New Ford Ranger Spotted In The US, Looks A Lot Bigger Than We Remember

[silvrsvt]

http://truckyeah.jalopnik.com/just-a-new-ford-ranger-driving-around-in-the-us-on-mich-1615977968/+damon?utm_campaign=socialflow_jalopnik_facebook&utm_source=jalopnik_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

 

Hmm looks people are finally getting it through their fat skulls that the ROW Ranger isn't going to come here since its 90% the size of a SB F-150

[theoldwizard]

I still believe that the current F150 is "too big", or maybe I should say "unnecessarily large" for its most common use. We all know that most F150s get driven around suburbia and rarely carry more than a weeks worth of groceries in the bed.

[akirby]

But it's not just Ford - it's Ford, GM, Dodge and Toyota. Hard to say if they followed the market or if the market followed them.

 

I still see an opportunity to lighten, narrow and shorten (if necessary) the F150 frame plus lighter suspension and drivetrain components to accommodate a Ranger (F100) with a 2.0L EB.

 

The advantage would be platform consolidation and CAFE. It might also be used for midsized SUVs instead of CD4 which would allow more powerful drivetrains.

[30 OTT 6]

That Ranger looks like the evolution of the Gen 10 (1997-2003) F-150. I think Gen 10 was ahead of its time.

[Edstock]

IMHO, like VW keeps toying with their FWD pickup, there probably is a market for a smaller footprint pickup, but it will come from the TC or similar platform, and it will probably be 3-4 years from now. IMHO, a BOF smaller pickup is not viable, but I may be mistaken.

[akirby]

IMHO, like VW keeps toying with their FWD pickup, there probably is a market for a smaller footprint pickup, but it will come from the TC or similar platform, and it will probably be 3-4 years from now. IMHO, a BOF smaller pickup is not viable, but I may be mistaken.

 

It's viable in ROW for sure and Ford could see some savings if they could do some type of platform sharing with F150. And if you do that then you might be able to build a NA version in the U.S. alongside F series. But I think you'd still need one or two SUVs to share that platform to solidify the business case, and the only reason to do that is if they wanted to support more capability and bigger engines in the Explorer/Aviator.

 

They could certainly do without it, too. The next Explorer/Aviator should tell us a lot.

[jasonj80]

I'll try to snag a pic if I can find one to park next to, there used to be one at the gym all the time. Lately it has been a new Transit. Its about 75% the size of the F-150, but it is much bigger than the old Ranger, more Sport Track or Dodge Dakota sized. The Blocky styling makes it look much bigger than it is.

On another note I saw a MKZ with camo on the front today, looks like a new grill for 2016, maybe for the new TT V6, or 2.3L.

[Edstock]

 

The next Explorer/Aviator should tell us a lot.

 

10-4 that. And Ford's security is so tight there are no leaks: Explorer/Aviator. MKT/Flex. No spy pictures, even the rumors are thin.

[silvrsvt]

I still believe that the current F150 is "too big", or maybe I should say "unnecessarily large" for its most common use. We all know that most F150s get driven around suburbia and rarely carry more than a weeks worth of groceries in the bed.

 

 

What it boils down to is people will buy a bigger vehicle then they really need because they "think" they'll need that capabilities down the road...even if they only use it once or twice.

 

Pickups (even Ranger sized ones) are total over kill 95% of the time because all they are hauling around are the driver and maybe a passenger.

 

Buying a new car or truck isn't normally a rational decision for the most part since 95% of the time something else can be substituted instead of that particular vehicle, but if that happened all the time, our car choices would be really drab and boring.

[Deanh]

http://truckyeah.jalopnik.com/just-a-new-ford-ranger-driving-around-in-the-us-on-mich-1615977968/+damon?utm_campaign=socialflow_jalopnik_facebook&utm_source=jalopnik_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

 

Hmm looks people are finally getting it through their fat skulls that the ROW Ranger isn't going to come here since its 90% the size of a SB F-150

right up my alley, make mine a 4x4 supercab with manual and the 3.2 diesel....thankyou Santa.

[wildosvt]

The thing is huge, Ive driven by one a few times. Almost made my SHO feel the size of a fusion based on the expired US Ranger.

[Bryan1]

I still believe that the current F150 is "too big", or maybe I should say "unnecessarily large" for its most common use. We all know that most F150s get driven around suburbia and rarely carry more than a weeks worth of groceries in the bed.

 

 

 

 

What it boils down to is people will buy a bigger vehicle then they really need because they "think" they'll need that capabilities down the road...even if they only use it once or twice.

 

Pickups (even Ranger sized ones) are total over kill 95% of the time because all they are hauling around are the driver and maybe a passenger.

 

Buying a new car or truck isn't normally a rational decision for the most part since 95% of the time something else can be substituted instead of that particular vehicle, but if that happened all the time, our car choices would be really drab and boring.

 

Exactly.

 

To borrow from another site on how a truck person thinks:

 

People who are experts on cars insist that the average truck owner doesn’t need the capabilities of the truck they drive and they're "too big." Citing studies and market research (such as "we all know") as ‘proof’ that truck buyers really don’t need to tow or haul a huge payload, these car experts determined that a small truck would be more than adequate for the average truck owner.

 

Unfortunately, car experts just don’t get it – it’s true that most trucks are rarely pushed to their physical limits. However, that’s by design. If a ‘truck person’ needs to tow 5k lbs on a regular basis, he or she will buy a full size because they want the extra capacity just in case. If they tow 10k lbs on a regular basis, they go and buy a SuperDuty. Sure – a Taco will tow 5k just fine and a Tundra will tow 10k with a power to spare – but truck people aren’t interested in buying a truck they have to worry about maxing out. By buying a little bigger than we need, we guarantee our trucks are never pushed too far and we never worry about being in a situation we can’t handle.

[theoldwizard]

I am surprised that more buyers are not "voting with their wallet". The base price of the new Colorado is almost $6,000 than a base F150. Adnittedly these are "strippers", so it may not be a realistic comparison.

[jpd80]

External dimensions of double cab T6 Ranger is very close to the Explorer sport Trac,

shoulder room is around 2" less but most other internal dimensions are close.

 

Perhaps Ford thinks that Sport Track was an indifferent seller and that the T6 Ranger would be similar?

 

Pretty sure that Ford is done with selling "Strippers" that make no money, so that rules out a truck below $20,000.

Edited August 6, 2014 by jpd80

[akirby]

Those same "car experts" say the same thing about SUVs. Then you start asking what they're driving and it's a Fusion. Why not a Focus? It has 4 doors and gets better fuel mileage and it's smaller and cheaper. Why not a Fiesta? Even better all the way around. Why not a hybrid?

 

I remember one of the most outspoken activists on air quality who was decrying SUVs and their pollution was driving an older BMW that actually spewed more pollution than a new SUV or full sized pickup.

 

Do as I say not as I do.

[silvrsvt]

I am surprised that more buyers are not "voting with their wallet". The base price of the new Colorado is almost $6,000 than a base F150. Adnittedly these are "strippers", so it may not be a realistic comparison.

All the new Colorado is going to do is take sales away from GM's full-sized trucks

 

Part of the reason small pickups where popular was because they where dirt cheap and offered a bit more to them then say an Escort of the time (like big bed)

 

If you want a cheap car, get something used...then again used cars aren't that "cheap" anymore after cash for klunkers dried up the used car market, but on the inverse of that it also means that people who have older cars have more buying power for more expensive vehicles that are being sold these days.

 

Looking at the used car market these days, even my 8-9 year old Mustang still commands a decent amount of money considering it is that old and has 120K miles on it. My wife's almost 5 year old Escape is worth just under half of what it was what she bought it brand new...if you went back 10 years ago, it be only worth maybe 1/3 of what it cost brand new.

[akirby]

All the new Colorado is going to do is take sales away from GM's full-sized trucks

 

Part of the reason small pickups where popular was because they where dirt cheap and offered a bit more to them then say an Escort of the time (like big bed)

 

If you want a cheap car, get something used...then again used cars aren't that "cheap" anymore after cash for klunkers dried up the used car market, but on the inverse of that it also means that people who have older cars have more buying power for more expensive vehicles that are being sold these days.

 

Looking at the used car market these days, even my 8-9 year old Mustang still commands a decent amount of money considering it is that old and has 120K miles on it. My wife's almost 5 year old Escape is worth just under half of what it was what she bought it brand new...if you went back 10 years ago, it be only worth maybe 1/3 of what it cost brand new.

 

Go price a used Ranger or F150. It's outrageous. A 10 yr old F150 with 120K miles on it is over $20K!!

[SoonerLS]

What it boils down to is people will buy a bigger vehicle then they really need because they "think" they'll need that capabilities down the road...even if they only use it once or twice.

 

Pickups (even Ranger sized ones) are total over kill 95% of the time because all they are hauling around are the driver and maybe a passenger.

Of course my F150 spends most of its time driving around with just me in it--it's my daily driver. Those things are too damned expensive to have as a "sometimes" vehicle. On the other hand, my Lincoln couldn't tow the Ford 1910 tractor with front-end loader or the 8N with brush hog that I've hauled back and forth between my dad's place and mine, nor could it carry the two cans of diesel and the 500lb bale fork that were in the truck's bed just last night.

 

A pickup is like a firearm--when you really need it, nothing else will do, wussified city folks be damned...

[fordmantpw]

Of course my F150 spends most of its time driving around with just me in it--it's my daily driver. Those things are too damned expensive to have as a "sometimes" vehicle. On the other hand, my Lincoln couldn't tow the Ford 1910 tractor with front-end loader or the 8N with brush hog that I've hauled back and forth between my dad's place and mine, nor could it carry the two cans of diesel and the 500lb bale fork that were in the truck's bed just last night.

 

A pickup is like a firearm--when you really need it, nothing else will do, wussified city folks be damned...

 

Spoken like a true pickup owner!

 

Those who don't own a pickup just don't understand.

[Bryan1]

I'd like to know how the car expects know what we're hauling. Are they stalking us? Can they see a load under a tonneau cover?

 

Are the car expert's cars and boats too big? The car experts may need to downsize their boat to a dinghy because that's all they need.

[PRM]

See the Rangers overseas all the time. Not a bad looking truck at all. I'll be curious to see how the Canyon/Colorado sells.

[RichardJensen]

 

 

 

market research (such as "we all know") as ‘proof’

 

Competent market research is not the same as "we all know" generalizations.

[630land]

If Ford imported this Ranger, the purists would scream 'bloody murder' since it's 'too big and expensive'. They want a 1987 Ranger for $7999.

 

All over car message boards are complaints about how expensive the new Colorado is priced.

"I ain't paying no 20 thousand bucks for a little pickup!"

 

Welcome to the 2010's

Edited August 7, 2014 by 630land

[akirby]

They want a 1987 Ranger for $7999.

 

 

I actually bought a 1990 ranger for $7995

[mackinaw]

 

All over car message boards are complaints about how expensive the new Colorado is priced.

"I ain't paying no 20 thousand bucks for a little pickup!"

 

 

The problem is, it ain't a little pickup. Compared to the last-gen Colorado, it's huge.