Buying a Ranger? Check for the middle tie downs

[Jerry Caldwell]

On our first Ranger Lariat (March 19 build) which has since been totaled, there were 6. On our new Ranger (Oct 19 build) there were just 4 And it came with the factory spray in bed liner. I complained to the dealer and they gave me two more.

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[FOKTOP]

and when did you take delivery of your truck? before or after the change to 4? they changed the brochure as well to reflect you wont be getting 6.

The image I posted is from ysterday on the ford.ca website. Was the same when I took delivery of the truck. I told them about it as one of my co-worker bought a 2019 Ranger last December and had only 4 also. When he told them they fixed it right away. In my case they told me it was an option to have the other 2. So I went on the website and found that it was in the 302A package and my sales rep said he would look into it but then the damn Covid-19 crap happened and I guess they closed for a while. Going to get them later today. They even kept my 4 lugnuts that they took off for the lock nuts... Dont want lock nuts as I had issues with lock nuts with the adapter breaking...

Again It's more the fact that it should have come with 6 and not 4. If you go at macdonals and buy 6 nugget well you expect getting 6 not 4 lol.

 

[Charles A Hoover]

Discovered I was missing mine too after I went to tie down furniture during a Costco trip. Printed pic of Ford Ranger brochure which states "6" tie downs and took it to my dealer. They were a bit hesitant until I compromised stating I would install if they provided. Got them a couple weeks ago after a long back order wait. Easy installation. Ford dropped the ball with this one.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Well looks like either they changed the number of tie downs the Ranger comes with or decided that the US market only needs 4.

I bought mine about a month ago with a Nov 2019 build date and it only has 4. Seeing information page showing 6, I looked at my window sticker it didn't specify the number. So looking at the website and for the US market at least it's only showing 4 bed tie down hooks for all three models with all available packages.

I know it's not much, just a couple of hooks but kinda crappy that we're getting shorted on little things like this. It's the kind of thing that makes you wonder what else did they alter or cut from one market to the next.

 

[Texas Scout]

Fastest resolution if you only have 4 tie-downs vs. 6 (4 corners, no middle) is to order the parts from Varsity Ford Parts online.

4 Bolts -W505594-S450B, 2 Hook-Tie KB3Z-21550A74-A

They had existing stock when I ordered back in March, did not get the "those parts are on a 6-8 week backlog story" I heard from two different Ford dealerships.

I was not too concerned about missing the two center tie-downs until I ordered a Swing Case from RealTruck.com back in March.

"Step 3" of my Swing Case installation states: Remove the four (4) T40 torx bolts and the existing tiedowns. They were indicating to remove the rear corner tie-down and the center tie-down on the passenger side, because the bolts used to install the striker bracket (and tie-downs) are the original center and corner tie-down bolts.

Problem: I did not have a center tie-down with bolts to remove, and since I had purchased my truck with the Ford Tough factory spray-in bed liner I did not want to remove a second tie-down hook from another corner. Of course I could have purchased two M8, 1.25 bolts to complete the install without the center tie-down original bolts, but the Swing Case installation allows for the use of the original tie-downs after the install.

Solution: Moved the original corner tie-down hook that had been sprayed to the center on the driver's side of the bed, used the two new hooks for the installation, so I now have my Swing Case and six tie-down hooks.

Just the facts: 4 Bolts -W505594-S450B, 2 Hook-Tie KB3Z-21550A74-A
Used a M8, 1.25 tap to clean the tie-down bolt threads, used M6, 1.0 tap to clean the holes for the truck bracket.

Attempted to order from my local Ford dealership, was told 6-8 week nationwide back order.
Ordered from the Ford dealership where I purchased my truck, same story as local dealer.
Decided to order online from Varsity Ford Parts, ordered March 17, shipped March 19, arrived March 21, Swing Case installed March 21, Saturday afternoon.

 

[Texas Scout]

I decided to repost my experience here in this forum as folks are once again discussing the missing middle tie-downs.

I read in a different forum back in March a dealership told a 2019-20 Ford Ranger customer they "could" install the missing middle tie-down hooks for $130.

Seriously! $130. Total parts cost is $27, shipping if needed is $5-10, so I guess they added $100 labor cost to screw in 4 bolts.

Just might be time for that customer to find another dealership, or just buy the parts and do the install themselves.

The rest of the story: I decided to NOT fight city hall (in this case Ford or the dealership) to compensate me for the $27 in parts and $9 shipping for the two tie-down hooks and four bolts. I was very happy with my dealership and the "deal" for my Ranger, and I continue to enjoy and am very happy with my 2019 Ford Ranger. Life is Good, Enjoy the Ride!

 

[VAMike]

The image I posted is from ysterday on the ford.ca website. Was the same when I took delivery of the truck. I told them about it as one of my co-worker bought a 2019 Ranger last December and had only 4 also. When he told them they fixed it right away. In my case they told me it was an option to have the other 2. So I went on the website and found that it was in the 302A package and my sales rep said he would look into it but then the damn Covid-19 crap happened and I guess they closed for a while. Going to get them later today. They even kept my 4 lugnuts that they took off for the lock nuts... Dont want lock nuts as I had issues with lock nuts with the adapter breaking...

Again It's more the fact that it should have come with 6 and not 4. If you go at macdonals and buy 6 nugget well you expect getting 6 not 4 lol.

Again, your dealer is simply ignorant. It isn't an option. Again, the canadian web site simply didn't get updated after they made the change (probably because it doesn't really matter since the web site isn't authoritative and also probably because it's a lower priority). You didn't miss out, the current rangers just come with 4 and not 6. Regardless of how stupid that is, it's that simple. If your dealer decides to buy you some, great--otherwise just order a couple and be done with it.

 

[VAMike]

Clearly stated in the Ford 2019 Standard Features brochure is 6 tie-downs are standard on all trim versions.

oh, look, someone quoting the brochure like a lawyer again without quoting the part that says everything in the brochure is subject to change without notice.

 

[VAMike]

Not sure how a damper compares to this but hey ford drilled 6 holes into the bed and put in 4 tie downs, just doesn’t make sense that’s all.

They decided to save a couple of bucks x the number of rangers they make, call it a hundred or two thousand per year. Would you honestly be happier if they stopped adding the holes, so instead of being able to buy a couple of tie downs for $30 you'd have absolutely no way to add them? Don't get me wrong, I think it's stupid and short sighted, but what they did is better than completely killing off the feature. And really, the people who buy a pickup just to be seen driving a pickup won't even notice.

 

[Jbroke]

They decided to save a couple of bucks x the number of rangers they make, call it a hundred or two thousand per year. Would you honestly be happier if they stopped adding the holes, so instead of being able to buy a couple of tie downs for $30 you'd have absolutely no way to add them? Don't get me wrong, I think it's stupid and short sighted, but what they did is better than completely killing off the feature. And really, the people who buy a pickup just to be seen driving a pickup won't even notice.

I mean I get it, just a simple thing wish I didn’t have to add on. I guess next truck I buy if there’s ugly covers blocking tie downs I know now to check them all haha

 

[Avanti]

I bought the parts and installed them. I find the middle tie downs to be very useful when securing stuff. When I went into the dealership to pick up my license plates, I looked into a F-150 bed out of curiosity and it had eight tie down locations with only four populated. I don’t know if earlier runs of F-150’s had all eight. Pretty chinzy to save about $ 20 of parts on a $50k + truck.

 

[rparge]

I brought the sales brochure and showed it to the service manager, and had new tie downs in 10 days. They had to install them to get the warranty credit, so it took 60-90 minutes in the waiting room.

 

[Rangerguy]

Just called my Ford dealer about a pair of tie-downs: Can$140. No.

 

[Augie81]

Just called my Ford dealer about a pair of tie-downs: Can$140. No.

I'm wondering if it is a supply issue due to Covid-19 at this point. If you look at my first post in this thread they used to be available for under $30 for the two tie downs and the bolts. Here is the link again. At the time I originally posted and did a search for the OEM part numbers it showed similar prices. Now when I do the search again for the same part numbers one hook on the same website is showing $28.54 and that doesn't include the bolts. Similar sites are also around the same price.

I mean, I guess it is a matter of debate for some here after reading over this thread. But as I posted originally, the sales rep told me the same thing, they cost around $150. But given I had just bought my Ranger and felt I had dealt with them fairly, after a bit of a push they agreed to include them.

Sure there was some cost cutting along the line from what I have seen posted here. I'm just guessing, but I bet the actual parts for both tie downs/bolts included originally didn't cost more than $10 landed, if that depending on where they are made. I'm just basing that on what they were selling for a few months ago, less than $30. So that along with the recent increase on price for the OEM parts I could find online makes me think there is a major supply issue as well as more demand.

Given the debate of if they should have been included or not, I suppose it depends on how bad you want the tie downs and what you are willing to pay. Personally as a customer I had no problem being more assertive over the issue with my dealer. They want me to come back as a customer and made a fair amount of money from my purchase. They are not my friends and I am not theirs. It is 100% business. So I didn't feel one bit of remorse pursuing it until I got the result I wanted.

 

[Spocksranger]

Any aftermarket options for the missing middle tie downs?

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