What Made You Chose the Ranger over the F150?

[Pinepig]

It fit in my garage with a motorcycle parked in front of it. No way the f150 would have done it.

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[Sparky2]

I was self employed and had a 2009 F150 as my service truck and when I retired it was traded in for a new 19 Ranger. Got 13 ish mpg in the 150 and get 23 ish in the Ranger. Now I have enough room in the garage to easily get by the front and back of the Ranger where the F150 just barely had enough room to close the door Should have seen the hassle it was opening the hood in the 150 when the battery died.
In all honesty I do miss the 8 foot bed from time to time but accept the trade off of having a back seat.

 

[seasprite]

Main reason was the price of the F150 rose above what I was willing to pay for truck. Sticker price for my 05 XLT was 34k. I bought it in 07 for 20k with 17k on the clock(try that now) and kept the truck until the main flaw in the 5.4 reared its head (needle bearings in the roller followers started to fail)at 245k along with all the timing work that was due to be done on the engine, and body rust it was time to let it go.
I saw the Ranger was in my price range which was the main thing, then upon further research I found out the Ranger had slightly better tow capacity (300lbs.) and payload I knew what my next truck was.

 

[SemperVee]

I went the other way. Never owned a F150 but came off a 2005 Chev Avalanche I had for 14 years. Loved the way the 19 XLT sport Ranger looked and all the safety features that came with it along with the "Parkability". Ranger handled like a fast Go Cart to me, very fun. Reason I traded out of it 3 years later was multiple. I was not comfortable in the smaller cab, very little rear cab storage and the Bed was way too small to carry 2 folded up ebikes. The kicker was I was able to trade it in for what I had paid for it new against my more elegant interior with leather 22 V8 Lariat crewcab that also had the helper step built in the tailgate to get up into the bed for my "senior" body now. Harder to park being bigger but I can live with that. I truly miss the front parking sensors I had with the Ranger.

 

[NTXTremor]

I had a 1997 F150 extended cab 4x4. The 97-02 F150 is 5 inches wider than the 19+ Rangers. The big difference for me is fitting the Ranger in my garage versus the 97 F150. The F150 was the extended cab long bed version so it had a 7 foot bed on it. Plus it had a homemade brush guard made from 3" steel tubing. While it did fit in the garage, there was not much room to spare.

And as others have stated, it is easier to park the Ranger in crowded lots compared to the F150. And even on a bad day (towing a heavy trailer) my Ranger XLT FX4 still gets way better fuel mileage then the 97 F150 ever did. My F150 had the 4.6L V8. While it was a dependable motor, it was definitely NOT big enough for a truck. The F150 got 14 MPG no matter how I drove it or what I hauled.

I had an F150 SCREW Lariat in the very last year of that body style which was 2003. I kept detailed track of my mileage from day one, recording the octane and location where I got the gas. Like you, I got about 14.5 mpg regardless of what I did, although I got about 1 mpg better with gas from RaceTrac here in Texas. I cannot explain why.

Oddly enough, the best mileage I ever got with it was when I had to tow my old full-sized Cherokee (like that Grand Wagoneer) from Oklahoma to Texas after storing it there with a friend for a few years after we moved from OK to TX. I towed it on a flatbed trailer from U-Haul. The Jeep was close to the maximum weight of the trailer, and the combined weight was close to 7000 pounds, so I babied it the whole way. I accelerated slowly and never exceeded 55 mph on the 200 mile trip.

I filled up before we left OK and again when we got home in Texas, and I somehow managed 28 mpg.

 

[LuckyMonkey7]

gas mileage, capability, and ability to fit in a garage.
The ranger has more towing capacity than my 02 f150, is the same length, and gets significantly better gas mileage. Probably a lot easier for my wife to drive as well.

 

[VAMike]

Mine was entirely size and practicality. I don't need a bigger truck or a bigger engine. I would have liked a higher trim line with features like cooled seats. (That said, I'm not looking forward to the next-gen--it's taller and wider in the front to fit an engine I don't want, almost certainly making the parking and visibility worse for no benefit to me, and it seems questionable whether a scab will even be an option, meaning I either get a shorter bed or a longer truck that I don't want. This gen ranger was the perfect fit, unlike anything else on the market. So, I'll probably run this one until one of us dies.)

 

[GTGallop]

What Made You Chose the Ranger over the F150?

You ever try to park a full sized truck in Scottsdale Arizona?
Ironically a full sized truck was once named for this town. Now you can't park one here.
Tiny lots, tight turns, skinny spaces, and any opening you find has an F-Type Jag on one side and a BMW M-850i on the other - both with some ridiculously hard to match paint color upgrades.

 

[LostMy65]

I've owned about a dozen F150's for business and while they suited my needs then they're just way to big now. The Ranger is the same size as my first F150 which I bought back in '96. It's the perfect size, easy to park (well for some of us ) and still fits in the garage. Unless you're towing something large or have a big family and need the extra cab space I think the Ranger is the perfect size for all around use.

We went on a month long trip back in June which totaled 5,000 miles. I was even more impressed with it going through some high mountain passes in CO and the way to handled and how comfortable it was driving long hours. The gas mileage was great too but that's going to be subjective on how you drive and the conditions.

I had never been in a 5g ranger. In fact I never saw one up close but briefly from the outside. So when I was first driving it home and came along side an older Chevy Silverado and later an older f150. It felt weird to feel almost as large as them. Especially since my last truck was a 2000 Tacoma <- which seems so dinky now.

 

[Atitagain]

I am in the market again for a truck after 10 years and 183k miles on my 2013 F150 STX Scab. I like the styling and engine in the Ranger. I am a little concerned with storage and towing though.
I am an Arborist but generally do not haul around a lot of gear and do not tow a lot of heavy equipment. I have a 100lb golden that rides in the rear seat area regularly on our drives to and from our lake place along with all gear for our stay. I have a 3000lb boat I have to drop in the lake and recover after our stay. I plan on taking the boat on a few trips to Florida, usually less than 10 hours from our home in the Atlanta area.

I wanted Ranger owner's opinions before I make a purchase.

Thanks in advance

John

Buy the F-150. I gave up a beautiful 2016 F-150 4x4 CC because my wife was uncomfortable driving it. I do like my 2022 Ranger but I find it a little small inside. Arm rest too small, window switches too far back, and I have to drive with the power seat all the way back or I feel cramped. Wife handles the Ranger just fine however and it's our only vehicle.

 

[CP0861]

I had a 2001 F150 SCREW 4x2 Lariat....5.4 v8 and 3.55 rear. I put 200K miles on it. Great truck. I bought it brand new for around $28K in 2001.

I haven't driven a newer F150 but I'm sure it rides a little nicer just due to the size. I keep vehicles forever, so if I was taller and/or drove on longer trips...or if I absolutely HAD to have a bigger bed....I would've leaned toward an F150 for the comfort.

But for my purposes, the Ranger meets all of my needs and is more efficient....couldn't justify the extra purchase cost of a full size truck when the extra cost would only provide a little more comfort while costing more to operate and own. The Ranger may not ride quite as nice as an F150, but it rides well enough for me (plus there's the popular option of upgrading suspension) and it's enjoyable to drive. Also, the Ranger seems to tow very well. I have 2 kids and a 90 pound lab and there's enough room....it's not a Subarban or an Expedition obviously, but it's adequate.

It can handle whatever I'll ever need from a truck. If the most you're carrying is your dog and a 3k pound boat, the Ranger will do that with ease. Take rides in both and go from there. For you, it seems like it may be a cost vs. comfort issue.

 

[Proverbs308]

Like others I bought mine for the size. It drives and parks nice and easy. Also the gas mileage is good.

 

[Hydrophilic]

Thank you for all your replies. From everything I have read I have concluded price/ cost of ownership, smaller size, off road capabilities, mileage, and styling are the reasons you have chosen the Ranger.

I test drove two, a super crew and super cab xlt. I liked the way they both drove but I liked the Supercab better because of the bed. The back seat isn't an issue as it is just the wife, me, and the golden retriever. It would easy to remove the back seat bottoms and put a plywood covered platform there so 90lbs of fur can lounge out like other owners here have done. Now I just need to find one with the trailer package and get some trailer brakes. Plus I need Ford's 2.9 financing to come back.

 

[CF6-mech]

I never considered an F-150, too big for my needs. I was only looking at midsized trucks. I was partial to the Ranger and when I was shopping my truck was about all I could find.

 

[SemperVee]

Each to their own comfort level and where you want to deposit your money. My extended warranty will probably out live me. I never bought an extended warranty before but made sense this time and for the price was a no brainer.

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