Ranger Tremor vs. Colorado ZR2 Bison

[Gman89]

Help! I can’t decide on getting a Ford Ranger Tremor or a Chevy Colorado ZR2 Bison! I don’t plan on towing anything but I do want this mid size truck to go on the occasional off road adventure (no rock crawling). I had a first gen Tacoma but it was just too bland so know I want to try something new. I been reading good things about the ranger but I’m a little worried about that eco boost engine. And on the other hand, the Bison is extremely well for off road but the engine and transmission combo seem like a mess. Any input is appreciated!!

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[DanaBovender]

I test drove a fully Loaded Colorado before i decided on the Ranger. Ranger has more power, better styling and handling. The Colorado still felt like a mid 90's S10 heavily worked over.
My Lariat 4x4 is a much better equipped and well rounded vehicle compared to the overly plastic filled and less than modern Colorado

 

[landiscarrier]

I have a Ranger FX4 Lariat and my son has a Colorado....not a Bison but they are both great trucks. I actually think the Colorado's transmission is smoother. But both are very nice trucks in my opinion!

 

[2020FRL]

Not gonna lie ... been a Ford guy since I could drive (lately, due to some unforeseen issues, been driving what I could get).

I have always liked Ford for one basic reason. I'll talk about the big three. Ford, Chrysler and GM.

Will they all pretty much perform as promised, probably there are always outliers and failures. Will they all last about the same driven and maintained comparably, I would suspect so.

So why am I a Ford guy. Simple, I think Ford does a better job of fit and finish. The buttons, switches, levers, locks etc just seem to "feel" more solid. I've never had a switch fail on a Ford (of course now I will ... LOL).

I had a Chevy 1/2 ton and about 2 1/2 years into ownership, I had to "lift" the door to get it to close right, the hinges were worn out.

I had a Dodge Ram that door lock and window switches where replaced twice because they just failed.

I had a brand new GM 3/4 ton that needed the entire dash replaced because the paint pealed off it.

Any of the above scenarios could and probably do happen to Fords, but, I haven't seen it. This 2020 Ranger Lariat, is my 5th Ranger. I've loved every one of them.

So. what does all this mean? Drive both, look close are the "fit and finish" don't get caught up in the "shinny bits" ... then go with what your heart and head tell you.

 

[AzScorpion]

Help! I can’t decide on getting a Ford Ranger Tremor or a Chevy Colorado ZR2 Bison! I don’t plan on towing anything but I do want this mid size truck to go on the occasional off road adventure (no rock crawling). I had a first gen Tacoma but it was just too bland so know I want to try something new. I been reading good things about the ranger but I’m a little worried about that eco boost engine. And on the other hand, the Bison is extremely well for off road but the engine and transmission combo seem like a mess. Any input is appreciated!!

I drove both the Ranger and the ZR2 Bison (the Tremor wasn't out) when I was looking for a new truck. The ZR2 is a nice truck but I felt the interior was very dated and cheap and just want impressed with the drivetrain. The 2.3 Ecoboost and 10A have been out for a while now and are VERY good together.

Rather than go into a long speech of how great the Ranger is you really should go out and test drive both. Take them on a long test drive both around town and highway and see how you like they way the drive. You're on a Ranger message board so you're obviously going tp get very biased opinions but in the end yours is the only one that matters. BTW I've owned over 8 trucks most were F150's with 1 Silverado and 1 Tacoma and this Ranger is the best truck of them all. While I loved my F150's they're just to big now and the other two...well let's just say.

 

[t4thfavor]

I was 10 seconds from buying a regular ZR2 in Feb 2019. They are nice trucks, my brother in law has a redline colorado and while the interior is not quite as nice as a lariat, it's infotainment and screen "stuff" is worlds ahead of STINK gen3.... If It's only for occasional offroading, and you're looking for comfort, etc, you might look at a Z71 Colorado or the Redline with some different tires.

I'm not saying I don't love my truck, but the primary reason I went Ranger over Colorado is that I tow a lot and needed the power down low instead of at the 6K RPM range where the Colorado makes it.

If I could put the dash and infotainment of the Colorado in my Ranger, I would be entirely happy with it.


That said if you're offroading on a weekly basis, then the ZR2 will definitely destroy anything that the Ranger has to offer in the USA (GASP! I.E not the Ranger Raptor).

 

[the5Gmartian]

I was a Chevy guy my entire life, I just sold 2 Chevys to get to my Ranger. I initially had my eye set on a ZR2 or a Tacoma TRD off road. I test drove a Toyota first and wasn’t a fan of the drivetrain at all. I then test drove 2 ZR2s (1 diesel and 1 gasser) and I did like them. However, the diesel was very slow and there are many stories of it going into limp mode. The interior was also very underwhelming for a 50k truck, but I did like the heated steering wheel. After sitting on it for a little while, I decided that I didn't like it enough to buy it and I thought, alright you know what, we’ll give Ford a shot. Test drove the Ranger and I was instantly sold. Much better powertrain than both competitors, better interior, better technology, better mpg and as good or better payload and towing capabilities. The ZR2 is fantastic off road and it does drive nice with its amazing suspension (tremor also has great suspension), but it didnt have enough features and felt too bland and cheap for me to live with every day. I have now owned my ranger for almost a year with 0 regrets and in fact, it may have just turned me into a Ford guy. I absolutely love my truck

 

[RickB4WD]

Having considered and driven both, I could not get past the interior of the Chevy. I found the Ranger interior much nicer and much more comfortable. The rear seats of the Colorado also felt like there was much less room. I do wish that the Ranger had a HD skid plate and bumper package like the Bison, but I've also read that the boron steel has been subject to stress cracking at the mount points over time, which isn't good. The diesel of the Colorado/Canyon is quite good, but the Ranger's Ecoboost is also great at much less cost.

If you are not rock crawling or expect to use the truck for anything more than occasional mild offroad / 4x4 touring type trips then I think the Ranger wins.

 

[GregsFX2Ranger]

Simply don't like the look of the Colorado. The ZR2 and Bison look just weird.

Ranger / Tremor more stylish.

 

[Azriq]

Not gonna lie ... been a Ford guy since I could drive (lately, due to some unforeseen issues, been driving what I could get).

I have always liked Ford for one basic reason. I'll talk about the big three. Ford, Chrysler and GM.

Will they all pretty much perform as promised, probably there are always outliers and failures. Will they all last about the same driven and maintained comparably, I would suspect so.

So why am I a Ford guy. Simple, I think Ford does a better job of fit and finish. The buttons, switches, levers, locks etc just seem to "feel" more solid. I've never had a switch fail on a Ford (of course now I will ... LOL).

I had a Chevy 1/2 ton and about 2 1/2 years into ownership, I had to "lift" the door to get it to close right, the hinges were worn out.

I had a Dodge Ram that door lock and window switches where replaced twice because they just failed.

I had a brand new GM 3/4 ton that needed the entire dash replaced because the paint pealed off it.

Any of the above scenarios could and probably do happen to Fords, but, I haven't seen it. This 2020 Ranger Lariat, is my 5th Ranger. I've loved every one of them.

So. what does all this mean? Drive both, look close are the "fit and finish" don't get caught up in the "shinny bits" ... then go with what your heart and head tell you.

Not to wander off topic, but the "Big Three" has not existed for years as far as American companies. Chrysler (now Stellantis) has been foreign owned for quite awhile. Technically it's Ford, GM and Tesla. Don't get me started on the dopey "american muscle" charger/challenger commercials, lol

 

[1911tex]

Yes Chrysler is no different than any other foreign owned vehicle manufacturers that have USA assembly plants.

 

[bentroia]

Help! I can’t decide on getting a Ford Ranger Tremor or a Chevy Colorado ZR2 Bison! I don’t plan on towing anything but I do want this mid size truck to go on the occasional off road adventure (no rock crawling). I had a first gen Tacoma but it was just too bland so know I want to try something new. I been reading good things about the ranger but I’m a little worried about that eco boost engine. And on the other hand, the Bison is extremely well for off road but the engine and transmission combo seem like a mess. Any input is appreciated!!

Per the reviews on youtube, the Bison rides much firmer. If youre not going to use the truck alot for hard core off road, the more compliant suspension of the Tremor will be much more practical pleasant and enjpyable on the road.. everyday!

 

[D Fresh]

I cross shopped the two last summer. The Bison is slightly more capable off road, front locker, better clearance I believe, and better shocks. The Ranger is slightly more capable, better optioned, as a daily driver.

Then you have Ford quality vs GM quality to consider as well.

In the end the Bison was too much of a compromise daily to justify it's off road capability. To not even be able to get things like intelligent access, push button start, LED headlights and such on a $45k-$50k truck in 2021 is ridiculous.

My '17 FiST has intelligent access and it sold for less than $20k when new.

 

[the5Gmartian]

The Ranger Tremor has 6.5in ground clearance up front compared to 8.6in for the ZR2 and the Ranger Tremor has 8.1in in the rear compared to 10in in the ZR2. About 2" in the front and the rear advantage for the ZR2.

The Ranger Tremor has a 30.9 inch degree approach angle. The ZR2 has a 30 degree approach angle. The Tremor has a 24.2 degree breakover angle. The ZR2 has a 23.5 degree breakover angle. Tremor has 9.7 inches of ground clearance. ZR2 has 8.9 inches of ground clearance.

These are the numbers between the two. Both are very capable offroad, but, I don’t think the ZR2 outdoes the Tremor enough (or at all in some circumstances) offroad to justify the lack of technology and features in my opinion.

 

[dtech]

Simply don't like the look of the Colorado. The ZR2 and Bison look just weird.

Ranger / Tremor more stylish.

The Ranger Tremor has 6.5in ground clearance up front compared to 8.6in for the ZR2 and the Ranger Tremor has 8.1in in the rear compared to 10in in the ZR2. About 2" in the front and the rear advantage for the ZR2.

The Ranger Tremor has a 30.9 inch degree approach angle. The ZR2 has a 30 degree approach angle. The Tremor has a 24.2 degree breakover angle. The ZR2 has a 23.5 degree breakover angle. Tremor has 9.7 inches of ground clearance. ZR2 has 8.9 inches of ground clearance.

These are the numbers between the two. Both are very capable offroad, but, I don’t think the ZR2 outdoes the Tremor enough (or at all in some circumstances) offroad to justify the lack of technology and features in my opinion.

I think the OP was asking about the bison package which adds a couple inches to the ground clearance, along with a few other enhancements:

The truck's stance is still 3.5 inches wider than a standard Colorado's, and it still stands two inches taller. Its Multimatic Dynamic Suspensions Spool Valve dampers remain untouched. Instead, AEV focused on protecting the truck's body and powertrain.

Beefy stamped-steel front and rear bumpers and five hot-stamped boron-steel skid plates are at the heart of the Bison package. Shielding the pickup's oil pan, fuel tank, transfer case, and its locking front and rear differentials, the new skid plates are stronger and more extensive than the ZR2's aluminum units. The front bumper is designed to accommodate a winch (not included), and the outer portions can be replaced if needed.

And then there is this - a nice looking engine cover - r u listening Ford ? Fuel economy suffers in the ZR2, epa rating of 18 mpg highway , I think 17 mpg overall.

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