Test drove a Ranger yesterday

[808matt]

Floyd, that is exactly what we did. After driving the lifted XLT, we drove an unmodified XL FX4 4x4. Pretty significant difference between the two Rangers. It felt like Ford has the Ranger dialed in very well for the stock diameter tires. Once the tire diameter significantly increased, the Ranger was not as dialed in. Now if the dealer had done a gear change, we may be having a different conversation.

you lift and out bigger tires onto any truck you’ll get the same results.... something that should be expected

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[Zaph]

We took a 2020 Ram 1500 Big Horn (comparable to the XLT), Crew-cab, 4x4, Hemi for a spin. The asking price of the Ram was @ $7k more expensive than the Ranger.

I get a lot of people saying to me, "Why would I purchase a mid-sized truck when a full size is only X dollars more?" My answer is always the same. A lot of people are talking about this in that thread about why they bought a mid size truck. Mid size trucks aren't cheap - they are just smaller for people who don't want the size of a full size truck.

I haven't heard much about the 4.0 Taco. I was only really looking at the 3.5. But the 3.5 I looked at seemed a little gutless in comparison. It was one of the reasons I chose the Ranger. The 3.5 Taco was #2 on my list of choices of a mid size truck with pretty much nothing else on the list. I hate to say it but I'll never buy a Chevy or a Dodge. They are garbage to me.

Your comments on the Ranger with big wheels are welcome and are a good reason to keep the stock sizes. And for that matter, look into tire weights before buying. I suspect even putting heavy mudders on of the same size has a pretty serious effect on truck feel and accelleration.

 

[AzScorpion]

I get a lot of people saying to me, "Why would I purchase a mid-sized truck when a full size is only X dollars more?" My answer is always the same. A lot of people are talking about this in that thread about why they bought a mid size truck. Mid size trucks aren't cheap - they are just smaller for people who don't want the size of a full size truck.

I haven't heard much about the 4.0 Taco. I was only really looking at the 3.5. But the 3.5 I looked at seemed a little gutless in comparison. It was one of the reasons I chose the Ranger. The 3.5 Taco was #2 on my list of choices of a mid size truck with pretty much nothing else on the list. I hate to say it but I'll never buy a Chevy or a Dodge. They are garbage to me.

Your comments on the Ranger with big wheels are welcome and are a good reason to keep the stock sizes. And for that matter, look into tire weights before buying. I suspect even putting heavy mudders on of the same size has a pretty serious effect on truck feel and accelleration.

This!! I always tend to "overthink" most things before buying them but when I wanted to upgrade my tires I spent a lot of time comparing different brands, sizes and their weight. I really wanted to go up to 285's but I knew that size and weight would put a considerable amount of drag on the truck and I'd take a good hit in mpg's. I went with the 265/70/17's and while they're a little larger and heavier than stock they didn't kill my mpg's or the overall feel of the truck. Even with this upgrade my Ranger it still far more powerful than my '16 Tacoma!

 

[jhndeergrn]

This!! I always tend to "overthink" most things before buying them but when I wanted to upgrade my tires I spent a lot of time comparing different brands, sizes and their weight. I really wanted to go up to 285's but I knew that size and weight would put a considerable amount of drag on the truck and I'd take a good hit in mpg's. I went with the 265/70/17's and while they're a little larger and heavier than stock they didn't kill my mpg's or the overall feel of the truck. Even with this upgrade my Ranger it still far more powerful than my '16 Tacoma!

I concur. Glad I went with the P 265/70/17’s. Much easier during braking and acceleration for city driving, which is where it will primarily stay.

 

[Zaph]

Lipstick on a pig as far as the Ram is concerned IMO.

That vehicle dependability study... makes me go WTF? Porsche is #2? Mini Cooper is that high? Can pigs fly now? Excuse me for a sec, checking my butt for monkeys flying out. How can Chevy and GMC be so different when they are just rebrands of the same vehicles? The only thing that's not a surprise is that Toyota is ranked high. That is their thing. I suppose that's a good reason to not make major changes to their truck for decades.

My wife wanted a Mini Cooper really bad and she can't drive stick, but I wouldn't let her get one because the auto transmissions on those have been known to fail for the last 20 years.

 

[beetlespin]

Good luck with that Ram. Hope you have another vehicle to drive while it's in the shop.

Now stop wasting our time like you did those dealers.

 

[DHMag]

"Hi, I'm new here. I wanted to compare my apple to the new apple, but opted for a banana."

 

[jsphlynch]

Good luck with that Ram. Hope you have another vehicle to drive while it's in the shop.

Over the course of my childhood, my Dad purchased a series of 3 Dodge/Ram trucks. Over the ~20 years they spanned, none of them spent a single day in the shop. Each of the first two were traded in to trade up in capabilities, and the third was sold after my parents sold their farm and thought they no longer needed a pickup. About a year and half ago, my dad realized that even without a farm, having a pickup is handy and got himself a used Ram 1500. Although he hasn't had it very long, he hasn't had a single issue with it.

Now stop wasting our time like you did those dealers.

Who's time is he wasting? He went to a dealer with an genuine interest in the Ranger. He gave it reasonable consideration and decided it's not for him at this time. He checked out an alternative and found that the alternative fit his tastes better. He then posted his thoughts here for discussion purposes. Was he critical? Yes, but he didn't unnecessarily bash any vehicle.

 

[John Lyman]

I would say I understand where the OP is coming from on acceleration - in regular drive mode the Ranger is geared more toward fuel economy until you mash it. If you really want to see how it preforms drop it down to Sport mode (S) or just mash the accelerator and see what happens.

I looked at the full size pick ups and feel they were just to big for me and my needs. I was coming from a Jeep so the midsize was the perfect size for me. I think its hard to compare mid-size to full size just so different. Like comparing a turbo 2.3 liter to a Hemi - the Hemi is always going to be faster.

 

[Anthony]

That vehicle dependability study... makes me go WTF? Porsche is #2? Mini Cooper is that high? Can pigs fly now? Excuse me for a sec, checking my butt for monkeys flying out. How can Chevy and GMC be so different when they are just rebrands of the same vehicles? The only thing that's not a surprise is that Toyota is ranked high. That is their thing. I suppose that's a good reason to not make major changes to their truck for decades.

My wife wanted a Mini Cooper really bad and she can't drive stick, but I wouldn't let her get one because the auto transmissions on those have been known to fail for the last 20 years.

The graphic is quite deceiving. It a list of problems per 100 vehicles. So while the Ram looks to be way worse than Ford, its a difference of one quarter of an issue per vehicle. Issues also include survey items where respondents include things they did not like (For example, the non-fold-flat rear seat on the Ranger or the oddly-placed mirror controls would be an "issue"....even though it was not something that was broken or fixable by Ford). But none of those issues make the truck less dependable....less usable maybe, but not less dependable. To me, that makes no sense on a dependability study.

Regardless, the difference between the very top of the list (Lexus) and the extreme bottom of the list (Fiat) is a difference of 1 and a half issues per vehicle. Removing the bottom 3 on and going by Dodge, the difference is less than one issue per vehicle.

Is it helpful when shopping brands? Yes and No. One particular vehicle could have dragged the entire brand score down and isn't really attributable to the remainder of the brand (I'm looking at you DPS6 transmission).

Most vehicles sold today are pretty damn reliable and this graph just details the 10,000 foot view of things. Its always best to do your homework on the particular vehicle you are buying (read owner forums, read reviews, and yes...also look at reliability / dependability ratings, crash tests, etc...). But get out there and test drive everything like OP did.

Cheers!

 

[RangerJosh]

This is one of those pointless debate threads... I almost waited a year for the Tesla truck but didn't have the patience and saving the money for something else sounded better.

 

[John Lyman]

Also, did anyone see the Motortrend episode this week comparing the Ranger, Canyon and Ridgeline? Ultimately they picked the Ridgeline (WTF?!) and admitted it would be a controversial choice, and they noted Toyota refused to put a Tacoma up for testing and they noted there hasn't been any significant update of Tacoma in years. The Ranger won the 0-60 and 1/4 mile times, and they noted even loaded with 1500 lbs in the bed it only perform a second or so less than empty, with the other trucks fairing worse loaded. Overall, the takeaway I got was the Ranger was stronger and quicker, even with a fully loaded bed. Their excuse for choosing the Ridgeline was the interior finish and the overall build quality.

I owned a first generation Ridgeline and it was a great city truck and still IMO a truck - this current generation is the el camino of our time. Also, the Ridgeline really can be more expensive. There will also not be a comparison when it comes to ride - a Ridgeline is designed as car based truck while the others are all true trucks and will ride like a truck. There were two reasons I never looked at the Ridgeline - 1st its UGLY and 2nd the cost for what I wanted. (CarPlay, heated seats, safety tech, remote start).

 

[hawk43]

Good luck with that Ram. Hope you have another vehicle to drive while it's in the shop.

Now stop wasting our time like you did those dealers.

I'm pretty sure the Rams won't be spending anymore time in the shop than the Frods... The current year ram was won truck of the year more than once...The drive train and Uconnect is very good as well... The few I've had were problem free...Just too big for just us two at this point in our lives..

Ford isn't the only game in town by a long shot.

 

[hawk43]

why are you even here???

I'm gonna go with he was shopping for a truck and stopped in...


Why do you care?

 

[Floyd]

I'm pretty sure the Rams won't be spending anymore time in the shop than the Frods... The current year ram was won truck of the year more than once...The drive train and Uconnect is very good as well... The few I've had were problem free...Just too big for just us two at this point in our lives..

Ford isn't the only game in town by a long shot.

Vega was car of the year.
Citation was car of the year.
Alliance was car of the year.
Corvair was car of the year.

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