Plenty of pick up and go, tows with no problem.Very reliable truck.

Not enought room in the cab! Wish I would have bought the extended cab

I have owned this truck for 5 years now, it has the 4.0 engine, and its been a great vehicle! The V-6 motor has plenty of power, I have towed boats and campers up the mountain with no problems. Never had any serious problems with this truck, and I have beat it up some 4 wheel driving in the mountains.It now has over 169k on the original engine and still running strong!

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Jeep Grand Cherokee, and Cherokee

For a compact truck, the ride was smooth compared to say, a Toyota Tacoma. The 4.0L v6 could move when I needed it to. The Ranger was like a bad girlfriend. It would suck me into thinking it was cool, only to break down, cry, pitch a fit, and break my heart once it had me in its grasp - which is to say that a strength of the Ranger is that it was a lesson in Zen. It inspired me to rid myself of fat, shoddy American design and production techniques, and dually inspired me to hunt down a Toyota Tacoma.

It simply fell apart on a monthly basis. Within 36,000 miles, I replaced the serpentine belt twice, the oil pump, the fan bearing twice, drivers side seat bracket (I weigh 140 lbs.), mass air flow sensor, and the entire clutch. At 41,000 miles, I had to replace the clutch again due to poor workmanship from North Bay Ford in Santa Cruz, CA. After an ugly, drawn out fight with North Bay Ford, they paid for all but $900 of it. North Bay Ford was the pits, by the way. It's also worth mentioning that I've had clutches last for 200,000 miles on Toyotas and Hondas with no problems. Also, the Ranger never felt very good in the snow. Even with a camper shell on the back in 4x4, it managed to be quite squirrelly in any amount of snow. And don't even get me started on resale value of American vehicles.

After a lifetime of Japanese automobiles, I decided to buy an American truck. I wish I could say my American brethren designed and built and vehicles that could stand up to my experiences with the Hondas and Toyotas that I've driven, but sadly, they fall terribly short. The American bumbling oaf Ford Ranger, which felt sloppy and fat from the get-go, has luckily for me, been passed on to some other sucker now. I also feel it necessary to say that I'm as patriotic as anyone, but the headaches afforded by owning a Ford vehicle are not worth their weight in stars and stripes. God bless the USA... Also, for the purposes of this review, it's important to know that I'm the type of car/truck owner that has all maintenance performed on time, on schedule; one who keeps his cars in showroom condition at all times, and who will research a purchase to the point of exhaustion. I guess we all make mistakes sometimes...

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1996 Toyota Tacoma other Japanese cars I've owned as well: 1981 Toyota Tercel, 1992 Honda Civic si, 2004 Honda Civic EX

Good looking, very practical, ran good.

Problems kept popping up, and I didn't want to get stuck w/ the problems after the warrenty was up.

I really liked this truck, it was the second one I owned. I had the hard tops on the back I could lock all my stuff up. This truck drove really nice, had the big V6, so it had some pick up and go. Unfortunately I had the same problems with my first truck I did with this one. Slowly one at a time, things started going bad. First the stereo went dead, the the oil gauge, the the belts were squealling, then the power stearing, that the ABS were sticking in the morning. I sold it right before the warranty was up, it was just turning into a lemon, every other week I had it in the shop, and I didn't want to get stuck with the bill after the warranty ran out. Bought a '91 Jeep Cherokee, no problems since, old thing runs like a charm!

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2001 Ford Ranger, Jeep Cherokee

toughness ground clearance (snow and trail) load capacity respectable acceleration

fuel economy is below current competition no crew cab

This is my second ranger. Both have been 4x4 supercabs with the 4.0L V6. I've leased this one and now have 21,000 miles on it and have had no service on it save for oil changes and tire rotations. There are no surprises with the ranger, what you see is what what you get. Drive it once,and you'll know not to expect a cushy highway ride or razor sharp cornering. What you can expect is pick-up utility and toughness. This truck is my daily commuter and used for house/yard work on weekends. I've had 800lbs of landscaping stone in the bed and the truck hardly winced. I've towed a trailer with 3500lbs of top soil in it and it handled it. But I must report that the 5000lb tow rating may be a bit optimistic as with that 3500lbs+trailer that 4.0L was REALLY working to do 45-55mph, but the brakes were more than sufficient to provide confidence when stopping with that load. This truck is operated in WI and in 4x4 it is very predictable and a superior performer in the snow. With ~280lbs of sand in the back it is by far a better snow vehcile (in 4x4) than anything i've driven recently.(example: better than my wifes 2005 Hinda Pilot) MPG average=17 (i've come close to the 19MPG rating on long highway trips) As for interior don't expect leather and DVD navigation :) but the interior is functional and durable. The MACH MP3 radio system is suprisingly powerfull and sounds above average for a stock unit. Overall the Ford Ranger is a dependable tough compact truck. However, Ford really needs to redesign the ranger to compete with the new lines from Toyota and Nissan. (The Chevy Colorado feels anemic in the power department with the inline 5 thus is completly dismissed) without a crew cab and more power from the V6 the ranger will (in my prediction) loose its place as the best selling compact pickup. As for this ranger, this week I'm trading it in for a 05 Nissan frontier crew cab 4x4. The extra power is nice, but I want more room and the ranger doesn't even have anything to compete. (and NO the Explorer sport trac doesn't count as it is just a ranger with a different body and massive price tag)

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2000 Ranger 4x4 offroad

Ride, Ford tough, looks, economy, handling and driver satisfaction.

None yet.

Was considering the Tacoma but for the dollar and looks, there's no comparison.

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Toyota, Chevy

- Excellent 4x4 capability - Smooth Engine/transmission combo - Very good ride for a 4x4 - Lots of space in the bed - Looks like a small, mean F-350

- Gas mileage is poor - 13 city/20 hwy - The driver armrest is terrible (ok, I'm reaching :P)

I bought this truck used off eBay with 88,000 miles on it. At has been, in a word, a dream. At first I had not been very thrilled about the idea of picking up a Ford (I have always been a Chevy guy), but this truck has done everything I wanted and begged for more. The engine is a 3.0 Flex-fuel. I wish it had a bit more power, but then I guess that's what the 4.0 liter is for. That aside, the engine is wonderful. It starts up quickly and reliably every time, no matter what the weather. My only other gripe is that it's quite difficult to work on. I work on the truck myself, but the engine bay is very cramped, so it's a little difficult. The 4x4 system is a blast. Mine has the optional Off-Road package, and I've topped it off with bigger 31" tires. It takes everything that comes it's way and begs for more. I took it on a camping trip with our Boy Scout troop. The snow had all just melted, turning the roads into 8 inches of gooey, sticky mud. When the rear wheels started spinning, I stopped, flipped it into 4x4 Low, and let it rip. You could feel the power surging into the wheels in low range, and I put it to good use - we ended up having to pull 2 vans out of the muck with the 2 tow hooks that were in front of the truck. The transmission hesitates a bit in first gear. I'm not sure this is really a problem, it could just be that the driveshaft needs to be a little tightened. The hesitation disappears in 4x4 high and low, and aside from that minor qualm, the truck shifts beautifully and smoothly. Even under full throttle, the transmission has no slippage. The ride was surprisingly good for a 4x4. It isn't too rough over the bumps, although of course it's not as smooth as a passanger car would be. There's plenty of room up front for the driver and passenger, and the two jump-seats in the back function well when there's 2 kids to take into account. It's also ok for one adult (plenty of room to stretch out your legs), but 2 adults gets really cramped. The heater and AC are both incredible (probably because there's very little space to heat up or cool down), and the stereo system works great. I notice that the CD player is a little picky about CD that are burned on a PC, but that's just another small gripe. The armrest is ok, but the small button on the side for opening it is incredibly frustrating, I have no idea who designed it. Overall, the truck has been a dream. I live in Michigan, where there's plenty of snow, and the 4x4 is functional, reliable, and a lifesaver. The engine and powertrain have been reliable so far, and everything about it is in perfect working order. I'll definitely look at another one!

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My second car, so, no previous history.

TRIED AND TRIED TO BLOW ENGINE BUT IT JUST WOULD NOT BLOW UP. BULLET PROUF

cavalier ford , chesapeake , va. very poor to help you when you have a definate pronouced problem .

bought truck new, 5 miles. I had driveline vibration from day one. Automatic trans issues that dealer told me to "live with it" . When i realized that I couldnt get my dealer to fix these two issues, I felt they had turned there back on me.Anyways, in the four years that I have had the truck i have drove it like a race car, overloaded it, wrecked it, and layed rubber daily. i drove that truck like a wild man ! Although, i swore i would never buy another ford ranger again, the punishment my last ranger put up with made me buy another one. 2004 4WD 4.0 liter It was mainly the dealer that made my new car experience so bad.

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ranger 2000 ranger 1995 nissan 1990 toyota 1987

Well optioned ie: 4 doors with 2 flip seats in back and lots of storage spaces. Decent engine. Starts well in cold weather.

I bought the truck new in early 2001 and 3 hours (yes hours) into ownership and the rear differential jumped or skipped a tooth, resulting in a thumping noise from the rear end (limited slip diff). Dealership was red-faced and very accomodating (gave me a loaner for almost a week). Overdrive off light flashed regularly (Dealer maintained it was a computer code problem and fixed it when they received the code from Ford of Canada). Overdrive light flashed again prior to replacing valve body altogther. Hard shifting resulted a year later and valve plates (don't know them) were replaced later. The vehicle still shifts hard and last winter during a bitter cold spell spilled out all tranny fluid. Ford replaced valve body altogether (almost $1100 all warranty work). Thankfully I have the extended warranty til 2007. Also noticed I have the smaller capacity gas tank spec'd. on the 2 wheel drive regular cab 4 cylinder trucks. I'm have to gas up amost weekly. The serpentine belt needing replacing after a year which seems a little premature. I'm getting the impression this vehicle was put together with left over parts. I'm not putting a lot of kilometers on the truck and, rarely, tow a utility trailer. Lastly, the turn signal knocks off if I turn the steering wheel maybe an 8th of a turn either way. A co-worker confirmed this with his 94 Ranger as well. My 84 Celebrity drove reasonably well for 17 years before it gave up the ghost.

I never drove a Ford product and probably never will. The term Monday/Friday vehicle comes to mind. While it was better optioned for the money than comparable GMC products, the power train leaves a lot to be desired.

Plenty of power with the 4.0 liter. Does well off-road in 4 wheel drive. Rides nice on the highway. Is small enough to fit in my garage with my other car, still leaving room for other things. Good looking-I like the looks of the flare side.

Gas mileage is pitiful.

I have no need for a big truck, but I never liked the really small compact trucks so my first pickup was a Dodge Dakota. I sold the Dakota after five years and bought a jeep Cherokee which I kept for five years. I decided to go back to a pickup, and after driving the Ranger I decided that I liked it, and that it really provided enough room for my wife and I. I have the 4.0 liter engine, and the FX4 package is basically loaded. I have been driving it for over a year with no problems and I love it. I have two dogs (Brittanys - about 55 lbs each)that I like to take places with me so I got rid of the worthless jumpseats and fabricated a carpet-covered bench in the back for the dogs to stand or laydown on. The bench covers all the space between the back of the cab and the back of the front seats - this just about equals the actual sitting area in a Dakota. I have plenty of room and so do they. The real selling point for me over a Dakota was the rear access doors which the Dakota does not offer - they only have the Quad Cab, or the King Cab with no doors in the back.

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Dodge Dakota

none

suspension,fuel,interior,radio,

this is my fourth ranger and they just keep getting worse!!!!

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1998,2000, and 2002 rangers