This week I was sporting the 2025 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid, a great option for those who want the cargo and lariat possibility of a truck, but without its girth. This was like a baby truck or truck light.
I kept forgetting how compact the Maverick was until it came time to pork and whenever I approached it. It was lower to the ground, so there was no need for a running start to hop in. This was a compact truck with the convenience of a backseat, but not actually comfortable for seating. It handled more like an SUV in size and body rolling.
I liked the visual of the racing stripes that ran down the hood of the car. It certainly gave the truck the nostalgic Ford feel, but not necessarily its speed or handling.
The Maverick had a classic Ford style infotainment system set up, simple with volume dial, music media functions, and climate control for the entire cabin.
This was a compact cabin, nothing on the infotainment system was an arms length away, and I am not a tall woman. I liked how everything was organized and compartmentalize in the central console, but this did require me to bend down and extend my arms for. All the small bins and pockets, plus gear shift was a shot out of eye line, adding a breath of air through its lack of clutter.
I liked how the wheel was thinner to grip. My fingertips met my palm, giving me the feeling of support.
The view from the above and reverse cameras looked distorted, making it harder to adjust and figure out my distances, which was already challenging considering it is harder to reverse park with a tailgate.
Driving the 2025 Ford Maverick Hybrid gave me an odd sensation. It was both easy and hard to drive at the same time. Lethargic to start with a bit of hesitation on acceleration, but when it gets going the response is incredibly touch sensitive. I did get some roll back when stopped at a slope, but when coasting downhill with no pressure on the pedal, it stayed at a constant speed.
As a hybrid I found the engine loud with work. You could hear the electric motor churning and the fan whirling to cool it. This was not masked by any music playing, nor the sound of the road that I could hear within the cabin.
I did appreciate the brake coach which gave you a score out of 100% on how well you began your brake dissent and how much more energy you earned because of it. You had the ability to see how much battery life you earned and how it was immediately turned to energy and fuel to propel. A bar earned and the same one lost at its opposite end. The car charges when you are coasting and even more so when you apply the brakes, although it felt like you used it faster than you could earn it. But with 700km on a full tank, there was plenty to spare.
I was unable to tilt the seat down, so for those like myself, who are longer in the torso than in the legs, I was dangling and left constantly extending. I had to reach out in order to just graze the pedal, as a result there was plenty of missteps that had me worried on the road.
Structurally, given how close my chair was to the wheel, just for my feet to touch I found the 90° angle that the infotainment screen was set at hard to read. A 45° slant would’ve been helpful for my vantage point.
The seats themselves were firm, which I liked. A little bucketed for the back, with decent lumbar support.
