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Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid?

Steward

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Aloha Folks,



Please forgive any forum faux paux. I'm a geezer. If this inquiry would be better suited to another forum, please let me know. I'm ordering a 2025 Hybrid AWD/CVT. Haven't yet decided between XLT or Lariat because I'm trying to determine which would better suit my needs. This is strictly a work truck. NO off-road bombing; however, I am an agroforester, so I must go off road daily. I chose the hybrid for the fuel economy, so the Tremor is out of the question. Plus, I have no use for all the Tremor bling. I had a look underneath a hybrid and freaked. FELT underbody protection? Seriously? My excellent salesman is trying to talk me out of the Maverick because of the underbody vulnerability. I already have a fleet of heavy trucks so I'm purchasing the Maverick as a utility/errand/service truck. When I go to do a tree job, I must park my 4x4 F550 on the street and schlep saws, rigging, climbing gear etc. to the trees. Waste of time and energy. Can’t drive the F550 onto the property because of the damage it will do. The issue isn’t traction. It’s weight. We get 200 inches+ annual rainfall here, so heavy vehicles just sink and plow. To deal with the underbody vulnerability, I’m planning to bolt sheet aluminum under all the vulnerable components. I’ll probably leave the felt in place. I imagine the felt “pans” are integral to the engineering. Planning to add a lift kit to add ground clearance and bigger AT tires to achieve what’s most important, FLOATATION. The Rough Country website says their lift kit is not suitable for the hybrid. Any suggestions? Because I’m often carrying loads or pulling trailers, I don’t want a lift kit that “levels” the truck. I imagine I would be better with 4x4 (instead of AWD). I don’t know because I’ve never driven an AWD vehicle. Also, it appears that the hybrid cannot be ordered with 4x4, on any Maverick. I noticed the Lariat can be ordered with 19” wheels. Does the Lariat have different wheel wells/suspension, or could I put substantially larger rims/tires on the XLT? The idea here is to get the offroad floatation I need without sacrificing much fuel economy. For tree work, exposed front tow hooks or cleats are essential. I see exposed front tow hooks only with the FX4 off-road package. If all Mavericks share the same unibody, am I correct that the tow hook mounting holes are pre-drilled and I would just need to order the hooks from Ford, as a part? Kelly Blue Book says the Maverick requires 93 octane gas. Is this correct? Where can I find a full spec sheet on the Mavericks? The Ford website is seriously lacking.

Any comments and suggestions would be most appreciated. Thanks Folks!
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OffGrayMulchWagon

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c
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93? The manual says 87 for the 2.5 and 91 for the 2.0 in warm, heavy duty or towing use, no?
 

thev8man

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Aloha Folks,



Please forgive any forum faux paux. I'm a geezer. If this inquiry would be better suited to another forum, please let me know. I'm ordering a 2025 Hybrid AWD/CVT. Haven't yet decided between XLT or Lariat because I'm trying to determine which would better suit my needs. This is strictly a work truck. NO off-road bombing; however, I am an agroforester, so I must go off road daily. I chose the hybrid for the fuel economy, so the Tremor is out of the question. Plus, I have no use for all the Tremor bling. I had a look underneath a hybrid and freaked. FELT underbody protection? Seriously? My excellent salesman is trying to talk me out of the Maverick because of the underbody vulnerability. I already have a fleet of heavy trucks so I'm purchasing the Maverick as a utility/errand/service truck. When I go to do a tree job, I must park my 4x4 F550 on the street and schlep saws, rigging, climbing gear etc. to the trees. Waste of time and energy. Can’t drive the F550 onto the property because of the damage it will do. The issue isn’t traction. It’s weight. We get 200 inches+ annual rainfall here, so heavy vehicles just sink and plow. To deal with the underbody vulnerability, I’m planning to bolt sheet aluminum under all the vulnerable components. I’ll probably leave the felt in place. I imagine the felt “pans” are integral to the engineering. Planning to add a lift kit to add ground clearance and bigger AT tires to achieve what’s most important, FLOATATION. The Rough Country website says their lift kit is not suitable for the hybrid. Any suggestions? Because I’m often carrying loads or pulling trailers, I don’t want a lift kit that “levels” the truck. I imagine I would be better with 4x4 (instead of AWD). I don’t know because I’ve never driven an AWD vehicle. Also, it appears that the hybrid cannot be ordered with 4x4, on any Maverick. I noticed the Lariat can be ordered with 19” wheels. Does the Lariat have different wheel wells/suspension, or could I put substantially larger rims/tires on the XLT? The idea here is to get the offroad floatation I need without sacrificing much fuel economy. For tree work, exposed front tow hooks or cleats are essential. I see exposed front tow hooks only with the FX4 off-road package. If all Mavericks share the same unibody, am I correct that the tow hook mounting holes are pre-drilled and I would just need to order the hooks from Ford, as a part? Kelly Blue Book says the Maverick requires 93 octane gas. Is this correct? Where can I find a full spec sheet on the Mavericks? The Ford website is seriously lacking.

Any comments and suggestions would be most appreciated. Thanks Folks!
Booyah 👊🏽 😁 👍🏽 🇺🇸
ALOHA.

HRG makes some good products, I added a kit on my TREMOR XLT 2023.

I think three things will suit you well.

At least 235 65 R 17 All terrain or trail terrain tires.

A lift, more than a 1 inch.

And a Timbren Bumpstop add to the rear end.

https://timbren.com/products/absfrb...FpFjZRW1JLs2Tlvaui7K0e6AotDpFZXMaAnveEALw_wcB

The Maverick is solid. I tested the limits of my 2022 Hybrid XL. I had a center console plug, 2K tow hitch, moonroof and BFGOODRICH Trail Terrains 235 65 R17 and it was my daily commuter / Exploration machine.

I also included a picture of my TREMOR.

https://www.mavericktruckclub.com/forum/threads/update-upgrade.69372/

Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20230223_120315


Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20230608_173855


Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20230608_183744


Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20230807_131409


Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20250624_083053
 
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DefiantDJ

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DefiantDJ

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Additionally, we put on new tires after the lift kit was installed. Bigger better tires...

We would not advise anything larger, as bigger tires would reduce your turn radius.

No rubbing, no infringement, looks great.

We are pleased with the ride quality as well on the highway.

Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20250612_201408


Ford Maverick Ground Clearance, AT Tires, Lifted AWD Hybrid? 20250612_201415
 

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thev8man

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thev8man

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Additionally, we put on new tires after the lift kit was installed. Bigger better tires...

We would not advise anything larger, as bigger tires would reduce your turn radius.

No rubbing, no infringement, looks great.

We are pleased with the ride quality as well on the highway.

20250612_201408.jpg


20250612_201415.jpg
Booyah 👊🏽 😁 👍🏽 🇺🇸
 
OP
OP

Steward

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Additionally, we put on new tires after the lift kit was installed. Bigger better tires...

We would not advise anything larger, as bigger tires would reduce your turn radius.

No rubbing, no infringement, looks great.

We are pleased with the ride quality as well on the highway.

20250612_201408.jpg


20250612_201415.jpg
 
OP
OP

Steward

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Thanks Defiant DJ and V8Man!
Defiant DJ, is your Lariat 4x4 or AWD?
Anyone else got any input?
What about my octane question? Does Maverick really require 93 octane fuel?
 

Hot Runr Guy

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Clubs
 
For tree work, exposed front tow hooks or cleats are essential. I see exposed front tow hooks only with the FX4 off-road package. If all Mavericks share the same unibody, am I correct that the tow hook mounting holes are pre-drilled and I would just need to order the hooks from Ford, as a part?
Unless things changed for 2025 (which I doubt), the rear mounting points for the FX4/Tremor tow hooks do not exist on other models, so no, it's not as easy as buying a set of hooks and bolting them on.



HRG
 
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Steward

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Yep, saw the bad news about tow hooks. Thanks HotRunrGuy.

Can anyone address my question regarding wheel well differences between the XLT and Lariat? Does the Lariat offer 19" wheels because the wheel wells are bigger or can I fit the same bigger tires and wheels on the XLT? I'm just a humble farmer/forester, not a vehicular enthusiast. The myriad tire/wheel sizes and configurations makes me cross-eyed. :crazy:
 
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Steward

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I've seen many comments that lifting the Hybrid Maverick 2" will create CV headaches. Anybody have that experience?
 

Hot Runr Guy

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Yep, saw the bad news about tow hooks. Thanks HotRunrGuy.

Can anyone address my question regarding wheel well differences between the XLT and Lariat? Does the Lariat offer 19" wheels because the wheel wells are bigger or can I fit the same bigger tires and wheels on the XLT? I'm just a humble farmer/forester, not a vehicular enthusiast. The myriad tire/wheel sizes and configurations makes me cross-eyed. :crazy:
It's not the wheel (rim) diameter, it's the outside diameter of the tire. Look at the OEM 19's, they are using a 55-series tire, vs 60 & 65 on other diameter wheels. The OD is pretty much staying the same, in a range from 28.6" to 29.1".

HRG
 

DefiantDJ

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I've seen many comments that lifting the Hybrid Maverick 2" will create CV headaches. Anybody have that experience?
They beefed up the CV joint on the 2025.

Word on the street is that they are much stronger.
 

icegradner

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I imagine the felt “pans” are integral to the engineering. Planning to add a lift kit to add ground clearance and bigger AT tires to achieve what’s most important, FLOATATION.
Are you going to be taking your truck through deep water a lot? The Maverick is a little... I don't know for that. A lot of the electronics, particularly on the hybrid are under the the vehicle just hidden by the plastic, synthetic fibre liner. On both versions (Hybrid and EB) the vehicles body control module (an important computer) is in the lower driver side fender. Being submerged in water regularly could very well damage it. I honestly think the sales person is giving you the right advice if being submerged often is a possibility.
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