Hungry like the Lobo: Wheel Woman drives the 2025 Ford Maverick

It was a slick escape from Montreal Trudeau Airport’s constant construction commotion and into my first test drive unit.

Ford Canada invited a group of journalists to Quebec to meet the new Maverick, the pickup truck with the lowest starting price ($36,795) in Canada, and four of its funky personalities.

For the first part of the drive, I got to the resort town of Mont Tremblant in the Laurentian Mountains behind the wheel of the 2025 Maverick in Lariat trim.

Under the hood is Ford’s 2.0L EcoBoost engine which delivers 250 horsepower and 277 lb-ft of torque through an eight-speed automatic transmission.

The comfy cabin, with a larger display screen than the previous Maverick, is swathed in the now-available Smoked Truffle interior colour. The earthy brown does bring to mind what a truffle might look like if one smoked it. The exterior of this Maverick is wrapped in Eruption Green and, while I’m not usually a green car fan, the hue is quite lovely.

Sweat trickled down my spine at the thought of tomorrow’s agenda with the 2025 Ford Maverick

The two-hour drive gave me time to get to know the Maverick, find photo locations, and feel nervous yet excited about tomorrow’s agenda and my mission at Circuit Mécaglisse, a 700-acre complex of 15 thrilling kilometres of dirt, gravel, sand, ice and asphalt tracks north of Mont-Tremblant.

There would be an off-road component featuring the Maverick Tremor (new for 2025) and then some high-speed laps in the new street-smart Maverick Lobo. Yikes. Then, trailering. Double yikes.

Would I roll the Maverick Lobo in a panicked overcorrection on a tight turn to be forever ridiculed as that ‘blogger’ who couldn’t handle Turn 2? Would I jackknife a trailer while seasoned national journalists snickered, cameras rolling?

I felt pinpricks of sweat trickling down my spine.

I shook the images from my mind and turned to the fun at hand. The drive up the Autoroute des Laurentides! The highway provides les Montréalais with an all-season escape to the mountains.

Ford’s 2.0-litre EcoBoost gets us over the (potholed) hills and far away

It’s a fast road. It dips, climbs, twists and turns. It’s a mix of two-way sections with passing lanes plus stretches of divided four-lane highway. There are plenty of trucks and passing is frequent.

Ford’s 2.0-litre EcoBoost engine’s responsiveness instills confidence when initiating a pass on those inclines. Body roll on turns was non-existent for the compact pickup.

Mais, o la la! Les nids-de-poule des routes du Québec au printemps! Those potholes on the roads of Québec in springtime!

The Maverick felt really good on those boisterous bumps and harassing holes, almost as if Ford planned the potholes.

At the hotel in Mont Tremblant, we stood outside admiring a line-up of four Maverick pickups, including the new Hybrid AWD, Tremor and Lobo models, showcasing four distinct personalities.

Ford reps described how the four personalities of Maverick were designed, engineered, tweaked and decorated for 2025.

Mathieu Rompré, Product Marketing Manager, told us when the first Maverick launched in 2022, not only did the jaunty compact pickup bring new customers to Ford, but also to the truck market.

And not just new customers. Maverick brought customers returning to Ford from long ago, and now Maverick has the highest loyalty rate of any Ford vehicle at 85%!

Kristen Keenan, Colours and Materials Designer for Lobo and Tremor, explained that graffiti and street art inspired her work in designing Lobo’s unique interior, including the eye-catching double stitching throughout the cabin in Grabber Blue and Electric Lime.

In the off-road-capable Maverick Tremor, she envisioned playing in dirt and muddy terrain which prompted those sick speckled seats and bold accents in Tremor Orange.

Day 2: Time to hit the track

All this information amped up anticipation for Day 2, which was foggy, damp and chilly, perfect for playing in the dirt with Maverick Tremor and whipping Lobo through its paces on the asphalt.

Departing Mont-Tremblant behind the wheel of my next tester on my way to the track, I got off the beaten path, er, lost, but the twisting, bumpy gravel road I ‘discovered’ proved the perfect ride and handling test for the Maverick Hybrid AWD.

It was also a good demonstration of the new-for-2025 2.5-litre AWD powertrain’s fuel economy, which is only slightly less efficient than the front-wheel drive version.

Even though I found it a bit less responsive than the EcoBoost, I’m certain the Maverick with the hybrid AWD setup will appeal to many Canadians, as it was the most requested feature from customers.

Maverick ticks the efficiency and affordability boxes. Now, it was time to test its capabilities.

Maverick LOBO: Hungry like the Wolf

On the slick surface of Mécaglisse’s paved autocross course, I became acquainted with Lobo, its cool rims, bigger brakes and a twin-clutch rear drive unit that sends torque to all wheels, the Maverick in wolf’s clothing is hungry for speed, twists and turns.

The Lobo’s performance-tuned seven-speed automatic transmission mated to the 2.0L 250-horsepower EcoBoost engine proved more than worthy.

The Lobo’s track-only mode, tuned steering and suspension plants the truck in the corners, making the snaky track at Mécaglisse one curvy ribbon of fun.

Video edited by Lisa Calvi, provided by Ford Canada and special thanks to Jay Kana for the in-car video. Weeeeee!

I love the look of the Lobo, a classy nod to the lowered truck era of the 1980s through the early 2000s. With its lowered suspension – 1.27 cm in the front, 3 cm in the rear and 2 cm lower at the roof – Lobo has stance and street smarts.

What Maverick can carry and haul… and how!

The Maverick equipped with the hybrid AWD can tow up to 4,000 pounds, twice what its FWD sibling can pull. And hooking up that trailer? A snap! Backing it into the RV spot or the boat launch? Double snap.

Thanks to Ford’s Pro Trailer Hitch Assist, which uses the rear sensors to align the trailer’s hitch with the ball, controlling the steering, gas, and brakes on a reverse path, really does make trailer hitching as easy as pushing a button.

Then Ford’s Pro Trailer Backup Assist mode, with a turn of a knob, takes those jackknife jitters completely away.

From Trailer Tech to Trail Tech, Maverick Tremor plays in the dirt

The Tremor off-road course at Mécaglisse demonstrated Ford’s trail-focused tech, taking us up blind gravelly, sandy ascents to show off the excellent cameras. Using them to see what was coming was the only option, since all we could see out the windshield was sky.

I hardly noticed my tires hanging in mid-air over punishing mucky moguls.

An effortless water crossing belied the depth of the water and the slimy swirling sludge at our door sills, while downhill descents were no problem even though we felt like we were standing vertically on the nose of the truck.

I also liked the one-pedal drive, new for 2025 for Maverick Tremor, a feature that allows the driver to speed up, slow down, and stop using only the accelerator pedal.

Other things l loved about the Ford Maverick

In the bed, there are two 12V wires to set up LED lights, maybe a mini-fridge, or even a small TV. It’s an electronic Do-It-Yourself (eDIY) project. Cool!

The unibody construction of the Maverick and its stylish, city vibe

Cargo capacity and flexibility: Besides the 4.5-foot FLEXBED™ Storage System, that helps us organizing nerds stay that way, there is plenty of storage under the rear seat plus the airy and spacious cabin fits you and your gang just fine.

I  can reach into the bed without stepping up on the back bumper!

I can picture myself owning a Maverick. The ultimate kudos to Ford.

A week later, I’m still dreaming of all the things I can load in the Maverick: plants, flowers, soil, dirt, garbage, lawn mower, new furniture and, and, and, and…

… on my way home from the track, of course!