Dads buying a Ranger, anything i should know??

[Andy Szkutak]

Well guys, my dad is going to the dealer to buy a 2006 ranger xlt on friday. Hes getting 4wd with limited slip, thats all he really needs to have, and then some other goodies im sure will be included...Are there any problem points with the ranger than he should know about? I know they use the same 5r55e tranny as our tracs, so it may have 2-3 flair problems, anything else they are known for?



i appreciate your help and ill post pics when its in our driveway!



thanks

Andy

 

[Kevin Palmer]

I had that body style Ranger prior to getting my first Trac. It was a great truck. Never had a single issue with it. Mine wast the Quad Cab with the mini doors for the back seat(s). Only reason I traded it in was to get a real back seat...

 

[Robert Sayre]

I have a '93 ranger with 140,000 miles on it. The trannys back then had poor durability. I think the ones now days are a little better in that department. I've got a Rhino spray-in bedliner that is SOOO worth the bucks spent on it. Other than that it's been a very strong runner every since I bought it new. I've got 31 inch tires on it and 4.10 gears - this thing is very fast. Rust has broken out on the bottom lip of the tailgate, the gas door (isn't that strange?) and on the side door at the very tip of where the side mirrors attach. Also on the rear bumper right over the exhaust. Chrome piece has discolored right over the headlights on each side (also very strange). I've kept up with synthetic oil from about 30,000 miles and feel it's why the truck has lasted as long as it has. I've beat on this thing. I have the heavy duty springs in it that bring the carrying capacity up to 1500 lbs. In that truck I have carried 2200 pounds of rock, very close to bottoming out in back, many times. Granted I've got many modifications including a 5 inch lift and 325x60xr15 bfg all terrains on there, but the bed has held up fine. Hope this helps! I'd keep driving it except that without a rear seat it doesn't fit my needs anymore. I'm selling it and getting either an '03 or an '04 sport trac. Overall it has exceeded my expectations by quite a bit on durability, reliability, and fun.

--Bob

 

[Fred]

I also had a Ranger and traded for a ST for the back seat. Mine was a 2000 4x4 XLT extended cab 5 speed that I bought new. It was a good truck.

 

[Paul H]

i leased a 1999 ford ranger. good truck if i could get the check engine light stop popping on every other week brought to ford thousands of times they never found a problem just kept resetting the computer also the oil pressure gauge always stuck replaced that 10 times still never fixed right. got into an head on accident with the truck air bags never went off. i was doing 35-40 mph there supposed to go off then and the truck did not handle the accident well i crumpled the whole front end down and under the truck the whole 4 wheel drive system was laying on the ground. the tow truck guy picked it up and threw it on the flat bead. other than that the truck was great

 

[Johnny O]

I had two before I got the Trac, a 99 and an 02, both 4x4 Supercabs. Like Coastie, I just needed more room. Good trucks but mpg is awful. There is a TSB about a driveshaft issue, on both of mine I got a loud clunk when shifting into reverse or starting out quickly so the dealer replaced the steel driveshaft with an aluminum one that solved the problem. I had to have the ball joints replaced on one side of my 02 fairly early but it was on warranty.

 

[Bart Adkins]

You should know he's buying a tough little truck! I traded my '97 Ranger with 102k miles and she still ran like a champ. I hauled TONS of firewood and gravel over the years and didn't really take good care of her toward the end...even though it was only a 4cyl 2wd she was INDESTRUCTABLE! Built Ford tough? You know it! You shoud have seen my neighbors face when I yanked his full size chevy out of the ditch with my little black Ranger!:blink: I Love my Trac, but my Ranger was my first love!:wub:[Broken External Image]:

 

[Eldon Webb]

I traded in a 99 Ranger to get my ST. It was a great vehicle. Never missed a beat. Just get the 4.0 engine.

 

[Tom Schindler]

A friend had a 1996 Ranger with 190,000 miles on that little 4 banger.





Tom

 

[Andy Szkutak]

Thanks for all the input guys! It looks like its gonna be a red supercab xlt 4x4 with the 4.10 LS. I only have one question: The dealer mentioned something about if we wanted jump seats in the back. i am familiar with what they are, as our old ranger had them, but its an option now. If we dont get them, is it only a 2 seat ranger then?? rather than a 4 seater?? Thanks

Andy

 

[Gill Wong]

Andy - Your dad may want to consider the SuperCab with the rear access doors (R45 body style) for easy accessibility back there and the rear seats are standard with this configuration.

 

[Gerald Pierce]

My son has the STX... it has jump seats in the rear and buckets in the front, but I think that is specific to the STX.



He does not have the 4 door, only the extended cab. No one is going to fit in the rear seats unless they are small. he keeps the jump seats up and put a gazillion dollar stereo in with a subwoofer box the size of a small coffin in the space.



Issues: 2 failed upstream o2 sensors at 4k miles. dealer replaced them, CE light came back on the next day. replaced computer. 2 weeks later, CE back on for right bank lean. Light went out after a day, if it comes back on, it'll go back into the dealer.



Otherwise, he loves it.

 

[M B]

2000 XLT 4X4 3.0 automatic....Light in the snow, replaced 3 door swtiches in driver's side and with small motor, couldn't pull anything like the ST does.

 

[Richard Kolb]

I traded my 03 Ranger even for the sport trac, I wish I hadn't but at the time I needed to get a real rear seat. The Rangers are awesome, the biggest difference between them and the sport trac is the rear springs. I've had 3 rangers and I wish I still had them all.