unbiased opinions on the ranger vs. yota debate

[Night_Wolf]

I have lusted after a Tacoma for years however it's price always reminded me, I live in the real world where I need to watch how I spend my hard earned dollars. January of 07 saw me at a Toyota dealership pricing the Tacoma. When the salesman told me the price ($38,000.00cdn) I informed him "If I wanted to pay for a full size truck, I'd buy one ) " Luckily for me there was a Ford dealer next door and just that week Ford had dropped the price on the Ranger to the $23,000.00 (CDN) Unfortunately for me they didn't have any in stock (had no idea when they would arrive either ) and ultimately I headed to Mazda 2 months later & purchased the 07 B4000 Ext Cab 4X4. I asked on another forum (motorcycle based) was the Toyota woth an extra 12g's or so. What surprised me was the number of folks who said yes I wanted the Ranger/Mazda based on my experience with my 96 Ranger Ext 4X4, purchased used in 98 with 60,000km (40k mi.) on the odo. My buddy purchased that truck from me in 93. It currently has 350,000km+ on the odo and between the 2 of us I don't think we have spent $8,000.00 in repairs/maintenance, which is pretty damm fine for a now 12 yr old truck.

I recently trade the 07 Mazda in on an 08 F150 with the 4.6 V8, as I met myself a lady with kids & need the space for them. I do miss having my small truck however

 

[Danger FX4 Ranger]

Front brakes. I didn't pay for the $300+ to do it. I did it myself. They squeal like a pig. I'm either going to get oem Ford pads, or wagner Thermoquiets.

Pass on the OEM pads. At 40,000 miles I replaced my factory pads with new OEM pads from Ford. After driving 500 miles with my new pads, they too were making noise. I was tired of my truck sounding like a T-Rex in heat, so I finally decided to try a set of ceramic pads. They are quiet and produce very little brake dust, although I have heard ceramic brake pads wear down the rotors quicker.

 

[Danger FX4 Ranger]

I have lusted after a Tacoma for years however it's price always reminded me, I live in the real world where I need to watch how I spend my hard earned dollars. January of 07 saw me at a Toyota dealership pricing the Tacoma. When the salesman told me the price ($38,000.00cdn) I informed him "If I wanted to pay for a full size truck, I'd buy one ) " Luckily for me there was a Ford dealer next door and just that week Ford had dropped the price on the Ranger to the $23,000.00

Toyota is proud of their trucks. A fully loaded Tacoma is about $8,000 to $10,000 more than a comparably equipped FX4 ranger, Z71 Colorado, or 4x4 Dodge Dakota. Many of the members here on the forum OWN rangers (and still drive them) which have easily outlasted many Tacoma’s purchased at the same time. With proper maintenance, it's not unheard of for a ranger to outlast a Toyota.

 

[stringburner]

With proper maintenance, it's not unheard of for a ranger to outlast a Toyota.

I agree w/ that. Like I said, they are overall a solid truck. If Ford would address the few common issues that plague the platform, it would be excellent. I didn't really mind any of the issues I had except the slave cylinder problem, which is a known issue. I've read of them going out as soon as 12K. Would it really be that difficult to beef up the slave cylinder to where it would last 100K or so, as long as the clutch would if the hydraulic fluid didn't kill it first?

There is a difference in "feel" to an American made vehicle compared to a Foreign designed vehicle, Japanese makes in particular. The latter feels more solid, I don't know how else to describe it. I'm not saying it's better or worse, it's just different.

As for price, the '09 Ranger I looked at was 26K. That's way yonder too much in my opinion. Since they brought out employee pricing, it came down to 21K & change. That's much more reasonable. I looked at a Nissan PRO4-X Frontier loaded to the gills (including an auto trans., bleah), and it was 29K. Yikes.

 

[Danger FX4 Ranger]

I agree w/ that. Like I said, they are overall a solid truck. If Ford would address the few common issues that plague the platform, it would be excellent. I didn't really mind any of the issues I had except the slave cylinder problem, which is a known issue. I've read of them going out as soon as 12K. Would it really be that difficult to beef up the slave cylinder to where it would last 100K or so, as long as the clutch would if the hydraulic fluid didn't kill it first?

There is a difference in "feel" to an American made vehicle compared to a Foreign designed vehicle, Japanese makes in particular. The latter feels more solid, I don't know how else to describe it. I'm not saying it's better or worse, it's just different.

As for price, the '09 Ranger I looked at was 26K. That's way yonder too much in my opinion. Since they brought out employee pricing, it came down to 21K & change. That's much more reasonable. I looked at a Nissan PRO4-X Frontier loaded to the gills (including an auto trans., bleah), and it was 29K. Yikes.

I have owned 3 ford Rangers: a 1990 (4.0 OHV, A4LD), a 2000 (2.5 Lima, 5 speed), and a 2005 (4.0 SOHC, 5R55E). The 1990 had 239,000 miles and was still running strong when I sold it, although I had to replace the intake manifold gasket after a night of hard driving. The 2000 I placed 120,000 miles on it (I beat the shit out of that truck daily) and only had to replace the oil pressure sending unit, while under warranty. My 2005 has almost 50,000 miles, and I have only had to replace the heater control valve because of a small coolant leak. I’ve had excellent luck with all 5 Fords I have owned, and will continue to buy Ford products. I won’t deny that Ford has had their share of quality issues, but what company hasn’t?

 

[stringburner]

I’ve had excellent luck on all 5 Fords I have owned, and will continue to buy Ford products. I won’t deny that Ford has had their share of quality issues, but what company hasn’t?

Very true. Toyota's quality has went down as well. I read somewhere that one of the head honcho's @ Toyota said it's inevitable when production numbers reach a certain point. Like some of the new Tundra's blowing the crankshafts out the bottom of the engine. I really like my Ranger. It's good looking and it's comfortable. And thanks for the tip on the brake pads. Did you go w/ new rotors when you installed the ceramic pads, or prep the rotors, or?

 

[Danger FX4 Ranger]

Very true. Toyota's quality has went down as well. I read somewhere that one of the head honcho's @ Toyota said it's inevitable when production numbers reach a certain point. Like some of the new Tundra's blowing the crankshafts out the bottom of the engine. I really like my Ranger. It's good looking and it's comfortable. And thanks for the tip on the brake pads. Did you go w/ new rotors when you installed the ceramic pads, or prep the rotors, or?

I did nothing to my rotors, they were still in good condition, although you might want to ask for more input from some of the more "seasoned" individuals on the forum. A buddy of mine who works in a transmission shop drifts a Nissan 240SX in his free time. He swears by ceramic pads. In the "1998 & newer specific ranger problems" Captain Caveman said he had the dealership install ceramic pads on his truck. http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19690&page=2

 

[stringburner]

Wouldn't happen to recall what brand your ceramic pads are would you?

 

[Danger FX4 Ranger]

Wouldn't happen to recall what brand your ceramic pads are would you?

Duralast C-max gold. They were about $75 in AutoZone. http://www.autozone.com/cmax/cmax.htm Be sure to open the box before you leave the store to verify the contents. After I got home and pulled my old pads off, I realized they put a set of pads which fit the rear of an Explorer in my box.

 

[stringburner]

Thanks.

 

[Hondafreak08]

im into rangers. and my buddy is into yotas.
Really yotas are great offroad, and have tons of potential.
Both are american made (well toyota more than ford)
The miles is what concerns me. 150k is almost done for.
IMO get a ranger. BECAUSE> parts are plentiful and cheap.

 

[Bryan22]

I have had 2 rangers, a 92 3.0 single cab and now my 94 2.3 ext cab. My sister has a 2002 taco single cab. The power plant is impressive for a little 4 banger, would almost keep up with my 3.0. other than that, i really dislke her truck. The stock seats are very uncomfortable, and it rides like a full sized truck. I've beat both my 92 and her taco up in the desert, and the ranger is far more capable off-road in stock form.

All that being said, i've never been behind the wheel of a 2.3 duratec, so i can't even say her taco is superior in that category either. I wouldn't say i'm biased, i've just driven all the small trucks and decided to drive the best one. RANGER all the way!

 

[Captain Caveman]

I'm glad that you got a great deal on a 3 year old truck. Congrats and good luck. I'd take that baby into the shop with 80k miles and have them do an overhaul (easier said than paid for).

As for Tacoma vs Ranger, I had the same thoughts as most. Buy a new Ranger or a new Tacoma. There was a $10k price gap. The Tacoma's gas mileage was only one mile per gallon better than the Ranger. That wouldn't bridge the $10k gap. Unless the Ranger starts falling apart once the warranty runs out, it's hard to imagine the cost of owning it becoming more than the cost of owning a Tacoma in the long run. I drove a two year old Tacoma just to see if it was that much better. It felt like I was driving the truck version of my brother's old '82 Toyota Tercel.

For $10k more a truck ought to be special....and the Tacoma ain't.

 

[Beast4x4]

when i was looking to get my first truck i was looking at a used '89 toyota tacoma initially it was really clean no body rust clean interior screamed like it woulda been a nice truck. while looking around i came across a New 2002 Ranger XL. I wound up getting the Ranger, got an incredible deal on the thing cuz my sister worked for a Ford Dealer at the time. I had the thing through college and happy i bought new versus used it was just less to worry about. there were no surprises. not to say new cant have problems. I had got in an accident with that truck about three years ago and looking back on that i'm happy i had the ranger. the toyota i was considering was lower to the ground and wasnt nearly as heavy. I'm now on my second ranger, a 2005 EDGE 4x4 and love the thing to death. I bought my current ranger because of how much i liked my first one.

For your case i would go for the lower mileage ranger over the toyota. Plus a friend of mine had a toyota that used to eat leaf springs. they were constantly snapping on him and it was not because of too much weight on em, they just broke alot. would just rust right through em

 

[Shawnski]

Huh?

im into rangers. and my buddy is into yotas.
Really yotas are great offroad, and have tons of potential.
Both are american made (well toyota more than ford)
The miles is what concerns me. 150k is almost done for.
IMO get a ranger. BECAUSE> parts are plentiful and cheap.

My '05 Ranger was assembled in St. Paul (as are the new ones) with a Ohio sourced engine (3.0), Milwaukee sourced frame, Mazda (Japan) manual trans, and USA sourced axles, brakes, etc. The Duratec 2.3 is Mexican, and the 4.0 comes from (Germany) auto trans (France). However I believe the overall US content is higher than a Taco?