Poor Factory Quality Control

[RedDakooter05]

Seriously, if you really thought someone else made a better product... Why not buy it?
That would help keep the price down and the competition up on the best trucks in the industry,
which for several decades has been Ford.

Hmm? Oh I'm not complaining. The panel alignment issues have never been severe enough for me to lose sleep over.

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[Floyd]

Hmm? Oh I'm not complaining. The panel alignment issues have never been severe enough for me to lose sleep over.

Makes sense, it is a good thing to encourage constant improvement. Thank you for that!
I have owned four new Rangers, each was as "perfect" as possible when built, and each subsequent truck was amazingly the best one yet!

 

[WingShot]

So far, I've noticed that the bottom rear corner of my driver front door sticks about 1/8" out from being flush with the rear door. It doesn't seem to affect the weatherstripping seal, as no water is getting by and there isn't any noticable increase in road noise.

That and what appears to be a small leak/condensation issue in the dash.

Neither are close to being dealbreakers for me, and I already have an appt. at the dealership. Other than that, I'm just desperately waiting to get my seat covers and floormats in to protect what seems to be a pretty fragile interior from my kid.

I have a similar issue with my door as well. Everything seems to be sealed and latched properly, just a little out of alignment.

 

[VAMike]

I can remember the Ford rep telling me he hates the UAW, a guy could screw up on the job, been drinking, they slap his wrist, send him home (with pay) send him to a class or rehab, he comes back and does it again, the cycle repeats itself over and over, but that was in the 90's and hopefully is not like that anymore!!

It's weird, people love to bash the unions, but...why are all the crappy non-union managers not fired? Maybe there's a problem other than the union.

 

[Cmar]

In spite of common origins , they did not sell "these" trucks for seven years prior to the sale of the North American Ranger. Did you take it back for the tire pressure being too high as some folks have, or some equally poor quality control issue?
Maybe this will help...
https://www.amazon.com/Central-Cons...hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4583520395147043&psc=1

Thats true, however as much as I hate to admit it, the ones we get in Australia come from the joint Ford / Mazda Auto alliance plant in Thailand and have a surprisingly high assembly quality. Way better than the F series we used to build locally here ( I used to own one) Most of the problems exhibited in Aus have been very thin paintwork which marks and chips easily, and that seems to be common problem everywhere these days with eco friendly water based paints.

 

[VAMike]

Most of the problems exhibited in Aus have been very thin paintwork which marks and chips easily, and that seems to be common problem everywhere these days with eco friendly water based paints.

I've heard that a lot, but I'm trying to remember when the magic days of chip proof paint actually were. As far as I can remember paint always chipped--the only difference now is that improved metallurgy/coatings make it much less likely that a chip will turn into a rust-through.

 

[Cmar]

I've heard that a lot, but I'm trying to remember when the magic days of chip proof paint actually were. As far as I can remember paint always chipped--the only difference now is that improved metallurgy/coatings make it much less likely that a chip will turn into a rust-through.

Agree with you to some extent but never claimed older paints were chip proof, just modern ones seem thinner and to chip easier.

I'm old enough to remember the old baked acrylic enamel finishes on cars, in the 60's and 70's, they were thick, tough, and fairly damage resistant, you really could "buff that right out" and a good cut and polish could bring up a 20 year old car almost like new. But in fairness they were mostly solid colours, not irridescent with a clear top coat.
I must agree modern phosphate, and primer baths and metal pre treatments make for a more rust proof car when it does chip. As I live in the subtropics (no snow, ice and winter salt) as long as you look after a car here, it will usually wear out before it rust out these days.

 

[billwinkle]

I just noticed that my 2021 XLT front bumper looks exactly like the OP's. And mine was made in March 2021. Going to dealer this week to get it straightened.

 

[A Tale Of Two Rangers]

WTH.. I noticed my front isn’t evenly gapped from a photo of my putco grille I posted on here. This scares me about what I can’t see. Come on man, it’s American made in Detroit. Manufactured 04/2021 (last month).

I just noticed that my 2021 XLT front bumper looks exactly like the OP's. And mine was made in March 2021. Going to dealer this week to get it straightened.

Unfortunately, I'd have to agree. The build quality on my 2021 XLT left a lot to to be desired.
1) Tailgate misaligned and did not close securely (gigantic gap on the driver side and moved in and out about 1/4 inch.
2) Hood not aligned, much bigger gap on passenger side (like a lid not on a pot squarely).
3) Loose fastener behind the center stack. Every turn the thing would roll to a new location. Very annoying.
Dealer fixed all the issues so far, just annoying. Must have been built on a Friday, Monday or after a three-day weekend. So that leaves Wednesday or Thursday for good build.

 

[EJH]

My truck has a similar uneven bumper gap to the OP of this thread. Mine is actually more pronounced (I'll add a picture later). After 1.5 years and 14k miles, it still bugs me. Is there any way to adjust this without taking it to a body shop? Maybe RP knows as he often posts excerpts from shop repair manuals?

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