1st Post, Looking to buy my 1st Ranger

[flyin-lowe]

Short story I have a son who is going to be driving in less than a year and wants a truck and not a car. I am going tomorrow to look at a 2004 Ranger Xl that the neighbor of a family member is looking to sell. I haven't seen it yet but my family member knows the owner and truck. No known issues, looks very good inside and out, and has the 3.0 V6. I have been told 6500.00 cash will take it home. It is an automatic and has 115K miles on it. Other than obvious rust on the frame/shackles etc. is there any other glairing concerns I should look for when I go look at it tomorrow? I have never owned a ranger but feel like this would make a good vehicle for a new driver. I know condition plays a lot into the price but this seems to be in line with other trucks I have seen in similar condition but would love to hear any input or price or other aspects.

Here are a couple picks of the truck...

 

[RobbieD]

Welcome.

That's a nice looking truck, and I consider 115k as relatively low mileage. The asking price doesn't sound too out of line to me. The market's been crazy.

A big plus, to me, is knowing where the truck comes from, and it's background. I would ask if the seller/owner has any past paperwork; such as repair or maintenance invoices. Knowing its oil change history would be helpful, too.

I do not know these newer trucks, but things I would focus on pre-purchase would be how the transmission fluid looks and smells; and the same with engine coolant. And of course, how it sounds, how it drives, how it feels.

If the truck has PATS (antitheft with transponder keys) you'll want to get all of any working keys the owner has. With PATS keys have to be cut and programmed, so if you get the number of keys you want with the sale, it's a plus.

Other than obvious rust on the frame/shackles etc. is there any other glairing concerns I should look for when I go look at it tomorrow?

Hopefully you'll get more pointers on that one. Rust isn't too bad where I live.

I hope that it happens; that looks like a nice one.

 

[bhgl]

Rust is in fact the #1 concern, just from the pictures though, looks like this truck is well loved. They're pretty simple and reliable, there isn't too much that I know of with these things that you consider common issues.

The 3.0 is a reliable motor as well, I would just make sure that you get to see the truck startup cold and listen for any knocks, or ticking.

Things to check:
If it has A/C, check to make sure it's working, regardless check to see if the air comes out of every vent position. These trucks are notorious for their blend doors failing leaving you stuck with only windshield venting.

Take a close look at the accessory drive while it's running for any wobbles, nothing super vital here and most stuff can be fixed pretty quickly/cheap, but something like the main pulley wobbling could mean an annoying job in replacing the harmonic balancer.

Check the VIN/ask if the recalls have been done, I believe just recently there was another recall on the airbags.

If you have the opportunity to lift the truck, take a good close look at the frame, and check that the front suspension is in good shape.

Stuff you should know:
One thing you should be mindful of is pretty terrible fuel economy, these things are notoriously bad. My truck with the same engine and transmission does at best 24-25 MpG after some pretty comprehensive modifications, and super econo focused driving among other things I've done to get the truck to just drive more efficiently. Expect anywhere from 18-21 on the highway on a good day.

Another thing, while most trucks are unsafe compared to cars, older trucks like these Rangers are even less safe. There isn't anything catastrophic to worry about here, and I wouldn't bother to mention this, but since your son is going to be driving it, it's something you should consider. When compared to the Nissan Frontier, and Toyota Tacoma of the same year, this generation of truck ranks significantly worse, at least its better than the Chevy Colorado's from around that time.

 

[flyin-lowe]

Thank you both for the input. Fuel mileage is one concern I had but that is the reason I am leaning this way instead of a full sized. I know the 4 cylinders are a little better. Good news is he only has about a 6 mile drive to school everyday. Obviously he'll be out doing other things but for the most part he won't be putting a ton of miles on it but who really knows.

 

[bhgl]

Thank you both for the input. Fuel mileage is one concern I had but that is the reason I am leaning this way instead of a full sized. I know the 4 cylinders are a little better. Good news is he only has about a 6 mile drive to school everyday. Obviously he'll be out doing other things but for the most part he won't be putting a ton of miles on it but who really knows.

I always recommend people buy small cars over most anything even with just a 6 mile commute you'll be surprised how much you might end up spending, but if your son really wants a truck you can't really go wrong with one of these. They're pretty simple and easy to work on, and they're not fast so he'll hopefully be a bit less likely to get into trouble.

Not sure what winter looks like in your neck of the woods, but if you do get somewhat consistent snow and ice, please for the love of god put winter tires on it and some weight on the back. Otherwise you might find out about the safety ratings sooner than you'd like.

 

[flyin-lowe]

I am in central Indiana. We have the potential to get snow/ice but honestly over the last 5-10 years we haven't had an snow that wasn't cleared off the road in a day or two. I also have a Jeep wrangler he is learning to drive in right now but he plays golf, fishes a lot, and just thinks a truck would be better for him for those reasons. He's never driven a small truck so we are going tomorrow for some test driving in it. If he doesn't like it I still have plenty of time to find him something, but if he likes it and it's in as nice of shape as I'm told it's in we might have it home tomorrow. Plus we live in a pretty rural area and most of his friends have trucks so that plays a small part in his mind anyway. As a teenager he doesn't want to be the odd man out amongst his friends, though I'm not letting that alone be the deciding factor.

 

[bhgl]

I am in central Indiana. We have the potential to get snow/ice but honestly over the last 5-10 years we haven't had an snow that wasn't cleared off the road in a day or two. I also have a Jeep wrangler he is learning to drive in right now but he plays golf, fishes a lot, and just thinks a truck would be better for him for those reasons. He's never driven a small truck so we are going tomorrow for some test driving in it. If he doesn't like it I still have plenty of time to find him something, but if he likes it and it's in as nice of shape as I'm told it's in we might have it home tomorrow. Plus we live in a pretty rural area and most of his friends have trucks so that plays a small part in his mind anyway. As a teenager he doesn't want to be the odd man out amongst his friends, though I'm not letting that alone be the deciding factor.

Fair enough, in that case you can't really go wrong with this one as long as it's in good shape.

 

[flyin-lowe]

Well, we brought her home. The truck is in really good shape and has been well taken care of. My son drove it and liked it, I left it up to him.

 

[superj]

nice. sounds like a good deal than.

both of my kids liked having older small suvs and trucks. they said they were useful with tons of friends and school junk.

but, they also have 80s 3 series bmws and loved those too. those are also super dependable and easy to work on, if you can find one for a good price now days

 

[flyin-lowe]

I forgot to ask... The only issue with the truck which he told me about was the fuel gauge. He said it stays on full and only goes down to about a quarter of a tank so it is not accurate. He said he just fills it up and when the trip gets to about 325 miles he fills it up again. Are the fuel gauges in these things a known issue or is there an easy fix to this. It's not a huge deal but having an accurate fuel gauge would be nice, especially for a teen driver.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Either a bad connection at the connector at the tank or a bad sender in the tank, the connectors have more issues than the senders. The easiest way is to pull the bed but possible to drop the tank as well...

 

[MaicoDoug]

Yep, cycle that fuel tank connector. Maybe a bag of pea gravel in the back during the winter. If there is a way, you'll find it here on TRS! Welcome, now go get you some....

 

[Lefty]

Short story I have a son who is going to be driving in less than a year and wants a truck and not a car. I am going tomorrow to look at a 2004 Ranger Xl that the neighbor of a family member is looking to sell. I haven't seen it yet but my family member knows the owner and truck. No known issues, looks very good inside and out, and has the 3.0 V6. I have been told 6500.00 cash will take it home. It is an automatic and has 115K miles on it. Other than obvious rust on the frame/shackles etc. is there any other glairing concerns I should look for when I go look at it tomorrow? I have never owned a ranger but feel like this would make a good vehicle for a new driver. I know condition plays a lot into the price but this seems to be in line with other trucks I have seen in similar condition but would love to hear any input or price or other aspects.View attachment 115806View attachment 115807
Here are a couple picks of the truck...

it looks nice and clean.

 

[flyin-lowe]

Yep, cycle that fuel tank connector. Maybe a bag of pea gravel in the back during the winter. If there is a way, you'll find it here on TRS! Welcome, now go get you some....

Maico
When you say cycle the connector, is there anything that can be done without lifting the bed or dropping the tank or am I going to have to do one of those two things

 

[ekrampitzjr]

You could check to make sure the connector for the fuel gauge is tight in the back of the instrument cluster. I had an Escort wagon built just a few years after that Ranger that would pop that connector loose every so often, then the gauge would stay on half-full until I took apart the cluster again.