help with what my truck is lol

[beachbumtroy]

i have a 1998 ranger i just bought, its black clearcoat, 2wd extend cab, 2-door, 4.0 motor auto trans, it is a XLT, my question is what kind of ranger is it? wheel wells are inside of bed, and my bed on the inside is a tight 46 inches
wide, thats what started all this im trying to find a bed toolbox (USED) and having no luck yet....
........ it has a stepside look but i want to know if its a stepside, flareside, styleside, or splash and nothing about that in all the vin decoders i used...... and here is the vin if it helps u help me ...... 1FTYR14X3WTA36049 thnx bb
oh and these r the only 2 pix i got right now please let me kno if u need something specific to decode my truck

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Flareside. Rather uncommon in the later years rangers. I dont think the splash term was in use after 96?

 

[beachbumtroy]

Flareside. Rather uncommon in the later years rangers. I dont think the splash term was in use after 96?

so rusty, can u tell me what led u to that conclusion? so i know what the differences are? thnx bb

 

[Dirtman]

"Style side" is simply the term for a regular bed.
"Step side" is more of the term for older rangers
"Flare side" is the modern term ford uses for step side
"Splash" is just a trim package not a different bed style

So there are only 2 bed options, style side and flare side. You have a flare side. (Bed has bubbley fenders). It's that simple.

 

[RonD]

As said your 1998 is a flareside, narrower bed and tailgate, also rear bumper

1998 did have the Splash trim package available, sliding rear window and CD player, also Splash trim and decal

Splash came with regular bed but flare side was an option

VIN doesn't have that info, but the serial number at the end of the VIN will IF........you can access Ford records
In Rangers the last 6 digits of VIN is the serial number, starts with an "A"

Serial number can get you how this one vehicle was "optioned", i.e. manual/auto, trim(XL, XLT, Splash), tires/wheels, power group, ect......


If you have a flareside then finding a canopy or in-bed tool box will be very, very,.......very hard, there just wasn't a big market for that narrower sized bed

Regular or flare side attach to the frame the same, so you can swap a 1993-2011 regular bed onto your 1998
You need the bed, tail gate and bumper, also filler hose for gas tank
But building a tool box would be easier, lol

 

[stmitch]

These are just trademarked names for similar things depending on the company.

"Step side" = Narrow GM bed with fender bulges
"Fleetside" = Traditional width GM bed with flat sides

"Flare side" = Narrow Ford bed with fender bulges
"Style side" = Traditional width Ford bed with flat sides

 

[beachbumtroy]

ok guys thnx for the info seem to be what everybody saz so now im the proud owner of a 98 flaresideso does anybody have an aluminum toolbox for sale cheap thnx guys

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

These are just trademarked names for similar things depending on the company.

"Step side" = Narrow GM bed with fender bulges
"Fleetside" = Traditional width GM bed with flat sides

"Flare side" = Narrow Ford bed with fender bulges
"Style side" = Traditional width Ford bed with flat sides

Does the goofy Mazda/STX not-really-a-flareside bed have a name?

 

[Dirtman]

Does the goofy Mazda/STX not-really-a-flareside bed have a name?

Yes... gay...

 

[Roert42]

Yes... gay...

No this is.

 

[DILLARD000]

Neat trick, park in front of a building being painted, get a free paint job for your truck!
I'll need to remember this.

 

[Dirtman]

No this is.

View attachment 50958

Can't they both be gay and get married in vermont?

 

[Curious Hound]

Can't they both be gay and get married in vermont?

 

[19Walt93]

I bought my first new Ranger in 2004 with a flareside box- and got the flareside for free instead of the usual option charge because they were going out of production and wanted to get rid of them. I wanted the flareside because I was going to put a cap on it and rear visibility in the mirrors is better. By the way, your truck is a supercab, not an extended cab. I haven't got any idea what Mazda was thinking with their rear box, they used to build Ford Couriers and I didn't know what they were thinking then, either.

 

[racsan]

what did dodge call their bed styles? I know Ive seen both stepside & regular beds on older dodge full-size trucks, rare to see a dodge stepside but I ran across one about a year ago for sale. this thread got me thinking Ive never heard what their term was. I know their extended cabs were refered to as a “club cab” back in the day when they first came out.