I bought my '95, XLT Ranger about 10 months ago at a local dealership (not the Ford dealership) at a great price. I've fixed a few problems and it has served me well so far. I enjoy fixing it up and working on it. The tail gate handle had the plastic cover broken off so I bought a new one at the Ford parts dealership. When I went to install the new replacement handle, I found it would not fit. It looked completely different than the old one. I returned the new handle to Ford and showed them the difference between the two handles and they were mystified and insisted the handle they gave me was the part number for Ford Ranger models from '91 thru '98. They refunded my money and wanted me to bring in my Ranger when I had it back together again. The tail gate looks original and matches the drawing they provided with the part except for the lever mechanism. They even ran a VIN check to see if I really had a '95 model Ranger. It checked out. Then I decided to check further on my own and found the labels normally installed in the drivers door have been almost completely removed and are unreadable. I had ran a check on the VIN number on the computer before I bought it to insure it had no accident record and it all checked out fine. Anybody have an idea what is going on?

 

Maybe the PO replaced the original tailgate with a used one from another year Ranger, or possibly he put a Mazda tailgate on there....?

 

Rockledge....Makes sense that happened. He did a good job because it matches right down to the trim detail. By the way, when I checked the VIN it referred to it as a Ranger Splash/Super Cab. Is a Splash model different than a regular XLT? Thanks!

 

They refered to the flareside beds as being a Ford Ranger Splash until 97'.

 

Not sure myself exactly about the Splash edition differences, this might help you out: 1994 Ranger Spash Review

I recall one time I was waiting at a traffic light and I see a Mazda B-Series emblem on the tailgate of the truck ahead of me, so I'm looking at the truck from behind, admiring it, thinking to myself: "boy, those B-Series trucks really do look like Rangers, don't they Joe?"

So the light turns green, he takes a left, and I look at the side badging on the truck, and it's really a Ranger XLT!! Apparantly the owner had thrown a Mazda tailgate on there that matched the rest of the body paint (black) very well, and like I said, it looked good enough that it even had me fooled!!

 

I don't think my Ranger is a Splash Model. It doesn't have the flare sides, but instead has the slab sides. Also, I was told by Mazda that the handle on the tailgate of the Mazda is the same code as the Ranger's and should be the same. The Ford Parts dealer told me the handle on the Splash Model is different from the regular Ranger in that it's painted, and he suspects someone replaced the tailgate with a Splash Model tailgate. Unfortunately, the replacement handle is a non-return item. He said the printed picture of the handle is rather generic and looks the same for all models of Rangers. So I'm back to square one and since it's a cosmetic fix I guess I will live with it

 

Any chance of finding a auto salvage yard close to your house?
My grandfather was able to find the appropriate parts to his
93 Ranger. If you know what the diagram requires, this may be a cheaper option. I would like to upgrade to a metal handle on my 03 ranger. The tailgate appears to be the same as my grandfather's 93. (not sure about the mechanisms inside however)

Good luck.