This delay in the publishing of the patent application is typical since there is an 18-month period between earliest filing date and publication of the application. Ford, of course, could have filed a nonpublication request if they sought secrecy.
I'll just chalk it up to a personality "quirk" of the Ranger. I'll try to capture a video of the squeak, but I have been looking at installing GFB's DV+.
luigi - I experience the same phenomenon upon start up. As you described the noise seems to disappear within 30-60 seconds after start.
Phil - my best estimation as to the location of the "squeak" is definitely under the hood close to the radiator. It is an intermittent sound that doesn't seem...
I found the following thread to be quite helpful https://www.ranger5g.com/forum/threads/anybody-tried-a-tailgate-seal.2166/
As others point out in that thread, you'll find best results by aligning the seal with edge of the bed near the taillights. As to the bottom of the bed, I placed the seal...
The Tailgate seal from Extang worked pretty well for me. https://extang.com/maxseal-tailgate-seal
I believe the kit comes with 10' of seal, but you'll only require ~9'.