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Ford confirms Ranger, Bronco, will return 2019

frozentripper

frozentripper

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Bancroft, Ontario, SE Algonquin
Production in America ended 2011, I bought a 2010 when they were still available... it seems demand for a compact truck and SUV is out there so Ford is resuming production. Price for a Ranger in plain vanilla should be below $25K... off-road reviews in international markets have been good and the 4-cylinder fuel economy engine option should still be offered. Here's a nice vid with some offroading included, all that's missing is the canoe on roof racks.

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/videos/lets-forecast-the-2019-ford-ranger/
 
I've been keeping my eye on this too. My Ranger has 180,000 miles on it, and I'm not sure what it's replacement will be yet. I'm not crazy about the short bed trucks, hopefully they will have a longer option. We had a joke in high school, called them d**ks because every guy had one. I will be very sad when mine has to go to the scrapper. Tough little truck thats taken me all over the country and back. It got smashed by a drunk driving an old Lincoln at 45 miles an hour. We winched the front bumper out of the tire and drove it home no problem. I get a little too sentimental about my old beater. My ultimate wish would be a Ranger in the same size as the old ones with a modern engine with more power and better fuel economy, but that's a pipe dream. I would be interested in a Bronco, especially now that it will be based on the Global Ranger chassis. Maybe it makes me old school or some sort of neo luddite, but I like a body on frame for tough use.

Edit: Diesel? Yes please. If they throw in a good diesel I'll take one of each.
 
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Couple of doors over at work, there is a new Colorado or GMC midsize...did I see correctly on the sticker (left in place, but I am not admiring it, guy, I am inwardly laughing, crying...) about $48K??!!

The old Toyota of my younger years has been replaced by one that still sits strange (for me, anyway) and stickers, yep, saw close to $45K on that loaded up 4 door, 4wd one too...nothing else was on this dealers lot. Not that I need another one (got a Chevy one for work) but that kind of money for a small truck use to buy the truck, trailer, motorcycle, canoe, assorted gear and some spending money to boot... that might have been year 2000 though.

The future remains the future for me on this one...the little delivery vehicles I have been seeing are interesting, but not my cup of tea, despite decent storage...'progress' is not always a step forward except in model years and price. Practicality has been tossed onto the old model scrap heap.
 
I love my 2004 ranger except for the fuel millage, so this got my attention. my research so far says some sort of electric secondary drive? a non starter for me.
turtle
 
Buying a truck is such shenanigans.. Back in 1999 someone destroyed our car in a parking lot and it was time for a truck.. We went shopping and were told in CT you must have four wheel drive.

This is baloney. For years during the 60's we traveled the Tug Hill Plateau ( and lived there a year) with rear wheel two wheel drive. I found a dealer in Keene NH that had a two wheel drive truck of the make I wanted. The third dealer relented and found us a two wheel drive truck
It worked fine in Maine but we retired it with 302000 miles on it.. Didnt quite trust it to haul a trailer across the US and Canada.

Now we have all this camera crap and lane avoidance crud.. I don't need it and don't want to pay for it. If I back into a tree its my own fault.. Dirt roads where we are dont have lane markings and main highways that do require maneuvering across lines when the frost heave season starts.

I want a truck with a five speed manual transmission. I do not however, miss vinyl seats. Power steering is nice. Electric windows are not. I also would prefer old timey vent windows.

And it must last 15 years at most and have raingutters or the ability to have faux raingutters installed.

I will say that now that we have a travel trailer 4 wd is probably wise. We camped at an Ozark campground in a river valley. The grade down to the campground was about 16 percent on a gravel road..
 
Those rocky down to the river roads in southern MO are something else. They can rattle most vehicles apart. There's many an exhaust system buried in the woods that bounced off E350 vans. Along with plastic panels, headliners, and seatbelts.
 
As much as I would love a new Tacoma, I find the new body changes to be ugly and a base 4x4 out here is 39K. A fellow at work bought a GMC Canyon mid-size last Spring with the SLE package, 47K. Even a base 4x4 comes in around 32K.

I have 223,000 km on my 2004 Toyota Highlander and I need to get much more out of it, besides, it has taken 2 boats on the roof and it is luxurious compared with my 1990 Hilux.

I need to win the lottery to buy a new truck, but honestly, considering all the new so called safety tech on them, I would likely hunt up a low mileage used one instead to avoid all that crap.
 
I have been patiently waiting for either Chrysler/Jeep or Ford to build a small truck again. I love my Jeeps and have a couple of Comanche pickup trucks but I long for a comfortable, decent mileage capable, cruise control, ice cold AC, equipped small truck or SUV. I currently haul my canoes on a 2001 Cherokee sport. I absolutely refuse to pay 40K plus for a small SUV or truck so they better make it affordable. I may end up with a 4 door hard top wrangler unlimited. It is close to what I am driving every day now.
 
southcove said:
Couple of doors over at work, there is a new Colorado or GMC midsize...did I see correctly on the sticker (left in place, but I am not admiring it, guy, I am inwardly laughing, crying...) about $48K??!!

The old Toyota of my younger years has been replaced by one that still sits strange (for me, anyway) and stickers, yep, saw close to $45K on that loaded up 4 door, 4wd one too...nothing else was on this dealers lot.
Click to expand...

Automakers go where the money is, and right now the best profit margins are in extremely over-gussied up pickup trucks. “SuperDuty Platinum” packages starting at $65,000. Just imagine what such a my-precious truck actually gets used for.

http://www.cheatsheet.com/automobiles/the-worlds-10-most-expensive-pickup-trucks.html/?a=viewall

My 2013 Tacoma (4 cyl 2WD automatic) was in the low 20’s and has a bunch of stuff I don’t need and didn’t want, but finding anything less “package” appointed was near impossible. I would have eliminated the back up camera, power windows and mirrors, remote door locks and USB/AUX ports. And the befuddlingly complex audio system.

How hard is it to find NPR when travelling? FM radio with seek/scan buttons. The operation manual for the sound system is, I kid you not, twice as thick as the vehicle owner’s manual. And the audio controls on the steering wheel? I brush the dang Mode button every other time I back up and have to stop to electronically beep-boop three settings to figure out what I changed.

(Mini-rant over)

While I have become accustomed to, maybe spoiled by, the better creature comforts, and likely wouldn’t today want anything smaller in cab size than my late model Tacoma, there was a lot to be said for the actual small, not “Mid-sized”, plain vanilla economy pickups of old.

My 84 Hi-lux was one of the least expensive vehicles on the market at the time. OK, maybe the Yugo was cheaper. Or better, a Chevy Sprint (great MPG, crap build)

The wee Hi-Lux was manual transmission, 2WD, vinyl bench seat and floors, crank windows. Great external bed tie-down hooks. Blessed are the side vent windows. It went a quarter million miles, cross-country a half dozen times and was still running strong.

That kind of nothing fancy economical small/light truck was a budget godsend for so many uses. Small starter business truck. Compact, good MPG daily commuter. Good boat toter with racks. Great travelling truck with a cap.

I doubt we will ever see the like – small, light, budget minded and dependable – again. Still my all time favorite vehicle.













More memories on that Hi-Lux than any vehicle before or since.
 
Mike, the picture into the inside of your cap reminds me of a several month road trip, my girlfriend and I living out of the truck. Many of the items that she deemed essential became truly frivolous to me when after a couple months on the road I finally came across a pallet of Hamms beer at a Wisconsin liquor store. My happiest day on the trip (probably her least) as I made several trips back and forth loading 30 racks into the bed and dumping anything that was getting in its way.
 
Muskrat said:
Mike, the picture into the inside of your cap reminds me of a several month road trip, my girlfriend and I living out of the truck. Many of the items that she deemed essential became truly frivolous to me when after a couple months on the road I finally came across a pallet of Hamms beer at a Wisconsin liquor store. My happiest day on the trip (probably her least) as I made several trips back and forth loading 30 racks into the bed and dumping anything that was getting in its way.
Click to expand...

Those beer label boxes were DIY storage boxes. Plastic totes may not have existed at the time; if they did I couldn’t afford them.

Those are Xerox paper boxes, reinforced on the inside with another layer of glued on stiff cardboard, and decorated on the outside with a collage of cut up six pack boxes wrapped with clear packing tape.

Late 80’s vintage. Durable as heck; 30 years later and I still have a couple repurposed to hold shop supplies.

Ah Hamm’s. I developed a taste for the original Hamm’s, but couldn’t get it here. I had a quickie in-out same day airfare to Chicago to help out a friend. I had no luggage or even a carryon bag. I found cases of Hamm’s cheap in Chicago.

I checked two undisguised cases of Hamm’s as tagged luggage, and hefted one onto each shoulder off the baggage carousel when I got home.

That baggage carousel pluck and terminal walk away remains the only standing ovation applause I have ever received.

BTW, 2WD is often enough. Not always, but

 
Nodrama,

I absolutely refuse to pay 40K plus for a small SUV or truck so they better make it affordable.
Click to expand...

The estimates out there in googled reports for a 2019 Ranger all seem to be below $25K base price... some estimate $21K so it could be pretty basic with a lot of the unnecessary geegaws left out. What? it doesn't have side view mirror de-icing, heated steering wheel, no bum warmers... nope, don't want it. Kidding, spend the $$$ saved on 4wd instead.

My first truck was a Toyota pickup in 2wd and it got stuck several times, not a great confidence builder... then came a 4wd Toyota pickup and it never got stuck... well almost never, there was some late spring mud on a bush road once but some sticks shoved under all four wheels got it going again.

That one lasted almost 300,000 miles and then Toyota stopped making compact pickups, replaced by the larger Tacoma... too large for narrow driveways and narrow bush roads and that made the smaller Ranger more attractive. The 2010 is comfortable too, good fit sizewise and possible to drive for several hours and not feel like a wreck trying to get out.

There are commercial-use Rangers out there that have run for over 500,000 miles so I'm keeping the rustproiofing oil treatments up here in Ontario (winter road salt is what destroys a lot of vehicles out here in the long run although the newer models are said to have better rust resistance designed in).



.
 
I think I'm done with trucks, I've had the small S-10 to the large Dodge 3500 CTD and I like my Jeep Patriot. It's a bit short on carrying Cap, @ 900lbs, which is four adult males and a bag of chips, but that's never stopped us.

Three adults and two kids 85 miles into the woods to Churchill Dam on the Allagash

 
I work on cars for a living, or at least I did until I weaseled my way out of the shop and into the office a few years ago. Maybe I'm just turning into one of the cranky old farts I replaced when I came into the industry (mid-90's) but I hate the way cars and trucks have been going the last decade or so. Suddenly it's not so expensive for the manufacturers to add all these bells and whistles and people seem all too willing to get sucked in. The domestic manufacturer's are lost as far as I'm concerned. There might be a couple decent vehicles in their lineups but overall, year after year, I'm unimpressed by their gimickiness, poor quality, and lack of reliability.

As far as the major players we see on a regular basis Toyota really seems to have it figured out. I know you can get some high-end whiz bang stuff from them but it still seems possible to get a lower-optioned vehicle at a decent price that will just go and go and go forever without breaking down. And when there is a problem they seem more willing to do a mechanical recall as opposed to the domestic manufacturers who just keep producing the same defect year in and year out.

When people come into the shop asking what we recommend for a vehicle we tell them to just go buy something from Toyota. They're next question is what about the Chevy, Ford, Chrsyler model whatever. To which we respond go buy a Toyota. To which they respond by asking about another domestic. Here in the middle of the midwest where domestics still reign supreme it's hard to convince people otherwise. Rarely is our advice taken. One of the major complaints about Toyota's is that used ones are so expensive compared to the domestics. This is true but seems to confirm their superiority.

Some of the smaller players are stepping up quality as well if maintained properly and tend to offer more "basic" no-frills options. Kia's have been holding up surprisingly well if cared for but most people that end up with them aren't maintenance oriented or simply don't have the money for it and then they can go downhill in a hurry.

One customer of ours had an early 2000's Ford Escape (nice domestic vehicle) with a 4cyl. 5spd. in 2WD (FWD). She ran it to 185,000 miles before getting rid of it about a year ago (never even put a clutch in it). She wanted to replace it with another Escape but they no longer offered a 5spd and they'd gotten much "fancier". She went out and bought a small SUV made by Suzuki (forgot the model name) instead. We'll see how it holds up but after having it in a shop for oil changes a couple times I'm impressed with it. It's a nice and simple vehicle that looks well put together and easy to work on. No frills but not cheap either. She's a smart lady.

Personally I'd like to drive a Toyota but I'm a cheap opportunist who jumps from fixer-upper to fixer-upper. Last vehicle was a Ford Focus (which, like the Escort it replaced, could be a simple, cheap, and reliable vehicle) that a friend drove through the "puddle" in his flooded parking lot and ruined the engine. I got it for free, put in a used engine, and drove it a couple years until another customer of ours got rid of her early 2000's Ford Escape. Got it for $1000 and put a few hundred into it to get it going again. It was high mileage (185,000) but very well taken care of. Unfortunately it's got the 6cyl. instead of the 4cyl. but beggars can't be choosers. It's got 4x4 and while I'd be quite happy only having 2WD I won't complain. It has come in handy this winter and will do so again on my upcoming trip to Arizona. It will roll over 200k on this trip and I expect it to be good for a couple more years until I start keeping my eye open for its replacement.

Alan
 
I loved my 1994 Ford Exploder. It would haul our popup camper and a couple canoes without complaining. Only went to the shop twice, once for new radius arm bushings and another time for a fuel pump. Maintenance was pretty easy. Had to let it go at 260,000 when a parking lot ninja made a successful attack. Replaced it with a 2011 Subaru Forester which does pretty much everything the Ford did, but at half again better gas mileage. I don't do any of the maintenance on it, though, as my own chassis has gotten creaky.
 
I want something new, and I'm not happy with the domestic market either !
I love my old Plain Jane 1998 Isuzu Hombre, that now wears a 95 S-10 front end. Long story.

I need something that fills the bill as a canoe hauler, and something the wife isn't embarrased to drive. I'm tired of hearing, "Do I have to drive that truck with the rack on it ?" I really don't blame her !

I love getting 28 miles a gallon, and still able to haul my canoes down the interstate at 70 !
I used to be a Chevy man, but now days can show them no loyalty, as they aren't making my S-10 anymore !

IMG_1245_zpsougqvkyz.jpg
 
Thanks for posting a link for the New in the future Ford Ranger ! Definitely NOT what I want !!!

Jim
 
I have a 13 Tacoma, extended cab, 4 wd, 5 speed 4cyl, nice truck, hopefully, it will be my last. Wife drives our second Forester, great dependable vehicles for us retired folks.
When Chevy stopped putting manual trans in their 3/4 tons I lost interest. It would be nice if the new Bronco was small like it was in the beginning and affordable.
 
frozentripper said:
Nodrama,



The estimates out there in googled reports for a 2019 Ranger all seem to be below $25K base price... some estimate $21K so it could be pretty basic with a lot of the unnecessary geegaws left out. What? it doesn't have side view mirror de-icing, heated steering wheel, no bum warmers... nope, don't want it. Kidding, spend the $$$ saved on 4wd instead.

My first truck was a Toyota pickup in 2wd and it got stuck several times, not a great confidence builder... then came a 4wd Toyota pickup and it never got stuck... well almost never, there was some late spring mud on a bush road once but some sticks shoved under all four wheels got it going again.

That one lasted almost 300,000 miles and then Toyota stopped making compact pickups, replaced by the larger Tacoma... too large for narrow driveways and narrow bush roads and that made the smaller Ranger more attractive. The 2010 is comfortable too, good fit sizewise and possible to drive for several hours and not feel like a wreck trying to get out.

There are commercial-use Rangers out there that have run for over 500,000 miles so I'm keeping the rustproiofing oil treatments up here in Ontario (winter road salt is what destroys a lot of vehicles out here in the long run although the newer models are said to have better rust resistance designed in).



.
Click to expand...

It will be interesting to see!! Sure doesn't look basic to me on the video. And I doubt the diesel model will be anywhere less than 30K...

That is ok, cause I have no use of a small size p/u. What I would love to see is a good 4x4 crew cab long box diesel, power nothing, basic everything, but with a great chassis, good tin, super reliable drive train, something that can be easily fixed and that will last at least 500K km!!
 
Mike, I also had an 84 Toyota pu, but mine was 4x4. I needed 4x4 to get to work (seriously). What a great rig that was! Had to give it up to have room for kids. Replaced it with a used Isuzu Trooper. Another great simple rig - so good that I eventually got the newer red/white one you've seen photos of (bigger engine, fuel injection).
I have to confess though that I am quite happy to have the lluxuries of my 07 Tundra. No complaints at all, except that it would be nice if they could make it get better gas mileage with the same power. I don't need 4x4 to get to work anymore, but I agree with Kim that it is good for pulling the trailer. Besides the hill thing, it also makes backing into rough campsites much easier. You won't see me paying those new vehicle prices though. Much better deals to be had with one a few years old with low mileage.

I was also very happy with my 98 Explorer 5.0. Sold that to my sister with no wworries about sticking her with a problem. She's happy with it too.
 
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