Trucks are a big deal for Canadians: for the last decade and a half, the top-selling vehicle in the country has been the Ford F-150. The Best Overall Truck in the 2025 AutoTrader Awards is also a Ford, but a smaller one: the Ford Maverick compact pickup.
Our voting panel of more than 20 of Canada’s top automotive experts disagree that a “real truck” needs to be a big truck. If a vehicle has a cab and a bed, and it does what its owner needs it to do, whether it’s work or play, city commute or campsite trail, then it’s a real truck. The Maverick sets a winning example for what a smaller truck can be — easy to manage, practical, user-friendly, capable, and ready to be put to work.
The Maverick was voted this year as the Best Compact/Midsize Truck, but also won as the Best Overall Truck, meaning that even amongst larger and more capable pickups, it still manages to impress. This marks the third year in a row the Maverick has won this important award, and it undergoes an important change this year.
The Maverick has always been available with a hybrid powertrain, but to get all-wheel drive (AWD), you had to go with the gas-only model. The big news for 2025 is that AWD is now also available on the hybrid model. Canadians prefer AWD but also don’t want to sacrifice efficiency, and this new configuration makes the Maverick lineup even stronger.
The other trucks in this category like the Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon, Ford Ranger, Honda Ridgeline, Hyundai Santa Cruz, and Toyota Tacoma are all great trucks, but the Maverick won over our panel of more than 20 of Canada’s top automotive experts for its performance, user-friendliness, practicality, features, value, and more.
The unibody Maverick shares its platform with the Ford Escape and Bronco Sport. It’s a four-door crew cab with 4-foot-5 (1,382-mm) bed that’s able to easily handle camping gear or a trip to Ikea. That bed is designed to easily accommodate accessories for organizing cargo, and with a bed extender, you can even take a dirt bike out to the trails. The tailgate also locks halfway, in line with the wheel wells, for tying down longer items.
The XL, XLT, and Lariat trims start with the self-charging hybrid powertrain, which uses a 2.5L four-cylinder that, on its own, makes 162 hp and 155 lb-ft of torque. When working together with the hybrid electric motor, output rises to 191 hp. It’s all mated to an automatic continuously variable transmission (CVT). The XL and XLT hybrids come in front-wheel drive (FWD) or AWD, while the Lariat hybrid is AWD-only. All are able to drive on gasoline, electricity, or a combination, automatically switching between them depending on driving conditions.
Available on those three trims, and the only choice on the Tremor and new Lobo trims, is a 2.0L four-cylinder “EcoBoost” engine – Ford’s name for turbocharging – making 238 hp and 275 lb-ft of torque. It’s mated to an eight-speed automatic in the off-road-ready Tremor, while the Lobo uses a quick-shifting seven-speed. The Lobo further goes to “street truck” mode with lowered sport suspension, upgraded brakes, and 19-inch wheels, and its unique AWD system allows for sportier driving. Our jury likes the wide range the Maverick offers, especially since you can now get that street-truck setup straight from the factory – and while it isn’t inexpensive, it's likely that adding its unique features from the local custom shop would be even harder on your wallet.
The Maverick starts at $36,695 for the XL Hybrid in FWD, including delivery fee, and $39,195 in AWD; and $37,195 for the gas-only version. The top-end Tremor and Lobo trims, which are not available as hybrids, top out the lineup at $49,795 and $49,995, respectively.
As for fuel economy, the gasoline-only version is rated at 9.4 L/100 km in combined driving. Naturally, the hybrid sips less, at 5.6 L/100 km for FWD, and 5.9 L/100 km in AWD.
Our judges were impressed with the interior. It’s not fancy, but it’s very practical with easy-to-clean surfaces and thoughtful storage that easily accommodates phones, tall water bottles, and other daily-life needs. Our 6-foot-3 judge had plenty of room inside, while shorter panel members had no trouble with visibility and finding the right seating position.
The Ford Maverick is fun to drive, easy to park, includes numerous useful features, offers two powertrains, and spans a range from everyday driver, to off-road ready, and now to the sporty Lobo as well. All of that came together to convince our judging experts that the Maverick justifiably earned the Best Overall Truck crown in the 2025 AutoTrader Awards.
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