Coming up on 40k. A few preventative maintenance things the dealer is recommending

[Big Blue]

Sorry, I haven't owned a Ford in almost 30 years until I got this 2019 used with 28,000 miles on it in Jan 2024 so I am not completely up on the Ranger details. I just know that in 3 months that i've owned it the fuel pressure sensor in the gas tank went bad, the blend doors failed so the dash came completely off and the transmission was just rebuilt (glad I bought the extended warranty). I bought is as a tow vehicle behind my motorhome but so far it has lived up to everything I remember about Fords.

Welcome, at least it sounds like you've covered the two biggies, so you should be good now. Not sure about the pressure in the tank unless the previous owner ran it empty a few times.

I've got 34K on my 2019 from new, and it has never been back to the dealer except to get a new battery under warranty. Just be sure and follow the procedure to the letter before flat towing it. There are a number on here that do that.

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[Cabose-1]

Fuel induction cleaner is worthless. Direct injection engines. To clean intake valves the carbon needs to come off the vaves. No liquid cleaner does that. So remove the head and clean the valves. Its done by sand or pecan shells or something like that. Or taken off and replaced or cleaned. Just the nature of DI engines

 

[EJH]

Sorry, I haven't owned a Ford in almost 30 years until I got this 2019 used with 28,000 miles on it in Jan 2024 so I am not completely up on the Ranger details. I just know that in 3 months that i've owned it the fuel pressure sensor in the gas tank went bad, the blend doors failed so the dash came completely off and the transmission was just rebuilt (glad I bought the extended warranty). I bought is as a tow vehicle behind my motorhome but so far it has lived up to everything I remember about Fords.

That is unfortunate. At least we probably know why the previous owner traded the truck in. I'm always skeptical of used vehicles just a few years old with lower millage. As stated, the blend doors are the big one with the 2019s and some 2020s. That can be $2k outside of warranty.

 

[ctechbob]

Just over 66K here. At 50K I asked my mechanic about doing the trans? It All depends on how you drive. He said I'm good for 100K. Dealers today seem to want to sell you on things that would make you feel better. And if you don't want the service, they gilt you.

I would say it depends more on how long you want to keep the truck.

If you're the type that trades a vehicle in every 3-4 years, then sure, make the transmission the next guys problem.

If you're like some of us that buy a new vehicle every 10 years or so, sooner, more frequent service is in order to try and extend out replacing expensive parts.

Also, that mechanic sounds like the type where you would get to 100k and would tell you 'don't change your trans fluid now, it will blow up'.

Ask a transmission rebuilder if they recommend 100k changes and I'll bet they'll tell you that if they rebuilt a trans for you and you didn't change your fluid in 100k, any warranty you might have had is gone.

 

[JohnnyO]

I simply change the brake fluid when I change the brakes.
Induction cleaning not needed, just dump a bottle of Chevron Techron Fuel System Cleaner in the gas tank at every oil change.
Tranny is up to you, I diligently changed the fluid in my previous Ford truck and it crapped out at 132k anyway so my opinion is that Ford builds shit transmissions and it doesn't matter if you change the fluid or not, they're still gonna break.

 

[dtech]

Just over 66K here. At 50K I asked my mechanic about doing the trans? It All depends on how you drive. He said I'm good for 100K. Dealers today seem to want to sell you on things that would make you feel better. And if you don't want the service, they gilt you.

I'd say reasonably good advice, others on here may cringe at the thought of going 100k on factory ATF but the key is how you drive, it's it's mainly highway miles it's a lot easier on the tranny as a whole. And compared to yrs back there have been improvements in stuff like friction material for the clutches, electronic controls apply the forementioned clutches proportional to shift requirements, the 1080r converter stays in lockup mode way more than past trannies which helps and modern atfs have more effective additive packages than in the past.
But kind of surprised the dealer didn't try to sell the standard cabin and air engine air filter change, this dealer seems to have sights set on bigger game and stuff like wallet cleaning services.

 

[9zero1790]

Sorry, I haven't owned a Ford in almost 30 years until I got this 2019 used with 28,000 miles on it in Jan 2024 so I am not completely up on the Ranger details. I just know that in 3 months that i've owned it the fuel pressure sensor in the gas tank went bad, the blend doors failed so the dash came completely off and the transmission was just rebuilt (glad I bought the extended warranty). I bought is as a tow vehicle behind my motorhome but so far it has lived up to everything I remember about Fords.

not to add to the bitter ford taste - but some place around here a member that was towing his ranger had it catch fire. i dont remember if the reason was ever decided. i think he was stuck in the middle of a blame game with ford, ford dealer and his insurance company. my 5g has not been perfect. but its been pretty good considering what ive put it through.

 

[Jason B]

I would say it depends more on how long you want to keep the truck.

If you're the type that trades a vehicle in every 3-4 years, then sure, make the transmission the next guys problem.

If you're like some of us that buy a new vehicle every 10 years or so, sooner, more frequent service is in order to try and extend out replacing expensive parts.

Also, that mechanic sounds like the type where you would get to 100k and would tell you 'don't change your trans fluid now, it will blow up'.

Ask a transmission rebuilder if they recommend 100k changes and I'll bet they'll tell you that if they rebuilt a trans for you and you didn't change your fluid in 100k, any warranty you might have had is gone.

The way I look at it is Ford can't deny a warranty for not changing trans fluid sooner if they recommend 150K. I have a 125K warranty. So, as long as it 'blows' before the 125K ESP, I'm good.
I've never replaced brake fluid before, even on my F150 at 300k+ and B4000 at 220k+, but it is something I will consider and question at my next service.

 

[Icemanhd]

Common Stealership tactics... The manufacturer of the car... as in the people that designed and built it and provide the warranty.... Have recommended service intervals published right in the manual. Mr Stealership doesn't read the manual, didn't design or build the car and gets paid by the manufacturer for any warranty work BUT is the 1st one to tell you that you need.... your rear diff oil changed at 20,000 miles when the book says 4 or 5 times than that.

 

[ctechbob]

Common Stealership tactics... The manufacturer of the car... as in the people that designed and built it and provide the warranty.... Have recommended service intervals published right in the manual. Mr Stealership doesn't read the manual, didn't design or build the car and gets paid by the manufacturer for any warranty work BUT is the 1st one to tell you that you need.... your rear diff oil changed at 20,000 miles when the book says 4 or 5 times than that.

Those intervals are set by a marketing department that is only interested in lowest cost of ownership with an acceptable number of warranty claims in that period. They're not primarily concerned with vehicle longevity.

That's not saying the dealership is. The dealership is interested in making money.

There are some maintenance intervals that should be ignored if you are interested in keeping your vehicle long-term.

 

[gov cheese]

Has anyone tried Brake fluid tester to check moisture content before changing? I picked up this one just to see 60,000 on 2019 ranger and 90,000 on 2016 mustang both where good. Ran test on old still sealed DOT3 poured a little in to a plastic cup tested good. Start adding drops of water and the tester did starting reading it.

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[ctechbob]

Has anyone tried Brake fluid tester to check moisture content before changing? I picked up this one just to see 60,000 on 2019 ranger and 90,000 on 2016 mustang both where good. Ran test on old still sealed DOT3 poured a little in to a plastic cup tested good. Start adding drops of water and the tester did starting reading it.

https://www.amazon.com/ITEQ-Liquid-Tester-Indicators-Calibrated/dp/B076SC377J/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3NYFJNM9JVVJG&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.N29-apgY8AZbmAHIriE3nMzmix9QHw35SxH-CqaIkUaIyUo3_qgjPOvn1twym09LjZr8IatBAx1RxIQl6tVerq9FNxyg6Mao8buIZoTTB9Wso140sLC9wS8u_lv0UPEQH__BEbhtNUoboDi2Mkc71bGi0Plg8vt9QaG-SEPkJO4EFW6ZDZyakoYMNYMG8VDdZ6IcgfrbWofx2bYrJ7dmEiJFiC5JWfJy6ntb4oEcP6M.B82dh7z4fToRf5WuY5viiw7cIhLjMsvO09Zz5ZC5-Ws&dib_tag=se&keywords=brake+fluid+tester&qid=1712708880&sprefix=brake+fuild,aps,102&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

Never used one, always just replaced the fluid on a regular basis. I'd imagine it could be some decent input for making a decision on yes/no to replace.

I just do it during a tire rotation when I have the wheels off, doesn't take me too long.

 

[DROZ23]

Transmission fluid change, brake fluid change and fuel induction service. Are these gimmicks or something I should actually be considering at this mileage? If it makes any difference, I've always used 93 gas and synthetic oil every 5k. Also, now that my factory warranty has expired I'm considering leaving the dealer for service and finding a local indy shop. Any issues doing the aforementioned maintenance outside of a Ford dealer?

Thanks!

Depends on how much you murdered your Trans and Fuel system. Assuming you have no oil burn, used a least 91oct, didn't tow or race to motor that much, you should not have to get the Trans done yet. I would THB, but money for money not likely needed. The induction clean is driving style and habits . If your feel power loss or had bad maintenance schedules, the induction clean could be a good choice at 40k. Especially if you drive in short hops at low speeds or spend a lot of time in traffic. Or, if you run 87 all the time putting around. These motors are not for 87 Octane. Sorry, Ford made them work but these babies are built for Performance and get dirt AF on Gut Rot 87. They need to get on the road and smash once and awhile. What else is S mode for? "S"uper Clean Mode

 

[DROZ23]

As in how, or why?

How is as simple as bleeding new fluid through the brake system. It usually isn't necessary to actuate the pump as most of them these days don't hold a bunch of fluid in their own reservoir. If you can get a quart or so of new fluid through the system, you're really doing well enough.

As for why, brake fluid absorbs water. And while plenty of cars go to their grave on their original fluid, it just isn't optimal. Water in the system will cause corrosion over time.

If you're not keeping the vehicle long term, you can make it someone else's problem. If you're keeping it then it will pay off near the end of the vehicles life.

I drove a 99 ranger for 215k miles and fluid the brakes once my self. LOL Pump pump the clutch. Brake worked like garbage but the every shop told me that where fine with just pads. LOL.

 

[ctechbob]

I drove a 99 ranger for 215k miles and fluid the brakes once my self. LOL Pump pump the clutch. Brake worked like garbage but the every shop told me that where fine with just pads. LOL.

I'm sure more often than not cars go to their death with original fluid......not this guy's cars though.

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