Troller T4: the Brazilian off-roader that outlived its maker

The Troller T4 was a two-door, four-wheel-drive off-roader made in Ceará, Brazil, by Troller Veículos Especiais. It grew out of an earlier fibreglass buggy-like vehicle called the RF-Sport and was built in three generations from 2001 until the factory closed in October 2021.

Troller T4 at a glance

History of the Troller T4

From RF-Sport to T4

Troller was founded in 1995 by Rogério Farias in Ceará. Its first vehicle, launched in 1996 and sold under the name Troler, was the RF-Sport, a 4×4 with a tubular chassis bolted to a fibreglass body in a process similar to that used for dune buggies. It used a carburetted Volkswagen AP1800 petrol engine of about 99 hp, a five-speed manual gearbox carried over from the Ford F-1000 and Dana axles from the Jeep Cherokee. In 1998 it received the 2.0-litre AP2000 engine with 115 hp.

The T4 of 2001 replaced that chassis with a rectangular-profile frame in the classic body-on-frame layout, which made the vehicle easier to build and allowed production to grow. It also brought the first diesel option: a 2.8-litre MWM 4.07 TCA unit with 115 hp and 33 kgf·m of torque. The petrol engine was dropped at the end of that year. The rigid axles were replaced by Troller-specific Dana 44 units, the transfer case was a fully electronic Borg Warner 1352, the wheel bolt pattern changed to six bolts and the gearbox became an Eaton 2405 five-speed manual. Manual free-wheel hubs were fitted at the front.

Ford years

In 2006 the engine changed to the MWM/International Powerstroke NGD 3.0-litre with 163 hp and 38 kgf·m, the same unit offered in the Ford Ranger, while the body design stayed the same. In 2007 Ford bought the company for R$400 million. The biggest update came in 2009: the interior was redesigned around Ford parts, with the instrument cluster, steering wheel and air vents from the Fiesta and the air-conditioning controls from the Ka, and the front grille was made removable. In 2013, to meet Brazilian emissions rules, the engine became the 3.2-litre MWM/International Maxxforce four-cylinder with 165 hp and 38 kgf·m, with more torque available at low engine speeds.

The third generation

In 2014 the T4 was completely redesigned, inspired by the TR-X concept. The new frame was based on Ford’s T6 platform for the global Ranger, with a top hat made of SMC sheet-moulding-compound fibreglass. The body looked closer to the modern Jeep Wrangler and early Bronco, and full LED tail lights were fitted. The engine was the Ford 3.2-litre five-cylinder Duratorq with 200 hp and 470 N·m, mated to a Getrag MT-82 six-speed manual; a six-speed automatic became available for the 2021 model year. The front axle lost its free-wheel hubs and the rear axle came from the Ranger, with a limited-slip differential as the only option until 2021, when an electronically locking differential was offered on the TX4 version. Ford Brazil ceased operations in January 2021 and the Troller plant was deactivated in October 2021; Ford decided not to sell the division.

Design and features

• Fibreglass body: a removable hardtop or canvas roof on a steel chassis.
• Diesel torque: from the 2.8-litre MWM unit to the 200 hp Ford five-cylinder.
• Ford parts bin: Ranger platform, axles and interior controls in the third generation.
• Sales milestone: the best-selling SUV in Brazil in mid-December 2008 with 1,104 units, and 10,000 T4s built by April 2010.

Troller T4 versions

• RF-Sport (1996–2001): the tubular-chassis predecessor with Volkswagen petrol engines.
• T4 second generation (2001–2014): 2.8, 3.0 and 3.2-litre diesels.
• T4 third generation (2014–2021): Ranger-based, 200 hp five-cylinder.
• TX4 (2021): version with an electronically locking rear differential.

The short-lived Troller pickup is described in our article on the Troller Pantanal, and more Brazilian off-roaders are in the Troller collection.

Sources

• Troller T4, English Wikipedia: generations, engines, Ford ownership
• Troller T4, Portuguese Wikipedia: generations, engines, production end