Ford's Ranger is Already Better Than the Toyota Tacoma
By Brett Foote

The king of the mid-size pickup hill might have already been overthrown.

 

Thanks for posting this. The article touches on what I've been saying for a while now and that is that the Tacoma is very outdated truck. Everyone talks about the fact that the Nissan Frontier hasn't changed in 15 years or so, but they conveniently neglect to mention that neither has the Tacoma! At least the Frontier has aged rather gracefully and does have 4-wheel disc brakes. The Tacoma in 2020 still has drum brakes in the back! The Toyota faithful are full of excuses as to why that's acceptable. I think the only thing that's keeping the Tacoma on the market is that it has the Toyota name behind it, and it has a "coolness" factor that gives it almost a cult-like following. But as more and more buyers who actually care about the numbers start to investigate this segment a little further, they'll find that the Ranger and Colorado both offer much better trucks for the money.

 

Agree. I came from an '09 Tacoma, and don't get me wrong, I loved the truck, and I did look at a Tacoma for my next car, but the Ranger blows it away. I do think another big reason people go with Tacoma's is, at least when the Ranger first came out, there's much more aftermarket support. Also, I've said it once, and I'll say it again. Ford needs to bring a Crew Cab/6ft option to the Ranger. People will go with the Taco, or even the Frontier or GM twins, simply because they offer that configuration, while with the Ranger it's either SC/6ft, or CC/5ft.

 

I am truly happy to see the Ranger doing well on the market. Ford's push toward the recreational user (bicycle, kayak, etc) was perfectly timed to catch a wave of people who think differently about leisure time and want to camp and do outdoor activity. I believe that there may be a new market of first-time pickup buyers who are much more comfortable in a mid-sized pickup (and city dwellers who can't deal with anything larger).

The only comment I can make on the Toyota, though, is that although it has had some problems (rusting frames, etc), it has a well-earned reputation of lasting a heck of a long time. There are numerous vehicles on old platforms (Toyota Land Cruiser and 4Runner, big Mercedes SUV--whatever it's called) that have a stellar reputation of strength and longevity and still have good status. I drove a Ford E van for 13 years and that platform went from 1975 to 2014 or something. (There were changes to be sure.)

 

The Tacoma has drum brakes in the rear?

That's inexcusable. It's 2020 for crying out loud!

 

I have a 2008 tacoma and am ford dealer tech who would love to buy a ford ranger 4x4 sport double cab 6 foot bed with a V6(non turbo preferable) motor in it.
I understand the market logic behind if you want a double cab 6 foot bed then you have to buy a F150 which means ford gets more money but it still pisses me off, I will be curious what the next generation/redesign of the ranger is.
I figure most people who buy the new ranger are the same crowd who bought the old ranger, they need a pickup bed but not all the time nor do they fill it to the brim and they dont need to worry about towing anything heavy, and honestly thats most tacoma people to, I know Im in that group.
Honestly I have been noticing the new colorados driving around, crew cab, 6 foot bed, looks sexy, V6 non turbo engine. I dont know what the inside looks like though, waiting for one to get traded in at my dealer.
And yes tacomas still come with drum brakes and its dumb as hell.