I'll miss you, Ford Ranger (TL;DR warning)

"fhrblig" (fhrblig) 01/25/2014 at 16:07 • Filed to: None

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I want to take a moment to remember my 2009 Ranger that I recently traded in for a 2012 Fiat. The Ranger was my first ever brand new vehicle, and it rescued me out of a bad financial place.

First, the backstory. I was driving a 2005 Dodge Caravan SWB. It had a noisy 2.4l 4-cylinder and a 4-speed automatic, and not much else. I had bought it because my previous car, a '98 Buick LeSabre had developed ECU schizophrenia. The Caravan was nic.... fun to dr.... I owned it. It was a vehicle. I didn't love it but I didn't hate it either. It did exactly what it said on the tin.

In the fall of 2008, the torque converter failed. The Caravan's transmission fluid has to be flushed every 30k. I bought it with 49k, and realized later that the first owner probably never did it. The mechanic told me that because the fluid was shared by the transmission and the torque converter, they both probably needed to be replaced. I didn't have the money for that, and I asked him what would happen if we just replaced the converter. He said he'd rather not do that because it was about a 50/50 chance that it would fail again anyway, there was no way to guarantee it would fix the problem permanently. (I should point out that though I have worked on cars before, I'm not very knowledgeable about them mechanically.) I told him the truth, I had no way to pay for the whole thing but I could manage the converter. He reluctantly agreed to do it, and once I got it back it ran great. For 8 months. Then it happened again. So I drove it for a month or so, never going above 45 mph or taking highways while my partner Jason and I decided what to do. I knew I couldn't afford to fix it anytime soon, so I hit on the idea of finding a new car with a large rebate to try to cancel out the negative equity a bit.

At the time, there were 2 vehicles on the market with $4000+ in rebates that were still below $18k in MSRP; the 2009 Kia Spectra and the 2009 Ford Ranger. I'd never owned RWD before and I wasn't sure a Ranger would be cheap enough, so I went to the Kia dealer first. It drove ok, and had a huge warranty, but the only one they wanted to show me didn't have a/c. We went over the numbers with the saleswoman, and took a day to think about it. I wasn't crazy about it, but we decided to go back and get it. The next day when we came back, the saleswoman was talking to the sales manager, who for some reason became a total dick and started yelling that he never agreed to those numbers (bullshit, he was there), and came over to us and was a condescending prick. He claimed he'd never be able to finance us (I'm a credit union member and Jason had near-perfect credit) unless we put down a lot of money. I basically told him (in polite language) how much I appreciated him wasting my time and to go pound sand.

As we were driving back we were passing Mike Naughton Ford, and Jason spotted a blue Ranger sitting out front. Blue is my favorite color, and I wasn't even aware they actually produced base Rangers in a color other than white, gray, or silver. He made me go in and check it out. I took it for a spin. It was the base XL with manual everything and the rubber floor. It actually had a few nice options on it; it had A/C, an AM/FM/CD/MP3 player with an AUX input, and a 40/20/40 split bench with an armrest console. It was just about perfect. We went over the financials and I'd be paying a bit higher payment than I was comfortable with, but I got a very low interest rate and didn't have to pay anything down because it was financed by my credit union. SOLD.

I had never owned a pickup truck before, but I have always liked them. It was a lot more fun to drive than I expected it to be. The '09 Ranger came with the 143 hp 2.3 Duratec I4, and it's a pretty light truck so it always had adequate poke. The transmission was pretty smooth shifting, though it is a truck manual so the throws are long. It felt way more responsive than the Caravan, that's for sure. Also, I got way more MPG than advertised. In my first 7 fuel-ups, I broke 30 MPG 3 times, and 3 more of them were over 29.

I won't lie, when winter came the idea of driving it in the snow scared the crap out of me. You see, I'd always heard the anti-RWD bias growing up, that you HAD to have FWD or 4WD in the snow or you were screwed. I'd like to take a moment to tell all of those people they are fucking idiots. I put 240 lbs. of sandbags in the bed, and it drove fantastic. Another thing, the way a rear-wheel-drive vehicle behaves in the snow felt a whole lot more intuitive to me than front-wheel-drive does. I had an absolute blast driving it in winters. And on dirt roads.

I also spent a long time driving it just for fun. As I've mentioned before, I love me some cigars. I never smoke cigars in my house, though, so that pretty much leaves my vehicle or a cigar shop/lounge/bar. So, since a good cigar usually takes an hour or so to smoke, I spent many an hour flinging the truck up twisty mountain roads while indulging. It handled like a truck, but it stuck to the road well, and I always had a smile on my face while driving it up through Evergreen or Conifer or wherever.

It wasn't all smooth sailing, though. There was one incident that was totally my fault. I was leaving my house one morning after it snowed, and as I exited the parking lot I somehow managed to completely miss the black Taurus coming around the corner. I wasn't going more than 5 mph, but the ice ensured that neither of us could stop in time and I T-boned it. Yes, that's right, I didn't see a BLACK Ford Taurus on a field of pure white. I wish I could blame the snow, but it was my fault all the way. No one was hurt, and all of the damage to the Taurus was confined to the rear passenger door. The damage to the Ranger was a broken headlight and bumper cover, and a broken grille. The repairs cost $3-4k, but fortunately it was all cosmetic. None of the underlying supports or mounts were damaged at all.

I'm going to miss the Ranger. I loved driving it and it never had a single problem. I only ever did routine maintenance. I kid you not, when I traded it in it was on the original brake pads and rotors and the pads were still at 25%! I guess that's the benefit of driving mostly highway miles. The only thing that ever hurt was the payment, but I made it work. I owned this truck for four and a half years, longer than any other vehicle I've ever owned. I hope that whoever ends up with it enjoys it and treats it well.

The WB > fhrblig 01/25/2014 at 16:14

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I love my 2008 Ranger. I'll be sad when I have to replace it.

It has original pads and rotors at 135k, original fuel filter, second set of tires, and nothing other than oil and gas put in it.

I'm pretty sure it will run forever. Like you say, it feels like driving a truck, but they really do stick to the road pretty well, and they are light enough to feel nimble.

Brian Silvestro > fhrblig 01/25/2014 at 16:21

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Great write-up, I've always heard great things about this truck. I think it's the perfect small truck. Reliable, strong enough, and fun when you want it to be. Why the hell did they stop making it?

Dunnik > fhrblig 01/25/2014 at 16:24

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Always loved the Ranger. To me, it's always been the benchmark of excellence in compact trucks.

Now that GM is back in the compact truck game, I wonder if we're going to see a Ranger II? Which makes me wonder, would you then trade-in your Fiat for that? Heh.

Depressoiscool > The WB 01/25/2014 at 16:28

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i see them on craigslist regularily over 250k miles... its kind of insane

fhrblig > Dunnik 01/25/2014 at 16:28

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I think the current Ranger was partially done with the US market in mind but they changed their minds. I hope the Colorado sells well and forces Ford's hand.

Dunnik > fhrblig 01/25/2014 at 16:38

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And they have the perfect engine for it now, too.

RandomTask > fhrblig 01/25/2014 at 16:39

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As a long time S10/S10 Blazer owner, I know that joy/pain all too well. It's sad to know that the big manufacturer's aren't making anything as simple as these trucks anymore...but, such is life. Good on you BLIG, and cheers to your Ranger.

Dingers Ghost, Champion Jockey > fhrblig 01/25/2014 at 20:03

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I shed a manly tear reading this. I love my Ranger. Sure I've only been driving for almost two years. But I grew up in my truck. It was my old man's before it was mine and I spent probably 90% of my childhood either in that truck or doing something Blue brought us to. I don't think I'll ever get rid of her. Sure she's had problems, and it used to be a rusted out POS but I love it to death.

James > fhrblig 01/30/2014 at 08:58

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My absolutely favorite car. I've owned 2 rangers. My first car was a present from my grandfather on my 16th birthday. A 400$ auto auction special with 230k on it he used as a yard truck for several years I took it and drove the shit out of it. 2.3 5speed BASE no options whatsoever. Had a timing belt snap on me on the highway at 90, causing absolutely no damage whatsoever, and repaired it myself. I sold it for 600$ with 260k on it to a family friend who now several years later and trips to Florida later has done 350k with only a clutch. I love the practicality of them and for me the seating position on the 40/20/40 seats is sublime. 10/10 will always have one around at least as a second vehicle

DipodomysDeserti > fhrblig 01/30/2014 at 09:31

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I'm having flashbacks. I owned a 2002 Ranger from my senior year in high school until three years after I graduated college. Last year I traded it in on a Forester, which my wife now drives, and I drive an Abarth. I also smoke cigars, and would use my truck as a mobile smoke room. I put 150,000 miles on that truck and the only thing I ever had to replace was the flasher for the blinkers. Took it on my first real road trips, got it stuck in mud doing stupid shit, almost got washed away in it during a flash flood... Lot of fond memories in that truck. Very boring to drive, but trucks are made for hauling shit, not ass. Shit, now I wished I would have just kept it.

ukulalien > fhrblig 01/30/2014 at 12:08

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"Adequate poke" — one secret to a successful marriage . . . of man and machine. Get your mind out of the gutter.