque vectoring in Lobo Mode, which Ford recommends “only for closed course usage.” A performance-tuned steering rack not available on other Maverick trims tightens the handling even in daily driving modes.
Enhanced brakes with dual-piston calipers come from the Ford Focus ST, a Europe-only performance car.
Since Ford expects buyers to keep their Lobos on the road, the suspension is tuned stiffer for more responsive handling.
Lowered, With One-Color Look
The truck sits half an inch lower at the front and 1.12 inches lower in the back – street trucks are usually low – with a roof height nearly an inch lower.
When designers make a truck for off-road use, they often build the lower body parts out of scratch-resistant black plastic. Painting them all body-colored reveals the truck’s street intentions. The Lobo is almost all one color, from the mirrors to the bumpers. Only the roof is black.
But the most eye-catching feature might be the 19-inch black plate wheels. They’re aerodynamic, yes. But more than that, they advertise the street truck attitude. If you don’t like them, you can choose a more conventional set of wheels.
Interior Chosen by a Shoe Designer
To design the Lobo’s interior, Ford hired a sneaker designer and sent her on a street art tour to stimulate her creativity.
She upholstered the Lobo in black flecked subtly with Ford’s signature Grabber Blue hue. Then, she traced the stitching in a combination of Grabber Blue and Electric Lime. Ford says the “color combination is a nod to current streetwear trends, where multiple colors are often used together in a way that brings harmony without matching perfectly.”
A Lobo High trim adds heated seats and steering wheel, a 360-degree camera, spray-in bedliner, and a moonroof.
We’d love to tell you what it competes with. But there’s nothing like the Lobo coming from a factory today. Street truck culture belongs to tuners and modification shops. However they choose to greet it, it’s a sign that their work is being recognized again by automakers themselves.
