A thing rarely seen

"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer) 09/10/2016 at 07:18 • Filed to: None

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Look, it’s the pick-up truck some Americans want and Europeans get, but very rarely buy. Better known as the Ford Ranger.

This Ranger Wildtrak 3.2 TDCi(5 cylinder!) belongs to a guy who is replacing the grass in our garden today, so I guess it makes sense to him for transporting tools and stuff, though he still uses a trailer for the grass and wheelbarrows etc. Usually I see less than one pick-up truck a week, that’s how rare they are over here in the Netherlands.

Sorry for the weird lighting in the photo, I had to hurry to leave for work this morning. It was just like this one, only in white:

Cé hé sin > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 07:50

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I see these quite often - maybe weekly. I don’t think many of those would be the 3.2 though because too much money and too much fuel.

Svend > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 08:00

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So far I’ve only seen these as police cars in rural areas.

DutchieDC2R > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 08:00

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I love these things. If I could justify having one, this would be it. Much rather than Ranger than a Amarok (but then again, I do hate VAG stuff in general).

Wheelerguy > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 08:37

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It’s more common in Southeast Asia, competing against an Isuzu, the Hilux, and the Colorado.

Jobjoris > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 08:55

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Not sure if I shared this with you but I used to be one of the guys you ran into once a week. I DD’d a F150 FX4 5.4 for 3 years. It was awesome. Then LPG went from 30 cents to 70 over a year and I had to tank for 700 euros a month...

duurtlang > Jobjoris 09/10/2016 at 09:05

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I never knew. So you used 1000 liters a month ? You must drive a lot, but that beast must’ve been very thirsty as well.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Wheelerguy 09/10/2016 at 09:08

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We have the Hilux and Isuzu here too, but the Ranger and Hilux are almost exclusively used by gardeners, while the Isuzu is mainly used by road inspectors of the government. Next to those almost nobody buys them.

In Southeast Asia they are probably popular due to the worse road quality, right?

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Svend 09/10/2016 at 09:10

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I only see them being used by gardeners, and maybe some farmers, here.

Our police almost exclusively drives VW Touran. Though that might change, since there was some kind of shady deal between the VW importer and the vehicle buyers at the police which surfaced a while ago, so now more brands should get a chance.

Probenja > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 09:13

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Those are everywhere in south america but then so are their competitors. Although I’ve seen a suprising number of new F150's driving around in Chile.

How much does the Ranger cost in the Netherlands? As I’m guessing they don’t come cheap.

Jobjoris > duurtlang 09/10/2016 at 09:17

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Oh yeah baby, every 4 kms a liter for that 2006 FX4 I got in Miami. I drove Breda-Arnhem fairly daily so 700 euros could have been somewhat optimistic... It was the first car I wasn’t busy thinking what to get after within a month as I usually do, I love the F150!

(It was equiped with a 185 liter LPG tank next to it’s 90 liter fuel tank hahaha)

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Jobjoris 09/10/2016 at 09:18

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I think you mentioned some time. Though I must say that I wouldn’t expect you in a car like that, haha.

Wasn’t that way to huge for our roads? Because the Ranger already looks huge next to the 208 of my brother.

Yeah that price hike killed a lot of benefit for people driving LPG powered cars.

Svend > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 09:26

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Ye’, when I lived in Veghel most police cars were Tourans, Golfs, and some Vianos.

Here it’s all manner of cars, mostly Skoda, Vauxhall, Ford, Mercedes and BMW.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Probenja 09/10/2016 at 09:27

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Starting around €40000, though that is for a commercial version so it gets a partial purchase tax exemption. The 4 seater starts around €55000, because it doesn’t get the same discount. A 3.2 Wildtrak with an automatic can cost up to around €100000, though this guy probably used some holes in the law to register it as a commercial vehicle, thus cutting that roughly in half.

Yes, I was shocked by this too.

TysMagic > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 09:34

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I’m trying to wrap my mind around seeing a pick up truck maybe once in a week. I bet there’s over a dozen in the work parking lot right now - probably much more.

duurtlang > Jobjoris 09/10/2016 at 09:43

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One liter every 4 km? That’s painful. My daily 406 coupe, which is a large and heavy car for our Dutch context, manages 10 km on a liter of LPG with my heavy right foot. My FIL’s Dodge Magnum R/T (5.7L V8) does 6 or 7 km on a liter of LPG if I’m not mistaken.

It’s rather clear why those American vehicles don’t really sell here.

LPG is <50 cents a liter now, luckily.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > TysMagic 09/10/2016 at 09:47

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I think the same is the case for wagons here, I can’t go outside without seeing wagons literaly everywhere. And I can hardly believe wagons are that rare in the US(probably not 1 a week rare, but you get my point).

Jobjoris > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 09:48

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No one did. I had an awesome “Werkverkeer” sticker on the back (as I was using it to get to work, right?) and everyone gave enough room to voeg in. It was the first car I actually enjoyed cruising in with lower speeds. It was huge though: an average parking spot is 5 meters over here. The F150 was... 5,80 meters! Same for Parking garages, plenty of those were out of reach for it’s height (over 2 meters) or narrow turns. And oh yes: I was living in Breda’s city center back then!

Probenja > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 09:52

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Woah, here in Chile a Ranger Limited (Manual) is €35000, so cheaper than your base Ranger. For €50000 you can get an F150 Platinum. Honestly I wouldn’t get a truck for over €25000, especially for work.

Jobjoris > duurtlang 09/10/2016 at 09:58

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1 to 4, 1 to 5 if I was takin’ really, REALLY slow. Your FIL’s Dodge doesn’t have the frontaal oppervlak of such a huge baksteen. My 928 did 1 to 10 on few occasions, on petrol that is.

My nextdoor neighbor cursed me for selling it. Was the best and most comfortable wekker he ever had, he still insists.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Probenja 09/10/2016 at 09:58

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Yes, I agree it’s madness, and since a van with a comparable and covered cargo area goes for between €20000 and €25000 the choice is made quite quickly for most companies.

duurtlang > Jobjoris 09/10/2016 at 10:02

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I like your usage of Dutch words in that English text :)

KatzManDu > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 10:02

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They love full-sized Dodge Rams here in the rural Belgium...

TysMagic > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 10:03

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true, I’d say I see at least one a day, but I get the point. They’re definitely a little more of a rare sighting

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Jobjoris 09/10/2016 at 10:05

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Yes, I would give that monster some space too if I saw that coming on the merging lane. That Werkverkeer sticker is pure genius!

Did nobody complain about you parking this beast in the city center?

jimz > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 10:09

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had one of these for a weekend in June. Parked outside my condo:

Jobjoris > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 10:48

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Haha, when I moved to a new home -just outside the center- my new next-door neighbor came asking all kinds of construction-questions for his own house and I was like “How does he know I’m planning to so many things myself” so I asked him. His reply was: “well, you’re in infrastructural construction right?” while nodding to that sticker.

It’s amazing how little people dare talking to you in the first place while getting out such a car. It doesn’t have the most sophisticated image I suppose ;-)

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > Jobjoris 09/10/2016 at 11:11

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Haha, I guess that’s the other effect of the werkverkeer sticker.

Indeed, huge pick-ups rarely give me the impresion that they are being drive by a sophisticated person. However you proved it can be different than expected.

Cé hé sin > TysMagic 09/10/2016 at 11:23

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Then again I see two or three a day - I guess they don’t do them in the Netherlands.

Quite why anyone buys them is another matter. The ones I see usually have nothing other than air in the back. Business users and tradesmen use vans because they’re less vulnerable to rain and passing thieves.

Cé hé sin > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 09/10/2016 at 14:17

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I thought prices here were expensive!

The most we can pay is €45,800 for a 3.2 automatic, a very rare model, and that includes 23% VAT which most business users can recover.

The basic 2.2 two seater (a rare one too as the double cab is almost universal) is €28,150 inc VAT.

The double cab is interestingly a lot more expensive (different tax treatment so it’s about €7,000 dearer) but still accounts for the vast majority of sales.