Maybe all this Ranger buying will spur on the economy. I too just picked up a new one. a torrador red XLT super with the 4.0 and the manual tranny. My dad gave me his 92 XLT ranger 4 years ago when he upgraded. When I told him I bought a new truck, I asked if he wanted his 92 back. Woulda thought he was a 16 yr old getting his first car. Today he picked up his 'new' old truck. He got out of my truck, walked over to his rig and tapped it on the fender and said "Don't worry baby, we're back together"

I don't think I would have pulled the trigger and bought a new one this year excpet for the fact they are no longer making them. You can tell Ford gave up redesigning the ranger serveal years ago but I really like the compact truck, not a mid sized.

I thought I was gonna get a 2.3 but with a $6k rebate on the V6's, I said "Why not?" I guess a when you buy a new truck every 19 years it is okay to splurge on the V6.

I think the guys at Autozone are gonna miss me.

 

I wanted the four also, but wife wanted rear opening doors so I had to take the V6. The rebate difference is crazy too with the V6 being double the four I bought more truck for less money.
I gave my 16 year old son my 99 Ranger, if he gives it back to me some day I may say same thing your dad did.

 

Boy, you guys are lucky. I wish I could swing a new ranger but not at this time. I guess I'll just have to do with my old 2000.

 

I'm up to about 800 miles and the engine is definitely starting to loosen up. I'm pretty happy with the truck so far, but a couple of things are starting to bug me. I don't know where Ford found the plastic for the steering wheel, but it feels like something from a 1968 Buick. Disturbingly un-modern. The sideview mirrors are also strange. The over-exaggerated diagonal cut on the inside/bottom corner eats up an incredible amount of mirror surface. I noticed that older Rangers/Explorers use a different mirror without this issue, so I may try to swap mine for mirrors from an older truck. The traction control responds very slowly - the truck will spin for a few seconds, the stop spinning for a few seconds, then spin some more. Every other vehicle I have had with TC stopped wheel spin much more quickly and didn't cycle on/off for seconds at a time. The fabric covering the center arm rest/console and door panels seems flimsy. Finally, some illumination on the radio volume **** would be nice.

 

That diagonal cut is probably for body clearance when the mirrors are folded in.

 

I have had four Rangers since 1988, and the mirror on the new one is the best for visibility.
What model do you have XL? My XLT has a leather wrapped steering wheel.
Where have you had the chance to test the traction control? It is a brake based system if that is what makes it behave that way.
I like the strong reception of the facory radio, much bettter than the JVC in my 99 Ranger but would like better sound quality.
Overall I love all the Rangers I have owned and hope to get many hundreds of thousands of miles from this one.

 

I have toured the plant in the past and it is a shame to see it end a very long production run. My Ranger currently is my second and has been trusty.

 

I've owned dozens of cars and trucks and I rarely notice mirrors, they're just one of those things that go unnoticed unless there's something odd about them. I don't recall the mirrors on my 1990 Ranger being odd, but I notice the strange shape of my '11's mirrors every time I drive the truck. Maybe it's just me.

When I bought my truck, Ford's website and the brochure I got from the dealer both said that a leather wrapped steering wheel is standard on the XLT. However, when I was searching dealer inventories and looking at window stickers, I found several XLTs that listed a leather wrapped steering wheel on the options list. In any case, my XLT doesn't have it.

You could be right about the traction control. Other TC equipped vehicles I've owned also had throttle-by-wire, which allows the computer to control wheelspin by using a combination of reducing throttle and applying the brakes. I tested it by coming to complete stop on a wet road and stomping on the gas.

Sound system quality is tolerable. Since the Ranger is a spare vehicle and won't be driven much, I'm not planning on spending any serious money upgrading the sound system. I'll probably just get better speakers.

 

I tried to get a tour, but Ford said no. Some I talked to said to call the union and ask.

I think I am going to invest in some better speakers first, then switch head unit if I have too.
What would be a good speaker choice? I put infinity 2 ways in my 99 before switching the head unit. They were a small improvement over factory.

 

Right now I have deals pending on two different 2011 Rangers. Both are the Sport version with 5 speed manual and the 4.0 motor.

The first one is a 4x2 Supercab with no options, out the door price of 16 800 CAD.

The second is a 4x4 Supercab with bedliner and hood protector out the door for 20 100 CAD.

I just have to make a final decision on which one will best suit my needs in the coming years.

I am seriously considering a Detroit Tru Trac in either case since I do quite a bit of ice fishing at times on lakes with quite a bit of snow cover. I was kind of surprised to find the Tru Trac is available for these 8.8 inch diffs.