Hellwig ‘Attainable Adventure’ Ford Ranger likely still spendy, but cool as hell

Overlanding fever has opened up opportunities for mild-mannered brands that have lived off-road for decades to finally get some spotlight. Hellwig Products, a 73-year-old, family-run company that makes towing, hauling and performance suspension products. We met Hellwig previously while covering the Nissan Titan-based Rulebreaker camper and Ultimate Parks Titan. The California-based outfit switches to Ford for SEMA with its “Attainable Adventure” Ranger, based on the 2019 Ranger XLT pickup. We’re not sure how financially attainable this is compared to some of the recent VanLife rigs we’ve featured, but it seems pretty plug-and-play by avoiding a catalog of custom parts.

Fellow California-based company Old Steel Fabrication oversaw the build. To upgrade the Ranger’s chops, the shop installed an Icon Dynamics Stage 5 suspension, and Bushwacker Fender Flares over 17-inch Icon Compression wheels wrapped in 35-inch Falken Wildpeak M/T tires. A Rigid light bar and extra Rigid LEDs over the bed help to keep the Ranger from going bump in the night. Addictive Desert Designs front and rear bumpers and a T-Rex X-Metal grille make it easier on the Ranger when bumps do happen. 

A Yakima bed rack and awning support most of the gear for living in the hinterlands, staring with a Tepui Hybox tent. On a couple of BedSlides below the tent, there’s a full galley from Trail Kitchen and an ARB refrigerator. To access them, the hinterlanders swing out the Rigid rack that holds two Specialized electric mountain bikes and a fold-down table and prep area. A GoalZero Yeti 1400 power station and solar panels keep the electronic juice flowing, while Daystar water and fuel cans keep the people and EcoBoost juice flowing, respectively. When everything else fails, there’s a Krazy Beaver shovel to try and dig out.

Hellwig credits LGE-CTS Motorsports for a “custom, retro-looking paint job,” maybe because of the paint stripes and pinstripes. We don’t see the retro in it, but it’s still a good looking rig. If Hellwig would divulge some numbers and specs, we’d be real interested in figuring out how the Attainable Adventure Ranger compares to the mythical Ranger Raptor off road.