As a child of the 80’s I lived the performance mini-truck era where slammed Toyotas, Nissans, Mitsubishis, Chevy S-10s and Rangers were all the rage. They were a new generation’s affordable answer to muscle cars that provided attainable style, handling and street cred.
With the return of the first compact pickup from any manufacturer in decades, the Ford Maverick has been the perfect canvas to revisit the art of the Street Truck. We’ve seen the customs over the past couple years but now Ford enters the stage with the factory built 2025 Ford Maverick LOBO.
It’s been the worst kept secret too. For about two year’s we’ve been seeing spy photos online and hearing rumors about a performance Maverick model. Many thought it would fall under the ST or ST-Line moniker but Ford brought the “LOBO” nameplate up north from Mexico instead.
There the name LOBO has been applied to the F-150 for some time and is popular with younger generations of Latino buyers. In a direct translation of Spanish it means wolf but it has a deeper social meaning to the culture of Mexico.
At the top of the trim grade ladder and using the Lariat as a baseline, the new 2025 Maverick LOBO has a comprehensive list of functional, mechanical and stylistic upgrades to up its street performance appeal.
Street Style
The look is low and loud, inspired by the Tucci Hot Rods show truck we saw at the 2021 Special Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA) show. Though toned down a lot, it brings key visuals like the turbo-fan 19-inch alloy wheels in gloss black. There’s also an optional 19-inch gloss black wheel from the Black Package with a more mainstream design if the turbo fans don’t get you flying.
Up front is a unique lower front fascia with fog lights, blacked out LED projector beam headlights, a unique waterfall grille and black Ford oval emblem. Really making it all pop though is that the black plastic on the lower half is smoothed out and painted body color all the way out to the rear bumper. It really brings on the monotone look nicely.
When it comes to colors for that monotone vibe, the palette is limited to just a few choices including Shadow Black, Carbonized Gray, Oxford White and the newly returned Velocity Blue. It comes with a black-painted roof but you can delete that if you want to go even more monotone.
The cabin starts with the benefits of the the new for 2025 13.2-inch SYNC4 infotainment system and 8-inch digital instrument cluster. Standard B&O audio with subwoofer and full Co-Pilot360 technologies are all included among other Lariat level features.
Interior backdrop plastics are Navy Pier with dark gray door panel and dash applique inserts. Seats are top-line heated ActiveX vinyl in Black Onyx with Grabber Blue and Electric Lime accent stitching. The upholstery has what Ford calls a graffiti-inspired overprint with embossed LOBO lettering.
Performance Enhancements
In the rumor and spy photo era many were fantasizing about a 2.3-liter 300-plus horsepower Maverick version of the long gone Ford Focus RS. Sorry folks, that was a pipe dream then and remains one today. In the real world the new Maverick LOBO does get a number of mechanical and software upgrades to enhance its performance cred but it’s no Focus RS.
Under the hood is the same 2.0-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four found in other Mavericks with 238 horsepower and 275 pound-feet of torque. Cooling is upgraded though with a larger radiator and fan from the 4K towing package and a transmission oil cooler.
What’s new here is a performance oriented version of the 8-speed transmission that actually functions as a 7-speed. It’s the same box mechanically, but software skips second gear and lets you rip up the ladder a bit quicker with steering wheel mounted paddle shifters. Snappier shifts are also programmed in.
LOBO also gets the advanced AWD system components from the Tremor but with a performance tuning program. The twin-clutch rear drive unit and the new LOBO drive mode can improve cornering performance, stability and road course behavior through torque vectoring.
With the software enhancements of the stability control system and its advanced all-wheel-drive system there’s also upgraded dual-piston brake calipers at the front courtesy of the European Ford Focus ST. This is one area where platform sharing can pay off, parts from across the pond.
It’s all tied together with a performance tuned suspension that’s not entirely what we’d call slammed but does have a half-inch lower ride height at the front and just over an inch lower at the rear. The result is a more level appearance and lower center of gravity overall.
But It Costs
At a starting price of $40,495 plus a $1595 destination fee your minimum outlay will begin at about $42,000 and some change. You can save $496 by deleting the standard spray-in bedliner but deleting the black painted roof doesn’t give you any credit.
You can actually save $496 by deleting the standard spray-in bedliner but deleting the black painted roof doesn’t give you any credit. When it comes to options, most of what you can add to the Maverick LOBO are stand-alone items and dealer accessories – no big packages.
I guess in some ways the Maverick LOBO is not today’s version of a new generation’s affordable answer to muscle cars. After all at this very same price you can also get a well equipped Mustang EcoBoost with 315 horsepower or for a just a little more a base Mustang GT and it’s 480 horsepower 5.0 V8.
But this comparison misses the point entirely. Most people can’t make everyday use of a Mustang. The Maverick gives the vast mid-section of buyers both functional daily use in addition to the performance theme and feel that rises to a high enough level to make sense – even at $42,000.
The 2025 Ford Maverick LOBO has one catch though, it’s a late availability model. You can order it now and you shouldn’t sit around too long and think about it. This will be a limited quantity. Production start is a little later than most of the Maverick lineup in the fall and deliveries also come later in the beginning of 2025.
