How does your Ranger ride? 4x2 or 4x4

gcan

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I'm with Julie, I owned 3 F150's over the past 10 years but in retirement decided to downsize to the Ranger Lariat FX4. The ride doesn't compare and the lack of interior or bed space is a whole other ball of stuff. The Ranger is fast, fun to drive, and easy to park but in my opinion doesn't compare to the F150. Maybe it's just me but I've never purchased a new vehicle and almost immediately started considering replacing the suspension.... look at how many threads are about suspension upgrades.
I have already replaced the rear shocks and its better but am ordering replacement front struts next week and the truck just turned 10K miles.
Like I said it is fun and hopefully the struts will help, if not I'll take my loss and trade it in for another F150.
Never ride in this truck with a coffee cup without a lid!
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TomC

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I must be an outlier, but came from a 2010 F150 and like my ranger FX4 stock ride. I even like the tires. Could it be better? Sure, but I am spending my time and money trying to sort out bed storage and tonneau cover ideas. The transmission smoothed out, I like sport mode, if only the steering wheel was heated. My pet peeve. But the ranger test rides seem to have bigger differences between each truck, and there was a couple trucks that didn’t feel sorted. I am not smart enough to know why.
 

P. A. Schilke

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I must be an outlier, but came from a 2010 F150 and like my ranger FX4 stock ride. I even like the tires. Could it be better? Sure, but I am spending my time and money trying to sort out bed storage and tonneau cover ideas. The transmission smoothed out, I like sport mode, if only the steering wheel was heated. My pet peeve. But the ranger test rides seem to have bigger differences between each truck, and there was a couple trucks that didn’t feel sorted. I am not smart enough to know why.
Hi Tom,

Could be on the not sorted trucks that the tire pressures were not set and were too high.... Dealers are supposed to set the tire pressures to the door label recommendation, but rarely do..

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired
 
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wanted33

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Hi Tom,

Could be on the not sorted trucks that the tire pressures were not set and were too high.... Dealers are supposed to set the tire pressures to the door label recommendation, but rarely do..

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired
Phil is correct. My Ranger had 40 lbs. in the tires, and the wife's Mustang had the same when we picked it up. And, it's not just the Ford dealers. My Jeep had 42 lbs. in the tires, and it drove like crap on the way home. Apparently tire pressure isn't one of things they check in the prep shops.

This is an older thread by me, so I will report that I'm am very happy with the ride of my Ranger. It's not F-150 smooth, but I didn't expect it to be. It's just the right size for us, and does everything I need done. My F-150 was either getting bigger, or the parking lots in my were getting smaller. And it become more difficult to maneuver, and you couldn't turn it around in a 40 acre field. Thankfully the Ranger doesn't have those problems.
 

jjk2020

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I formerly drove a 2006 Chevy Colorado work truck 4x2. My 2020 Lariet 4x2 Supercab rides a million percent better. You might be thinking with 14 years difference, no wonder. However, the Colorado only had 59k when I traded it in. Why did I trade it in? Things began to break down and parts became harder to find. Further more, I personally owned a new vehicle, I figured at age 67 I deserved one.
I will say that after reading all the threads regarding the much better ride with Eibach, Fox and Bilstein shocks, I have noticed the boat roll that people talk about, but it does not bother me "at this time". I also agree the down word rake on the front end is much too low.
Having only 600 miles on the truck right now, I'm in no hurry to do a front end lift and rear shocks "at this time". BUT, I already know I WILL do this and will most likely do this when I'm ready to replace the original tires, which my guess would be around 20k.
I'm very happy with the truck so far.
 


TomC

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Hi Tom,

Could be on the not sorted trucks that the tire pressures were not set and were too high.... Dealers are supposed to set the tire pressures to the door label recommendation, but rarely do..

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired
Actually, this was the first truck I purchased where I joined the forum first, then bought the truck. In retrospect, I went in with a list of issues and perhaps one of them was a hypersensitivity to ride, transmission shifts, and a host of minor things. One was tire pressure. So I knew about 4 tie downs vs six, the rear seat headrests that didn’t fold down, etc. I probably drove a couple sales folks nuts. But my purchase included a second spare, extra tie downs, Mx credits, etc. thanks to the writes up I read here. And one of my first questions was why are the tires inflated to 45 PSI?
But I only test drove 4wd supercabs and one super cab FX2, and some of them had been on the lot for up to a year, so my exp. might not be universal. But that’s the great thing about this forum...I got a chance to learn from everyone else’s experience. Now I can’t find the extra tie downs, so I got that going for me.
 

Rene Michaels

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I formerly drove a 2006 Chevy Colorado work truck 4x2. My 2020 Lariet 4x2 Supercab rides a million percent better. You might be thinking with 14 years difference, no wonder. However, the Colorado only had 59k when I traded it in. Why did I trade it in? Things began to break down and parts became harder to find. Further more, I personally owned a new vehicle, I figured at age 67 I deserved one.
I will say that after reading all the threads regarding the much better ride with Eibach, Fox and Bilstein shocks, I have noticed the boat roll that people talk about, but it does not bother me "at this time". I also agree the down word rake on the front end is much too low.
Having only 600 miles on the truck right now, I'm in no hurry to do a front end lift and rear shocks "at this time". BUT, I already know I WILL do this and will most likely do this when I'm ready to replace the original tires, which my guess would be around 20k.
I'm very happy with the truck so far.

One of the very first mods I did was to add the RangerLifts 3" Leveling Kit. Probably the best mod to date as it completely changed the ride quality for the better ...not so much of that boat-like undulating up and down over minor bumps. Not to mention it got rid of that downward rake on the front end. Here was my post about that mod: https://www.ranger5g.com/forum/threads/3”-level-lift-fits-2wd-4wd.2673/post-80453
 

spartan0078

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We don't get the 4x2 option in Canada for some reason. I would've gone 4x4 regardless, but it's weird.
 

DRVMN

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I've owned my 2021 Ford Ranger XLT FX4 for just over a month and have almost 3,000 miles on it. So far, I love the truck and the ride. I previously drove a Honda CR-V but always wanted to get back into a truck. When I hit a bump and feel it in the truck, I smile and say to myself "Now that's a truck!".

One of the first things I did (after removing the dealership sticker on the tailgate, as I do not do free advertising for dealerships) when I took delivery and got home was to check the tire inflation and like others, the tires were at 40 instead of 30 p.s.i. I've had that happen with other makes too - not just Ford.

I feel like a little kid again with his first bicycle and I look forward to the ride to and from work each day! No regrets!!!
 

12Bravo20

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On my XLT FX4, the tires were at 45 PSI when I bought it. I went home and let some air out to the recommended 38 PSI and that made a big difference in the ride comfort. I have to say that the FX4 actually rides better than the 2WD XL STX I had.

I have always drove either Ford trucks or some type of Jeep for most of my life so a stiff/bumpy ride doesn't bother me. Plus I retired from the Army and military vehicles will jar your fillings out.
 
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FoD

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I will say that after reading all the threads regarding the much better ride with Eibach, Fox and Bilstein shocks, I have noticed the boat roll that people talk about, but it does not bother me "at this time". I also agree the down word rake on the front end is much too low.
...
I'm very happy with the truck so far.
I agreed with your sentiments, but changed up as I noticed those things, more so over long distances. I have made many of the ride changes and "others", and I have to say that (in my case, for my driving habits) I am way more happier now. The truck is rock solid in all my circumstances so far...:crazy:
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