I've just bought a 2001 Ranger Edge, 3.0 w/5 spd.

The engine seems a little under powered. It has about 2100 miles on it.

Any one else have one and feel this way?

Are there some things I can do to increase the power?

Thanks.

 

I feel your pain. Mine is my personal emergency vehicle and it is embarrasing when someone lets me by going up a hill and I cant pass them unless I drop it to 3rd gear and rev it to 5k RPM's. That is the only way to actually get it to run. I have put some thought into performance chips, cold air induction kits, and a hi flow dual exhaust system.
Other than that, i like mine so far.
Good luck

 

I test drove a new ranger in 2000, with the 3.0 V-6. I swear that the 2.5 4 was more powerful. I suggest that anyone that needs more power than the 4, opt for the 4.0 and skip the 3.0

 

I dont know if they changed something on your model but I have a 98 Ranger with the 3.0 V6 and a 5 speed and it has all sorts of power. I bought it to replace my 96 which had the 2.3 four banger and a 5 speed which had trouble up hills with my bike trailer and two bikes in tow. We really tested the 3.0 a couple of weeks ago when we had a 1999 and a 2000 Honda CBR600 on the trailer and a 2000 Kwakker 600 in the back, it pulled them with no problems up hill and down dale. We even ran the AC on the return trip and it still pulled just fine. Now when its empty I have to be real careful or I squeal the tires very easily. Im super happy with mine and not looking to do any performance mods.

Mike.

 

I have a 2001 Ranger Edge, 4x2, Supercab, 3.0, 5 speed manual.

It's got some power (much better than my 90hp 93' Ranger 4cyl), but I can't help but be more power hungry. (I wish I could have gotten the 4.0 with the same options I have with my truck, oh well). I like the idea of the superchip, but I don't like the idea of the premium fuel. I was also wondering how much of an improvement I'll get when the engine is "broken in". My brother and my dad have both told me to really notice an improvement at around 7-10k miles. Any ideas/thoughts would be appreciated.

 

OK, its me again and I need you folks to answer something thats puzzling me.
If you guys wanted a high performance vehicle why in the hell did you buy a Ford Ranger ??? If you wanted a Ford performance truck why didnt you buy an F150 Lightning ?? Or if you wanted a Ford performance car theres the Mustang GT. Or, if you want real white knuckle hang on real tight performance you could have gone the route I went last year and bought a nice new Honda CBR600 F4 motorcycle. 0-60 in 2.9 seconds, 1/4 mile in under 12 seconds and a top speed of 157 mph.......and thats out of the crate bone stock.

As I said in my previous post, one of the things I bought my 98 Ranger for was to have more power than my 96 with the 4 banger to be able to haul my bikes on the trailer to the race track and back.......and it does that great.

What do you guys need all this performance for in a Ranger ??

Please help me with my confusion : )

Mike.

 

I'm not looking to crank up the horsepower of my 3.0 v6 to 200hp (which would be quite hard). This truck is my first purchase, the 93' before was a hand-me-down. I just wanted a little more power, a new look, and the extracab. Plus I can haul my dirtbike around. (Old truck has a camper shell)

For this truck, I just want to squeeze out a few more horsepower to make the wait bearable until I get a fast car (Mustang cobra, I hope)/ Truck (Lightning). I'm not going to spend $4000(rough estimate, don't flame me please) on a 3.0 to gain 40-50hp *laugh*. However, $400 for the superchip, exhaust, and what not is feasible. There....

 

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 30-Aug-01 AT 10:57 AM (EST)[/font][p]Dear Mr. BueEdge,

Im still not clear on why you need more power if all you haul is your dirtbike. As I said before, I pulled a trailer with two CBR600's on it and we had a Kwakker 600 in the back and I still had power to spare from my 3.0 V6 with the 5 speed even with the air on. I think you better take your new truck back to where you bought it and get it checked because if it lacks in pulling power with just a bike in the back theres something wrong. Tell you what, I dont know where you live but Im in Northern Illinois, if you are anywhere close let me know and we can get together and swap trucks and compare.

Also, if you are into bikes why do you want a fast car ?? Buy a fast bike, much cheaper, much faster and much more fun. Keep the Ranger for the days when the weather is nasty. My 2000 Honda CBR600 F4 is faster than just about every production car and you can pick up a new 2002 F4i for $7700 round here, how much is a Lightning or Cobra ?? Go with a crotch rocket, more bang for your buck.

And by the way, I just turned 54, how bout that on a bike capable of 157 mph ??? And you should see me on the track.

Mike.

 

You're right, I don't really need the power for hauling, I've just always wanted a fast car, and I wanted to do the best I could with what I got. The truck that I got is probably the most Ford would finance me on without cosigning (I'm 20). I'm only working 20 hours a week @ $10/hr, I live at home, and take 16 units at California State University Northridge (southern California is where I live).

I get enough torque from my 89' YZ-250 blazing around trails. My dad rides with us on nasty trails, and he's 51. Riding on the trails is one thing, but on the road... I'd hate to smash into something on a motorcycle going any speed. I broke my hand crashing on my dirt-bike going 15mph in dirt. I could very well turn into pizza on a road bike going even 45mph if I crashed into something. Anyway...

Cobras and Lightnings are around 30,000. Something for the future when I get my truck paid off (in 5 years or less), and if I'm not married.

 

I totally feel you guys on the issue of power with the 3.0. My friend and I enjoy taking his 19ft ski boat out on occasion and when his wife is gone we have to use my 2001 Edge. I bought it in Feb. and since have done a really easy front end lift (at no cost) and have added 31X10.50 Bridgestone Duelers. My truck pulls just fine going up the mountains to Palmdale when pulling my dirt bike and three ATV's but when pulling the boat it takes revving to 3500 rpm's just to take off from a dead start. I feel Blue's pain coz I am a die hard mustang fan and have been racing them since the age of 14 (now 20 also). But that's the ONLY new truck I could finance without a co-sign and I am in the Marines with a steady $800 paycheck every two weeks. It's sad that my friends 4.0L Explorer being four-door and heavier on the frame still out pulls my Ranger like it's cool. It holds 70 on the freeway even up hills and I struggle to hit 70 going down hill.

 

Hey, my brother mentioned to me something about getting a front lift, how did you get it done? I'd really like to level it out... Sure, it'll look a little silly when my dirt-bike is in the bed, but 95% of my driving is with the bed empty.

I had the same situation with the financing. The Ranger Edge or the Focus were the two vehicles Ford would me as a first time buyer. I work for my dad, who actually processes Ford warranty claims for different dealers (about 15 now), and a lot of them are of the Focus. Lots of problems. I wouldn't get one to begin with because I like the ranger a lot better. It's also hard to beat 7.9% APR with no credit history, no cosign, first time buyer.

Actually, my brother (who works at a dealership in oxnard) said that his "old" 2000 explorer (he traded it in) weighs less than the ranger. I don't know what year your friend's explorer is, so it may be heavier in your case.

So far I've gotten my truck up to 92mph or so. I didn't have the guts to go any faster. It was at night on the 118, semi-busy, I didn't want to take the chance of getting a fat ticket.

 

Mr BlueEdge and Mr rangrlvr,

You have my sympathy as far as being 20 and on limited incomes, been there, done that. I grew up in the UK so had even less money at 20 as I was doing a 5 year electrical apprenticeship. Its been a long haul to get where I am now and have the big boys toyz that I do, but its worth it. If you stick to your studies, apply yourselves well and work hard you will make it.

Enough of the worldly parental type advice, enjoy your Rangers, bikes, etc.

Too Many Toyz Mike : )

 

Well, in regards to the speed...of course you wouldn't go any faster coz the truck has a speed governor set at 92 mph and a rev governor set at 5500rpm's (which I have found works good for speed shifting in races against Toy's and Chevy's). In take off power we actually have a better 0-60 than the Toy's and Chevy's, provided you get a good reaction time at the stop light. But I think I actually have a better 0-30 than my friends Explorer but after that his 4.0 waxes my 3.0. Not really definite about the weight coz I haven't checked the specs on the door panel or anything. But I know exactly what you mean about the Focus. The wife has one and we already have to take it to Ford for brakes and she only has 6500 miles on it. They started squeeling at about 1500-2000 miles. So you made a good choice there. Plus they are definitely girl cars anyway...Although several Marines drive them just coz they could afford the sporty ZX3.

 

Trade it in on the new 4.0 SOHC Edge. It has 207 horsepower right out of the show room floor. I love the power. That is why I went for the 4.0. Why get the smaller engine if you really want the bigger one. I know you have top work within a budget. So try a freer flowing intake and exhaust and maybee a chip. Louder is not alwasy better for performance.

 

Hehe. The 4.0 SOHC is what I wanted, and I would have gotten it if ford had options, but they don't, unfortunately. Gone are the days of "I would like this, and this, and this...", not it's "You may have this, or this, or this package...". Such was the case. I wanted the Xcab Edge, with a manual and the 4.0, 4x2 (much less for insurance this way, and less money). Anyways, it just didn't happen, and I didn't have the money for the fancier packages.