Ford Rattler Trademark Points To New Off-Road Model

Jul. 01, 2021 11:32 AM ET by Jared Rosenholtz Rumor / 5 Comments

This could be a more hardcore Maverick.

Ford's been on a tear lately, introducing several new off-road variants into its lineup and trademarking new names for future off-road models. We've recently seen the new Explorer Timberline as a family-themed off-roader, and there are still plenty of trademarked names yet to be revealed, such as Splash (possibly a new Ranger variant), OTX, and Warthog (possibly a Raptor-style Bronco model). CarBuzz has once again spotted a new trademark from Ford, and this one has no link to any past models.

On July 1st, 2021, Ford filed a trademark registration for the name "Rattler" with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The filing is "intended to cover the categories of motor vehicles, namely, automobiles, pick-up trucks, electric vehicles, sport utility vehicles, off-road vehicles, and their structural parts."

This description gives a pretty clear indication of Ford's plans for the Rattler name. The new moniker should appear on some future off-road truck or SUV, but the question is... which one? The 2022 Ford Maverick seems like the ideal candidate since it's the newest addition to the Blue Oval lineup. A rattler refers to a member in a group of venomous snakes, which sounds like a cool name for an off-road vehicle to tackle the desert. Ford seems hesitant to attach the popular Raptor name on lesser-performing vehicles, which is why the company has so many uniquely-named off-road variants in its lineup.

Whether it goes by Rattler or Raptor, we think a more rugged Maverick variant could sell well. Though most Maverick buyers are not traditional truck owners, we're sure some of them will like to take their new trucks on off-road adventures. We doubt such a model would receive significant performance upgrades, but even a slight lift and chunkier tires would look cool. Not every recent Ford trademark has panned out into a production vehicle, so we will take this latest one with a grain of salt.