Mercedes Benz pickup...light tow vehicle with class.

Since Ford NA is headquarters, I doubt they "asked" them to do it. It was probably more along the lines of being told to incorporate a mini-Raptor with the designs they already have for the next Ranger. They did the same with the gen 1 full size Raptor and the already designed F150. Why pay for a whole new design when you can just incorporate it with an already existing design and save money? That way, if it does not sell well then your loses are not as big. That is a smart thing to do when you are coming out with something new to the market and are unsure if it will sell well.