Sure, more margin for them albeit modest. Most Ranger owners as Pawpaw pointed out earlier today and others in various threads here buy the vehicle because it is right sized for them, right economy, and optional power plants (although diesel engines appear to be reasonably desirable by many FTE folks, but unavailable).

I think there's a market place for the midsized trucks (configurability as I note in my longer rant above). Folks who want to get the third passenger in the front can do it better. Tacoma offers a wider cab and comparable gas mileage. Maybe the right formula given their top billing. I think that folks here have it right: develop the new Ranger to meet buyer needs and expectations and perhaps offer the midsized truck (F100??) to take back sales lost to Toyota, Nissan and Hyundai.

We'll see...

Kevin

 

I just traded my 2003 Ford Ranger in on a 2011 F-150 FX4 5.0L about a month ago. Honestly I love the F-150 and have been longing for one ever since I got my Ranger. That's not to say that my 2003 Ranger Edge 3.0L 5-speed was a bad truck by any stretch. The only two issue's I had with the truck during my ownership was the fuel pump went bad at 97,000miles and the Clutch had to replaced at 115,000miles. Other than that the truck never gave me any problems. I personally prefer the larger size of the F-150 to the Ranger's compact setup though. I like the extra room and all that...And amazingly my 5.0L 4X4 F-150 is averaging about the same mpg's I was getting out of my 3.0L Ranger 2WD. So no real loss in fuel economy. But I can see how the F-150's massive size would be a problem with some people. Hell I’ve had to buy a carport to park it under just because it will not fit in my one car garage. That was a tad frustrating but pretty much expected.

But despite my love for the F-150 I couldn't agree more that Ford is making a huge mistake just letting the Ranger die. Ford argues it wasn't competitive and like everyone else has said...If Ford had just invested a little bit of time and money in the Ranger it could have easily been a hot seller. Imagine an updated Ranger (the same size as the current) a true compact. With a 2.0L Ecoboost and the Mustang 3.7L V6 offered. A truck that small with modern powerful engines and a good 6-speed automatic could easily compete. Both of those engines would be pretty overpowered for a truck as small and light as the Ranger, And I have no doubt they would be able to achieve noticeably better mileage than the old 2.3L I4 and 4.0L V6.

The last rumor I heard was that Ford is working on a Transit Connect pickup as a Ranger Replacement...Seriously?? Transit Connect pickup?? I'm a Ford man and I always support Ford first over others, but even I have to admit the Transit Connect is a total eyesore. Its fine for a utility vehicle, its payload is up in the ranks with the F-150. But it’s just so damned ugly! No one wants’ them for personal use vehicles, the only thing the Transit Connects are wanted for is floral shops and delivery businesses.

But Nissan does seem to think that true compacts will be making a return to the truck market. Pickuptrucks.com recently posted an article about the next gen Nissan Frontier. The article stated that Nissan's next gen Frontier is going back to its roots. It'll be shrinking in size (And capability) in the name of better fuel economy. Which for the compact/midsize segment this seems ok to me. No one should expect a midsize truck to be a superior towing/hauling machine. When I think compact/midsize I think perfect truck to take family camping in. Not perfect truck to tow a bulldozer with. Leave the heavy towing/hauling to the big boys F-150+. Let the smaller trucks be what they were always intended to be. Smaller, Lighter, More maneuverable, more fuel efficient alternatives to their bigger brothers.

(Link about Nissan Frontier Shrinking)
2010 NAIAS: Nissan Wants to Take Small Trucks Back In Time - PickupTrucks.com Special Reports


(GM also seems to think that Compact trucks aren't going away)
Sources: GM Working on Return to Small Truck Roots - PickupTrucks.com News

 

Wait a minute! Do you mean that FoMoCo is absolutely, utterly and entirely wrong in believing that Ranger owners will be flocking to the new Focus and Fiesta?

Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - View Single Post - THOUGHT EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW

I'm glad to see Ford made it through the most recent financial crisis. But that doesn't mean I'm not pissed off that Ford is trying to categorize me as a wannabe Focus/Fiesta driver. (Exactly how many sheets of plywood fit into the back seat of a Focus/Fiesta)?

Bad marketing. Period.

 

I guess I just won't buy one.
I'd have bought one years ago but at 6'4 and 250 I don't fit in the round-bodies (square-body extended cab was great!). I bought '96 and '97 Nissan D21s instead and they've been excellent. I have a farm, and those trucks are good for 98% of what I need a truck for, as would be a Ranger.
The fact that Ford is going to build one for 180 other markets but not here seems contrary to their "One Ford" policy.
The compact market has been shrinking at least since the mid-90's. I always thought it was at least in part because compacts were growing to the point where they're not that much smaller than full-size, Ranger being the exception.
Perhaps Ford is working on a pick-up version of the Transit Connect, or something similar. It wouldn't be as good for my purposes, but I think there'd be a market.

 

I find this very disappointing and short sighted. Fact is, we need more fuel efficient vehicles. My next truck will last me at least six years, I would be foolish to not buy something that fits my needs for hauling as well as commuting. I've asked the reps at races and dealerships for years to tell the higher ups we want a diesel ranger. I see Diesel VW cars every day!
Who wouldn't buy a 40 mpg Ranger?
Maybe someone else will give us what we want if Ford won't

 

I would not be surprised if that is not a business plan to move production overseas, and bring the Ford Ranger back into the US market as an import. A while back I read a post from another forum user who works/worked for a company in the Ford supply chain. He said his employer was shutting down some of their facilities because Ford was contracting out to some other companies overseas.

There is a market for the small size truck, and the reason Ford Ranger is behind in sales is because it is pretty much outdated compared to Canyon/Colorado, Tacoma, Frontier, and all the others trucks in the same category. I guess the small truck has now become medium size truck since those new trucks are a bit larger than their previous editions.

Aside from all that I will definitely miss the Ranger if it will never come back to the U.S.. I have had a 2000 model as a second vehicle for a few years now, and it is the right size for my needs.

 

Well here's the deal, the company I work for has a fleet of over 300 rangers. They get retired at about 250,000.Just got 40 new ones this year, these trucks take a beating, started about 15 times a day oil change every 5000. We work for a telecommunication company and I don't know how we'll replace them,we have tried the chevy and it just doesn't hold up. If ford thinks that the transit is our next replacement there wrong if we wanted vans we would have been using the windstar. The service industry alone is enough reason to keep the ranger alive. I guess we will have to all move over to the canyon and just replace them more often, you couldn't have made the guys over at gm happier.

 

ibve owned lots of trucks and there has never been anything that can touch the ranger in the small pickup segment of the auto industry. The ranger can pull a large load, is compact, easy to manuver in town and gets better gas mileage than anything else out there. Ford is screwing up big time by shelving the ranger. They should instead bring it back redesigned with a small diesel engine and it will tear that rat pickup, tacoma, if you can call it a pickup a new one of them things all politicians have giant ones off.
Sad day. I'm gonna find me a used one a fix it up to tow. The ranger is a fantastic rig for towing boats

 

I love my 2004 4wd extended cab ranger,5 K factory tow package.Does anything a F150 will do.I call it a "factory monsterized" version of the Ranger.I miss my '93 ranger w/2.3L 5spd stick. Cost=9500$ new! Im looking for one like it to rebuild.

 

thats for sure
. I want to find a solid 2.3 with an auto if they made any like that. The stick kinda starts howling one me after a few heavy tows so i would like the auto.

 

Purely a business move .Engage those brains ....As gas started to go up Ford began to abandon the Ranger.Anyone want to guess how much a "new" redesigned Ranger will cost when they"bring it back"

 

Yes they made them like that.The 5spd was a mazda trany.Never a peep out of mine even a 250K and I did alot of hard pulling with it.

 

my 83 5spd started howling after only one trip over the sierra nevada mountains towing a 4400 pound sea ray sundancer. The 2.8 had enough pulling power but the tranny i think got a little hot climbing to 9600 feet then down a couple of times. Since then i have had auto trannies and they have never complained. Oh, and dont forget that here in the summer it can hit 110 in the valley. Dont remember what it was that year as that was back in 1990. I have heard others say they find the stick bullet proof, maybe mine was a dud?

 

I have put over 400,000 miles on the 5spd manual on my 84, its never been opened up and still tows almost every week. A C-5 auto of that vintage would already have been recycled for scrap back in the early 90s......No auto on a Ranger for me......no, thanks.

 

It's clear that the paradigm of gas engines is nearing its end. I'd speculate that the diesel engines are not far behind, but in that they are more fuel efficient and technology is making them cleaner than they have ever been, they will be around longer I suppose. Alternative powered vehicles are here and gaining momentum and new alternatives in the near future. Until then, it would seem that for gas/diesel powered vehicles, the key to their sustained success would need to hinge on the vehicles balance of the key buyers' needs. When the midsized trucks first came out, I thought to myself what a great idea; finding an optimal size to fit the needs. Most the emphasis seemed to be on power and features, not so much on fuel economy. It gained Chrysler the dubious distinction of being the most fuel inefficient automaker out of the Big 3 and beyond. Not much of a market for their used vehicles; most sell for much smaller margins. Quality was a concern as well, but they were stylish and had features new buyers wanted and were willing to accept less. Other manufacturers followed and the new paradigm won over the compact truck market. Only Ford remains.

So now that fuel prices are helping to shape the buyers decision making process, it seems to me that if Ford had invested in the redesign to broaden the Ranger's appeal to a larger market, their positioning as the most fuel efficient small truck would be strengthened. And I think Nissan leadership might have it right; folks are aiming for smaller more fuel efficient vehicles. Vehicles are getting smaller and lighter the worldover, but not at the same pace here in the States. We still are the leading SUV buyers in the world. but even our taste for oversized, impractical vehicles is changing. Eventually, technology will provide us solutions for larger alternatively powered vehicles, and the process will likely repeat itself.

I wonder where we will be in a year or two, if midsized trucks will be as desirable or if the return to compact trucks will re-emerge. But I hope that by then, my 2000 Ranger will be back in style...and running strong and the point rendered moot! I really enjoy my little truck! The aim now is to tinker with it to optimize fuel efficiency and improve power on my own and with the help of willing FTE participants since Ford has given up domestically. It's alright to dream a little...isn't it??