Finally I was able to get my hands on a Ranger. I work with the fleet manager daily and this one has just ben PDI'd and was not on the lot yet. I was able to get him to hold it until today. The main reason for even looking is my Grandfather who currently has a 2008 Sport Trac Adrenalin 4x4 V8 is looking at getting one. We are interested in the safety tech type new truck has to offer.

Anyway, we took the truck for an hour and a half and put 30 miles on it. It drove great, very smooth and steering was precise, its wide enough to not get pulled around by the ruts in the roads. The 2.3 is STRONG it pulled hard all the way to 95 mph. It could break the tires loose from a light and felt quick. Overall the driving dynamics were great we thought including the brakes which had good firm pedal feel.

I only have 3 complaints. 1 no sunroof, 2 lack of interior storage, 3 no power sliding window.

This truck was a lariat, fx4, navigation, b&o audio, tow pkg, block heater. Sticker of $43,295

 

It’s a solid offering from Ford imo but I think they are holding back, even on marketing. I’d guess the new Ranger in the next few years and Bronco will be a full on assault of marketing. Which is exactly why I’m waiting for now and passing on this Ranger.

 

Somebody posted that the tire is so close to the spindle near the upper A-arm that you cannot use snow chains on the Ranger. Does that look to be true on the one you drove?

 

me too. rental though

 

I’ve never used chains on any of my personal vehicles, so I have never put any thought to check if its possible to put a set on anything so no clue on that question.

I forgot the one last issue that we found to be a downfall was no auto 4x4 option on the transfer case. For a truck at this price point it should have it and GM offers it.

 

So it has a transfer case shifter on the floor ?

 

No, the Ranger does not offer a manual transfer case shifter.

What I meant was a Auto4x4 setting between 2wd and 4HI, this is very useful in the spring and fall when the roads are half icy/half dry. My F-150 has this option and it's fantastic, can be used on dry pavement without harm. The Ranger only currently offers an electric shift 4x4 transfer case with 2wd/4HI/4Lo settings.

 

I believe you are wrong. The new Ranger has a "Terrain Management" system. The Ranger brochure in front of me says that this system can be used in 4H and 4L and has 4 positions--one of is called "normal mode" and is "ideal for your everyday driving on wet or dry paved roads". This may be exclusive to the FX4 version, but it surely sounds like automatic AWD. Check that out...

 

No, Terrain management has nothing to do with automatically engaging the front axle at all. 4x4 locks both axles together and 2wd only gives you rear wheel drive. Terrain management does adjust throttle input, transmission shifting..ect the Ranger does NOT offer a clutch based torque on demand automatic 4x4 system.

Read the owners manual and it clearly states not to use 4x4 on dry pavement.

https://www.ford.com/services/assets...stalCode=18657

 

Got hung up on the brochure and did not read further but you are right. Owner's Manual says that the "Normal" mode applies to 2H as well as 4H modes, and there is the caution about using 4WD on pavement. That's a drag...

I will note that when I was looking at Jeeps a few years ago, they do offer a 4WD version with a clutch in the transfer case, and almost none of the dealer stock had that option but had stuff like sunroofs, etc. After having a Subaru in our family for 11 years, I am a believer in full time AWD for real life conditions which often involve snow/ice/wet/dry pavement on a single road in the winter, and I LOVE the grip of AWD when going up the ramps in a tight parking garage, especially when the pavement is wet.

I was reading too much into the brochure language and am disappointed that Rangers don't have a clutched transfer case. Ford offers a similar traction management system available on Explorers, and those have a clutched AWD system in addition to the traction management stuff... And when I was looking at Expeditions, recall that those had a full-time AWD setting also.

Thanks,
George

 

Russ your experience with Ford's 4wd-auto system may be different but I've heard some negatives about it. Dad had an 04 Exploder with that system behind the 4.6 V8. They traded the truck because it would suddenly shift to 4-Low by itself while cruising at highway speeds down the interstate. Almost caused accidents several times, not to mention obvious damage to the rest of the driveline. Maybe that one truck was a bad apple as I've never heard of that happening to any other vehicle before or since. My F-150 XL of course does not have the automatic 4wd.
In regards to the new Ranger, aside from the 2.3 Ecobust being the only option I really like the rest of the truck! I'll consider this along with the Canyon/Colorado and the Nissan Frontier for my next vehicle.

 

I've never had an issue with the auto systems, other then they are slow to react at times causing slipping, but that's easily fixed by putting it into 4 high. I've never had an issue with 4-low, not sure how that would even happen since you have to be in neutral with the brake on, maybe some super weird issue with the GEM? not sure. I know I've owned many Fords with the control trac 4x4 starting with 1995 Explorers and the same basic idea applies to the current models, you have a clutch in the t-case that sends power via the front drive shaft as needed when slip is detected. But I've owned Explorers, Expeditions and my F-150 with the system and it works great for patchy icy/snow covered roads and in parking lots.

I was very impressed with the 2.3 engine, but I've also enjoyed it in the Mustang for years with rentals when out of state. I just rode in a new frontier and it was laughable IMO. VERY outdated, hell my '97 Explorer feels more modern IMO.

 

I could understand how you would find the Frontier very outdated; after all Nissan has been selling us the same truck since about 2005-06. However I drove one last year, my Dad's 2016 2wd V6 crew cab and I didn't find it too bad. But then again that's coming from someone who is admittedly NOT a tech-guy, and I actually get turned off by all the tech stuff that is forced on us in most newer vehicles. I could understand maybe a rearview camera but do we really need a dozen different camera angles on the average new truck? My biggest gripe with all of that that is it only reinforces us to be more dependent on the "driver aids" and people then forget how to drive without them. If and when I do buy the new Ranger I'm considering an STX that way I can get it without the Co-Pilot 360. I want to know that I'm driving the truck, not the other way around.

 

I agree more then you may think about the tech features for the most part, although I've found the traction control and roll stability control in my 2011 F-150 to be helpful in a handful of situations they are annoying many more times. Although I am not a huge fan of the vehicle taking control for myself, for my Grandparents the additional safety tech have been very helpful on their 2014 Chrysler 300C with blind spot monitoring, parking sensors front/rear and backup camera being the biggest helps, saving many parking lot dings and probably a few lane change accidents. But there is something about getting into one of my vehicles without any type of driver assist besides ABS and being able to do whatever I want without any interference by the vehicles computer, but I'm 30 and like to think I have decent reaction times and situational awareness.

The Frontier doesn't just feel outdated in tech, the overall design just feels super old. The engine pushes a lot of vibrations through the truck it had plenty of road noise. I think part of if is it's a Nissan and Japanese / Korean vehicles just have a bit older feel to them ( but not all) to me personally, especially on the lower price point models.

 

I was pumping gas at Langley AFB the other day and along comes a fella in a new Ranger on the other side. We talked for a few minutes about his Lariat 4x4. He seemed very pleased with his choice. He stated that came out of an Ecoboost F-150 and felt like it was time to downsize.

The Ranger looks a lot different on it's own than it does on the dealer's lot where it's likely to be staged near other trucks that literally dwarf it in size.

In my mind, if the dealers want to sell these trucks faster, they should stage them near something of similar size.

Nice truck, no incentives and very expensive.