Meelaan

First understand that fuel economy ratings as we know them are based on U.S. federal regulations and testing. They do not apply outside of the U.S. Secondly, just as California has special emissions hardware on vehicles sold there, so too do vehicles sold in many countries outside the U.S. feature hardware that can restrict performance--or do the opposite and allow those vehicles to be much more pollutant. So, if you see a picture of a four-door Ranger diesel roaming a South American country, it's not as simple as "why don't they sell those here." Ford--like all other manufacturers doing business in the U.S.--has CAFE standards to meet. That's why four-cylinder 2WD Ranger regular cabs even continue to remain in production. Making 20,000 of those a year ups their CAFE rating so we can have things like Ford GTs and Shelby GT500s.

That article has no legs to stand on. It's pointing to brand new cars and rating them on an "expected" qualification. Not sure how a model that hasn't changed in three years and is produced in such high quantities gets "expected" to hold its value better than many others. Perhaps its because the current Mustang is currently very appealling to just about anyone with a driver license?

Intriguing topic. You're simply not going to be able to put your foot down on the fuel economy issue. No 4WD truck competes in that category. Best option is to have a manual transmission. It'll help a bit. Here's what comes to mind: - Ford Ranger 3.0 V6 4x4, of course. MPG is 15/19 though. Same as the 4.0L manual. Very navigable off road due to small size. They're used a lot in off-road parks. - Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 4x4 (2005-2006 model years). This was the final run of the last Wrangler. Has two doors rather than the current four. This Unlimited is similar to the old Scrambler. MPG is 16/19, so not very good. But it has everything else you're looking for. Certainly won't have to worry about getting stuck, and when you take the rear seat out, the bed is useful space. These may be too pricey for the job though... but consider they're arguably bulletproof. - Toyota Tacoma 4-cylinder 4x4 - Toyota sells 4WD on its four-cylinder Tacomas. This may be just what you're looking for. MPG ratings are 17/22. Not bad for the nature of this vehicle. A used one would be a good option to look into. I would stay away from Nissan's Frontier 4x4. Friend of mine had a first gen one and the 4WD is not all it's cracked up to be. The Chevy/GMC Colorado thing is just underpowered (top engine is a five-cylinder). It's a decent size though. Not really mid-size like a Dakota, but bigger than a Ranger. I'd suggest making a table showing the retail price and MPG of each truck, then test driving them with an objective mind behind the purpose you have for the vehicle.

Forget about it.

Jesus Freakin' Christ... mention the word "ignorance" in this forum in any context and you may as well have raped Mother Teresa... wtf. Blackhorse makes an excellent point. Suck it up, Tom. If you go to the grocery store and buy a rotten tomato, I suppose it means no tomatos are to ever be trusted again. They're all rotten. There are bad Hyundais. There are bad Fords. There are bad Hondas. There are bad tomatos.

Looks like he has a misplaced appreciation for antiquated automobiles, en masse.

ROFLMAO

Looks like a Mazda. That's the only place I could picture it fitting.

Magic 8-ball sez... "you will get your car on September 18."

Ewwww... Batmobile meets a hearse. Can a car get any more phallic?

What I meant was, what's a "Celica hybrid?" Far as I know there was never a hybrid powertrain for the Celica.

"Celica hybrid???" The body kit was called the "Go-Fast" package. Ironic because the car doesn't.

ANOTHER anniversary??? Wasn't the H-D F-150 done initially (1999) because both H-D and Ford turned 100 years-old that same year? Just who's anniversary is it now eight years later?

I just threw up in my mouth. HERESY.

2007 was the last year of the Monte Carlo. Poor sales ended its tenure for good. Note that certain NASCAR races have been featuring Impala SS graphics since early this summer.

This banner really perked my interest! So, when will the new Nissan Solstice be available??!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!1 :happy feet:

Looks like they had some spare grille parts leftover in the bin. Couldn't they have at least make the grill surround fit the style? Talk about half-assing it. And yeah... WHY??? It's not even available for public sale any more? What's to gain here? EDIT: Anyone else notice the extra chrome piece on the lower valance? Weird.

Dude... it's not a "hold up." They make probably a quarter of a million of these cars a year. You're waiting in line. Since you ordered a car rather than looking for one within the dealer network, "your car will be processed in the order it was received." That's how it works... and that's why it sucks. I consistently try to warn people against this action, but whatever... I was so anxious about my car every day. I called the dealer. I called Ford. Fact is, everyone I know--personally or through reading this forum--has waited around three months before their car showed up. Just go about your normal life like nothing's happening until around September 15.

Simple enough. They need to remove the side scoops though. Remember: the first Bullitt actually had special inserts to make it look like more of an indention (like the actual movie car's model) rather than a full air scoop. The current Mustang features the indention in stock form. The side scoops are a step in the wrong direction. Everything else looks great. Just screams "sleeper," doesn't it?

In May of 2000, I ordered a Silver V6 Mustang Coupe. It arrived August 18, 2000. You can estimate three months of waiting and wondering. This means you'll get your car sometime in September. It's completely not worth it, in my book.

MKT is likely the logical replacement for Mark LT. Maverick is a name used on the European Escape. Fairlane has been used recently in Australia as the flagship sedan.

I've imagined the next Ranger being comparable to the Explorer in size and appearance. Doesn't sound that great, huh? I did a photochop of it awhile back. Picture an Explorer Sport-Trac with a longer wheelbase and bed.

I actually really like your concept drawing here. Good thought process. Good proportions and just enough historical motifs to avoid being a campy retro zombie.

All depends on who you ask. I don't think they're being as efficient as it could be. There's still LOTS of abandoned homes all over the residential areas. And a couple of the skyscrapers downtown are still vacant. There's been 108 murders and counting--and that's not including Jefferson Parish, where most people considered "New Orleanians" acually live. Thousands of people still call travel trailers home. The thing people forget is New Orleans was sh1t before the storm and it'll be sh1t long after. It's a century-old cultural ineptitude that retards any ability to assimilate into first-world logic. So, mostly we just pop open another beer and laugh about it.

State law in Louisiana is "lights on when wipers on." I have not noticed the feature described here of lights turning on when wipers are running. Of course, I usually drive with my lights on. I'll put this to the test though next time it's raining. I'm going to assume that the light switch has to be on the automatic setting.