Your dog needs to be restrained in the car, for safety reasons. There are laws in many places. That could be a harness (as another poster mentioned, Sleepypod harnesses are the only good independently crash-tested harnesses), a crate (great option), or a cargo barrier. If he worries in the car...
The 2.3L Ecoboost in my 2019 Ranger is great. If the rumors of a manual are true, then it will be perfect. The 2.7 in my f150 so I’m probably a bit biased. I also think of the last gen broncos and them having that big ole 5.8 351W option and think a 5.0 option would be awesome.