What is your opinion of the 2020 Ford Ranger?

Originally Posted by A_A_G
Originally Posted by RTexasF
The rear seat is only usable by tiny people or children unless the front occupants have their knees in their faces. I can't even get back there riding behind a normal size person. A stripped F150 isn't that much more $$$ and has some real room.


Isn't this the issue with all mid-size trucks? I've sat in all of them at the car show and they were lacking in rear leg space. And IIRC all of them lacked rear air vents except the Ridgeline which is a huge negative.


The Ridgeline rear seat room is like a Greyhound bus compared to the others.
 
I'll counter as a F150 owner and daily driver. Mine's an XL with bucket seats, 4x4 and sync 3. It's the extended cab but not the full 4-door. MSRP was 42 and they put $5k on the hood for walking in. The interior is miles of plastic and started rattling/squeaking in its first year. It is a tremendous tow vehicle, and a nice daily driver, especially after finding some oem 18" wheels and getting rid of the 20s. That said, I think the ranger would be very well suited to that boat, and would be easier to live with if driven daily. In congested areas, smaller vehicles simply maneuver better. If we didn't have the camper, I'd be all over that ranger as an ideal size daily driver and weekend warrior. As it is right now, I've got my eyes open for something smaller to commute in, just because one guy doesn't need 4,800lbs of metal around him to get to work and back, though I don't think we'll ever be without some kind of truck or at least a suitable sedan/suv and cargo trailer.
 
The Colorado/Canyon tows heavy trailers great. Technology has improved and it can tow as much as full size trucks from 20 years ago. And you can get a crew cab long bed if you want.
 
overpriced + underperforming + smallish to boot. i like smaller vehicles + standard cabbed pickups are my fav if any midsized ones were made. the ranger is smallish compared to the frontier which is the best value + still NOT DI is a plus for sure as its 4.0 V-6 makes great torque! yes i own one + its a manual 6 spd SV + I LOVE IT + the mpgs are almost as good as my anemic 08 2.9 colorado i crashed out!!!! i would even buy a colorado before it!
 
Originally Posted by benjy
overpriced + underperforming + smallish to boot. i like smaller vehicles + standard cabbed pickups are my fav if any midsized ones were made. the ranger is smallish compared to the frontier which is the best value + still NOT DI is a plus for sure as its 4.0 V-6 makes great torque! yes i own one + its a manual 6 spd SV + I LOVE IT + the mpgs are almost as good as my anemic 08 2.9 colorado i crashed out!!!! i would even buy a colorado before it!

Frontiers suck.
 
If you're going to tow a boat do yourself a favor and get the F150.

I tow a boat and trailer weighing nearly 5k with a midsize. An old midsize (2003 Dodge Dakota.) I'm going full size for my next truck.

I've towed the boat with a new Tacoma, new Colorado. They can all do it just fine, but the larger chassis of the full-size makes towing so much easier. At least that's my experience when towing the boat with a new Ram.

The only way I can describe it is this: when using the midsize trucks, you KNOW you are towing. You need to drive accordingly.

The full size, due to its larger construction, just feels much more confident when towing. Sometimes you forget the boat is back there, which will never happen when towing with any midsize truck.

It's not all about the power, it's about the size and the chassis dimensions. You also need to factor in how often and how long you're towing. If your ramp is only a few miles away, then you'll be fine with a Ranger. Two hours as mentioned earlier? F150, I wouldn't even consider a Ranger for that long of a tow.
 
Originally Posted by dogememe
Originally Posted by benjy
overpriced + underperforming + smallish to boot. i like smaller vehicles + standard cabbed pickups are my fav if any midsized ones were made. the ranger is smallish compared to the frontier which is the best value + still NOT DI is a plus for sure as its 4.0 V-6 makes great torque! yes i own one + its a manual 6 spd SV + I LOVE IT + the mpgs are almost as good as my anemic 08 2.9 colorado i crashed out!!!! i would even buy a colorado before it!


Frontiers suck.



Frontiers definitely don't suck. Very good trucks.
 
Frontier has an all-new engine for this year. Ground-up new Frontier comes out next year, but they went ahead and put the new engine in the current model, for some reason.

The old 4.0 is a strong engine - as others have said, only thing that sucks is the economy. Same as my Taco.
 
Had a few of them at work. Were at dealer more than they should have been on road. Oil change I hear from PM tech is a royal pain in rear end. Plus me being over 6ft, I didnt care for seats or interior.
 
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I test drove a Ranger and think it's a nice truck but I drove home in a F-150 STX for almost the same price. In the end it came down to wanting more rear seat room and I preferred the F-150's smoother ride.
There were very few lower package Rangers on the lots around here. Upgraded XLT was the lowest package with most being Lariat.
 
Newest member to the family !ðŸ‘

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Originally Posted by john_pifer
Frontier has an all-new engine for this year. Ground-up new Frontier comes out next year, but they went ahead and put the new engine in the current model, for some reason.

The old 4.0 is a strong engine - as others have said, only thing that sucks is the economy. Same as my Taco.


You forgot the eyesore interior and the tiny cab space to go along with the poor fuel economy. But I mean it is reliable, so it has that going for it.
 
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Originally Posted by dogememe
Originally Posted by benjy
overpriced + underperforming + smallish to boot. i like smaller vehicles + standard cabbed pickups are my fav if any midsized ones were made. the ranger is smallish compared to the frontier which is the best value + still NOT DI is a plus for sure as its 4.0 V-6 makes great torque! yes i own one + its a manual 6 spd SV + I LOVE IT + the mpgs are almost as good as my anemic 08 2.9 colorado i crashed out!!!! i would even buy a colorado before it!

Frontiers suck.


Late last year I did some heavy Frontier shopping/test driving. I just couldn't pull the trigger on a Pro or lesser. The unrefined nature of it was painfully evident. The 5speed was no gift and the V6 was plenty guttoral. The ride was sorta OK but I didn't see living with it. Sadly the 2020 and later is GDI, but there are actual improvements elsewhere also. I'm hoping I can like it, cause I sure don't like the other badges offerings. Too big, too tall, too expensive. FCA, where is your offering?
 
Wouldn't get a Ranger when the 150 gets the same mileage, rides better, tows better and costs the same. Def don't get a Frontier; they get worse mileage than any fullsize 1500 and are primitive.
 
I looked at all the midsize trucks, just couldn't justify the price when I could get a half ton for just a few grand more. Frontier didn't impress me, rangers got expensive fast, and I HATED the seats in the Colorado.
 
Originally Posted by Silverado12
Wouldn't get a Ranger when the 150 gets the same mileage, rides better, tows better and costs the same. Def don't get a Frontier; they get worse mileage than any fullsize 1500 and are primitive.


I really really really really wanted to like the new Rangers. However so far I have been underwhelmed by them. I am sort of kinda truck shopping right now and it will either be a used 6.0 Super Duty or a new F-150 with the Coyote.
 
It's my least favourite truck in the class. I'm looking to replace my old Canyon and I keep coming back to an F150 with the 3.3 naturally aspirated. You can get a huge gas tank which is a big bonus especially when towing.
 
Factory Ford Performance tuning kit now available. 50
State emissions legal and " Comes with Ford Performance 3yr/36k mile warranty from new vehicle in-service when installed by a Ford dealer or ASE/Red Seal certified technician"

Adds 45 HP and 60 lb-ft. Also reprograms transmission shift points for $825.

https://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-9603-REB
 
From a tune point of view, the 2.3L engine And 10sp transmission really responds. Aftermarket tunes may not be what people have in mind when they purchase a ranger, but whoa-man do they wake up.

I don't know about the Ford tune, but aftermarket ones remove the weird throttle response and wonky drivability behavior, resulting in something akin to "correct" or "just right" from a driving dynamics point of view.

Local guys have done a few drag runs!

Hint: the 5 star tune drops 0-60 from 7.4 to 5.5. Amazing!!
 
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