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Is there anything good to say about a Ford Ranger

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
If you can find a Ford Ranger that's made in Japan .. I'd say go for it.
Alot of the Japanese trucks and cars are made in the US.

Alot of the US trucks are made in Mexico.


I wonder where Mexican trucks are made? (probably in Japan) :think:
 

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
So here is two choices for about the same price:

1) Buy a nice used Tacoma.

2) Buy a more recent model Ranger and a brand new DH bike to throw in the back. And a bunch of beer. And some pizza. With green olives.


Hmm....
 

dan wask

Turbo Monkey
May 11, 2006
1,463
0
B-More Maryland
Me and my dad spent the last 6 months looking for a used truck like a tacoma/ranger/frontier. What we found is that 4wd extended cab tacomas with a reasonable amount of milage (30-60k), and relatively recent (all of them mostly until the bodystyle change) run for about 17-18 thousand.

I didn't want a ford because of all the problems we had heard about and because, well, its a ford. We decided to take a look at some nissan frontier, and we found that for about 13-15 thousand you can get a 4wd extended cab, v6 (is standard as is abs and power windows/locks and airbags) with extremely low milage.

We finally settled on a frontier. Heres a link to my truck's thread.

http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=177513

We payed around 15.5 for a 2004 with 15 thousand miles. So far it is a fantastic truck, and has already taken a couple shuttle runs, some offroading,2 dirtbikes in the back, and another 1000 miles on it like a champ.
 

MikeD

Leader and Demogogue of the Ridemonkey Satinists
Oct 26, 2001
11,669
1,713
chez moi
My Frontier (original model year, 1998) with the 2.5L (only engine available at the time) was perhaps the worst truck ever made. Or at least it had the worst luck.

But the transmission was unthinkably problematic. Manual, no less.

I now have a little singlecab ford ranger assigned to me at work. (Great, since no one associates it with what I do, which is nice when you need to blend in...it's funny to hit the front lightbar on a Ranger, though, and watch everyone do a triple take...people we're, um, detaining can't believe I just got out of a Ranger...) Runs nice, reliable, pretty fast with the V6, but it drives like, well, a crappy old traditional American truck. My Frontier handled a lot better. But that's not bad...it's just the kind of vehicle it is. Don't expect good, car-like handling or a particularly comfy ride. Just drive it like it wants to be driven.
 

skin6061

Chimp
Jan 4, 2005
40
0
I had a 2000 Ranger 4x4, 4.0 v-6, manual, and 4 doors. I liked the truck alot, i had 127,000 on it before someone stole it and burned the intereior. IT was a great truck except that i had to get it alinged every 8 months or so, ball joints wore out at 30,000, it shredded a serpatine belt at 45,000, and the alternator went bad at 120,000. Other than those 3 problems which took less than a few hrs to fix, it was a great truck. I avereged about 20mpg or 300 to a full tank of gas. The 4.0 had plenty of power, i used to tow my friends truck 150miles on a flatbed trailer, countless times as a shuttle vehichle and just all around commuting. If you get the extended cab version, don't expect a grow person to fit in the seats back there, but it's great for storage though. If you plan to lift the truck, we'll it's expensive if you get the 4x4 version. You can fit 31x10.5 tires on it stock. Windshields are cheap to replace, 200 bucks, brakes are easy to change, and all around maintence is easy on the truck. I would reccomend it to anyone looking for a cheaper than toyota, small dependable truck.
 

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
So here is two choices for about the same price:

1) Buy a nice used Tacoma.

2) Buy a more recent model Ranger and a brand new DH bike to throw in the back. And a bunch of beer. And some pizza. With green olives.


Hmm....
i think whats called the tacoma there is called the hilux here, they are def less problematic then the ford, not sure how much parts cost there tho...

about about throwing a band new dh bike in the back, the twin cab ranger with the fiberglass pay load cant fit a dh bike lying down... those few inches that the fiberglass make the pay load smaller is just tpp small for a dh bike.

although the fiberglass is good in the way that you can put your bike so that the front wheel is behind the car and the down tube is resting on the tail gate, it wont mark the bike...
 

DNA

The human raccoon
Jan 31, 2003
1,443
0
NH
It turns out that I found a decently priced Toyota before I found a Ranger ... 90k miles on a '94 Xtra cab. I guess itf it holds up for another 100k-150K miles, then I too will be a Toyota fanboy.
 

N8 v2.0

Not the sharpest tool in the shed
Oct 18, 2002
11,003
149
The Cleft of Venus
It turns out that I found a decently priced Toyota before I found a Ranger ... 90k miles on a '94 Xtra cab. I guess itf it holds up for another 100k-150K miles, then I too will be a Toyota fanboy.
shoot... my '97 4Runner has 230k on it and runs fine... just change the timing belt every 100k along with the water pump since the will have to have the engine open anyway...
 

G-Cracker

Monkey
May 2, 2002
528
0
Tucson, beatch!
I sold my 1994 Ranger about two weeks ago, for $3,000. It was the 2wd Xcab with the 4Litre V-6, automatic, tow package. 107,500 and still running strong. Bluebook for it was around $3,500 but due to it needing brake work I lowered the price.

I bought it used in 1996 with 30,000 and it rarely gave me trouble. The early Rangers had brake issues, which mine did but overall that was the only reoccuring issue. The cruise control didn't work on mine either and the heater blower motor was just starting to die.

I did have to have the "camshaft positioning sensor" replaced, which cost close to $1,000 back in 2002 but that was the only major replacement. $350 for the sensor and the rest was labor due to having to dismantle half the engine to get to it.

Crappy pic:
 

/\/\att

Chimp
Aug 9, 2005
59
0
burlington ct
I was looking at a 05 ranger edge, but decided to go with a 05 dakota, pretty simaler trucks but the dakota was a little bigger and cheeper. The ranger had a shorted bed and smaller cab, but also had more power. The ranger was a really nice truck though.
 

renorider40

Monkey
Aug 22, 2005
426
0
But the taco beats them all. Nice pic DNA i would bet you get another 100-150 on it easily. Hope you like plus they are great off-roading vehicles.
 

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
It turns out that I found a decently priced Toyota before I found a Ranger ... 90k miles on a '94 Xtra cab. I guess itf it holds up for another 100k-150K miles, then I too will be a Toyota fanboy.
Nice.
 

DNA

The human raccoon
Jan 31, 2003
1,443
0
NH
But the taco beats them all. Nice pic DNA i would bet you get another 100-150 on it easily. Hope you like plus they are great off-roading vehicles.
I'm not sure what pic you're talking about :busted: ... I haven't posted one yet.

But, here goes...
 

lovebunny

can i lick your balls?
Dec 14, 2003
7,310
209
San Diego, California, United States
i just bought my second ranger on friday. 03 ranger edge 4x4 with a 4.0 V6. its got power everything and a 6 disc cd player and also the four doors. it has 50k miles on it and i got it for 13k. i also bought it certified pre owned from ford so i have a warranty for 30k miles. try getting that kinda deal on a tacoma. i loved my old ranger. it saved my life. this one is even better. i throw 3-400 pounds of construction equipment in it daily and can fit everything no problem. the floor is made from vinyl or plastic or something so i can just spray it out. i love my truck
 

jdcamb

Tool Time!
Feb 17, 2002
19,799
8,383
Nowhere Man!
One thing to note about Ford Rangers is that they are cheap, handle real world abuse, and are super easy to work on. Toyota Tacoma's are not. I owned a 1999 Tacoma TRD for 7 years and it was a fine vehicle for everyday driving (car stuff, back and forth to work, trips to the grocery store, etc.). But as a truck. Hmmm. It acted funny on the road with any weight in the bed. Had a crappy towing capacity and drove like ass on the highway pulling a trailer. It side hilled wicked bad off road. The front rotors warp like paper. If you drive them hard and truly off road you better have deep pockets and know a good mechanic or have deep pockets and like to work in confined spaces. They are basically a rich boys toy.......
 

Mike.rider

Monkey
Jun 14, 2003
641
0
renton, WA
cant say enough good things about my ranger, I have 2001 4x4 with the 4.0 v6 and have 70,000 miles on it right now with now problems, just regular manitinace. it has helds up to countless 4x4 and search and rescue trips. here are some pictures.