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Ford Ranger III
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Comments
Thanks again!
jkidd
Steve.
Steve.
They had photos of 132 different trucks posted around the (huge) room. All current models, PLUS "future trucks", which were described as being available within the next year or so.
Lots and lots of new trucks from Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Acura, Dodge and others. But, no future Rangers or Mazdas. None, zero, zip, nada.
The future Tacoma looks like the new 4Runner, and the future Frontier lokks like the new Titan. The Honda, Acura and some others are nothing more than chopped-off SUVs, like the avalanche.
So, we can only wonder when a new Ranger will make its appearance.
rickc5, the new Ranger will be at least a 2006 model truck. Sadly the F-150 gets all the glory for a year or two. (maybe more)
I'm sure once the sales units drop to a significant degree, Ford will pay attention. Sadly I don't think the Ranger can hold onto the title as "best selling compact truck" that it has had for around 18 years.
I would goto a local parts store, and check out the Haynes or Chilton's repair manuals for both vehicles in question. That would confirm any miscellaneous items like wiring, vacuum schematics, and would give you a good idea of any accessories or intakes you could reuse.
Food for thought, If you have a 93 mustang, it probably wouldn't cost you a whole lot more to put in a 5.0l v8. You just need a donor car with transmission, brakes, differential, and springs. Most of those items can be left off until you can afford it later(except the transmission), but you would get more bang for the buck. But the brakes and suspension of the 10 year old 4 cylinder won't last long-term with a v8 powered drivetrain. There are alot of resources in magazines or on the web about doing a 2.3l to 5.0l conversion.
Any thoughts from anybody? If I go with the 2.3L single cab, will I be wishing for that extra space 6 months down the road and not caring about the drop in gas mileage? And, it bumps up the price of the vehicle - is it worth it?
I had a regular cab Ranger for 5 years and even though the truck was very useful for hauling and moving lots of stuff back and fourth between school and home and for household projects, at times it was a real pain in the you know what. Think about it...think you ever might want to carry a TV AND stereo AND computer all at the same time? Then that's one fragile piece of electronics you'll have to figure out some way to secure in the bed. Not to mention it effectively eliminates the possibility of carrying any passengers at the same time.
Think maybe you might want to stop at a hotel to spend the night on some of those road trips? Then you have two choices if you don't want to risk getting the luggage you stored in the bed stolen. Cart it all into the hotel room at night and then back down stairs when you start out in the morning, or else invest money in a locking cap or hard tonneau. I dont imagine right there there's much difference between what youd pay for a quality cap or tonneau and whatever the extra cost is for the 3.0/extended cab.
Even if you just want to leave the truck unattended for a few minutes at a rest stop, if you have to store all valuables and luggage in the bed, you're taking a chance that it won't be there when you get back if you dont have any locking storage in the bed. I think the most annoying thing for me was if I had one or two fragile pieces of cargo that I didn't want in the bed, it meant I could no longer fit a passenger in the cab with me.
I dont know about the newest Rangers, but I know up until 98 or 99 you could get a 4-banger extended cab. But with the heavier truck, all else being equal, a 3.0 that doesn't have to work as hard to move the extra weight probably wouldn't be that much of a mileage penalty anyway.
Either way, Id say find a way to get the extended cab truck, even if you take a slight mileage penalty in the process. You'll be more likely to end up with a vehicle that will meet your needs for long enough that you can hold onto it for a very long time, instead of getting sick of the lack of interior storage space and having to trade in a few years.
James
With 2 people in a standard cab, you can't even bring home the groceries from the store very well. The sacks will be blowing around in the back.
No place for basic tools, coat, etc inside the cab. I had a standard cab 1966 Ford, it just had no room at all outside the bed.
I'm not sure, but I think the seats also move back more in the extended cab. If you are tall at all, you better check to see if you will even fit into a standard cab....
Note resale value. Look for 2-3 years old and save 50% or more. I made expensive mistake in that I just had to have the new 4.0L in 01. Should have waited....
Good luck, its a good truck
My price range is intermediate.
Any specific recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Also, please give any info on which tire brands are good or bad to buy. Thanks very much.
by the way what are the 3.0, and 4.0 gas mileage with a standard tranny, with 4x4 or FX4.
Also what is the replacement for the 3.0 going to be.
The stick has two holes drilled into it, one for the "Add" mark and one (I presume) for the "Full" mark. The odd thing is from the lower hole to a spot dead center between the holes is the typical hash marks one would normally see when there are no holes at all.
So the question, is the oil full when it's at the top of the hash mark (center of holes) or when it reaches the top hole?
Thats the first I have heard of it.
Would be interesting to see.....I always thought a Ranger King Ranch Edition would be cool!
jkidd
I've never seen one.
And, I think it's bucket seats only, not 60/40.
I have seen some Rangers on the lot with the leather bucket seats, they look good. I like the higher backrests on the 2004 models.
As for tires...Bridgestone Dueller APT IIs where the last set on my Ranger. I put them on at 90 and they barely look worn when I got rid of the truck at 107K. In fact I had an oil change at about 100K and they thought I had just put on brand new tires when they had 10K on them.
These tires got great traction in snow and sand, but the handling sucked. VERY floaty in tight corners and made for squishy transitions on the highway. But they were definitely quiet. I paid about 400 at Sears before all the extra stuff like mounting and balancing.