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Ranger bed issue


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ok...question...who designs a truck...and TWO years later basically forces owners to BUY brackets to re-inforce the bed if they expect to add a rack, or Camper shell ( over cabin tent ) or anthing that weighs more than 88 pounds  ( yes 88 pounds ) or greater on the bedrails....????????????????? Built Ford Tough?...and then making customers pay for the brackets AND the install????????????? ....sigh. Sorry to vent...but heck...

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37 minutes ago, Deanh said:

ok...question...who designs a truck...and TWO years later basically forces owners to BUY brackets to re-inforce the bed if they expect to add a rack, or Camper shell ( over cabin tent ) or anthing that weighs more than 88 pounds  ( yes 88 pounds ) or greater on the bedrails....????????????????? Built Ford Tough?...and then making customers pay for the brackets AND the install????????????? ....sigh. Sorry to vent...but heck...

 

Guessing that wasn't one of the design specifications when it was developed overseas-has it changed in the 2025 redesign?

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54 minutes ago, Sherminator98 said:

 

Guessing that wasn't one of the design specifications when it was developed overseas-has it changed in the 2025 redesign?

that I do not know...but sure seems like rather large cock up. Its a bloody truck for goodness sake....

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7 hours ago, Deanh said:

ok...question...who designs a truck...and TWO years later basically forces owners to BUY brackets to re-inforce the bed if they expect to add a rack, or Camper shell ( over cabin tent ) or anthing that weighs more than 88 pounds  ( yes 88 pounds ) or greater on the bedrails....????????????????? Built Ford Tough?...and then making customers pay for the brackets AND the install????????????? ....sigh. Sorry to vent...but heck...

It didn’t need any reinforcement on the 2019-2023 models. Why would they go backwards on bed strength?

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Was curious what these brackets may look like; assuming of course they are the ones in question.  Do not see reference to 88 pounds (40 kg) but find mention of off-road use interesting in document below.  It’s a reinforcement but not sure under what conditions it’s needed based solely on this description.

 

 

IMG_5662.thumb.jpeg.72b6d37a096963b6f1e381e9b53e54aa.jpeg

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4 hours ago, Rick73 said:

Was curious what these brackets may look like; assuming of course they are the ones in question.  Do not see reference to 88 pounds (40 kg) but find mention of off-road use interesting in document below.  It’s a reinforcement but not sure under what conditions it’s needed based solely on this description.

 

 

IMG_5662.thumb.jpeg.72b6d37a096963b6f1e381e9b53e54aa.jpeg

I have a rack installer that will NOT install the rack without the install of the brackets......

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Well I bought a Back Rack for my 04 Ranger and it served me well with loads of heavy PT 2 x 6's, 8's etc. When I was considering a new Ranger replacement I went to Back Racks website and was surprised to find they didn't list one..couldn't understand that.  

Guess I understand now.  How short sided can you be.

 

PS. Dummy me, one day I jump in the Ranger, hit the "open door" button and start backing out  without verifying door was all the way up..destroyed bottom panel-and this was a heavy insulated door-Back Rack was just fine.

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22 hours ago, Bob Rosadini said:

Well I bought a Back Rack for my 04 Ranger and it served me well with loads of heavy PT 2 x 6's, 8's etc. When I was considering a new Ranger replacement I went to Back Racks website and was surprised to find they didn't list one..couldn't understand that.  

Guess I understand now.  How short sided can you be.

 

PS. Dummy me, one day I jump in the Ranger, hit the "open door" button and start backing out  without verifying door was all the way up..destroyed bottom panel-and this was a heavy insulated door-Back Rack was just fine.

for the life of me I cannot understand why it isnt a recall...caveat...Ford WILL pay for the braces but only if you buy a Ford Shell....................wow....just wow....

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3 hours ago, Deanh said:

for the life of me I cannot understand why it isnt a recall...caveat...Ford WILL pay for the braces but only if you buy a Ford Shell....................wow....just wow....

I guess in Ford's view it is not a recall...nothing wrong with the truck, just not strong enough as built to withstand the rigors imposed by  a Back Rack...the old Ranger was.  And to "2005E"s point, Back Rack has never listed a rack for the new Ranger.

So it is not a new issue.  Although the way the Back Rack mounting system is built it transfers a lot of stress to the box bed rails.  It looks like that $88 bracket is designed to beef up the downward load imposed by what ever is resting on the Back Rack

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On 1/9/2025 at 5:30 PM, Deanh said:

for the life of me I cannot understand why it isnt a recall

It’s not a recall because it’s only a capability issue, not a safety issue. I think they probably ought to do something about it as a goodwill gesture, but it’s not really their responsibility to address a capability that the stock truck was not designed to have. 

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3 hours ago, SoonerLS said:

It’s not a recall because it’s only a capability issue, not a safety issue. I think they probably ought to do something about it as a goodwill gesture, but it’s not really their responsibility to address a capability that the stock truck was not designed to have. 


I think the point is, these types of uses are not unreasonable, and pretty typical.  Ford should have known better, especially when they like to emphasize their truck’s capabilities, but they can’t handle these basic tasks without support brackets?  Not particularly impressive.

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34 minutes ago, tbone said:


I think the point is, these types of uses are not unreasonable, and pretty typical.  Ford should have known better, especially when they like to emphasize their truck’s capabilities, but they can’t handle these basic tasks without support brackets?  Not particularly impressive.

Oh, I agree that it’s a design flaw, but every vehicle ever made has some kind of design flaw. We just don’t expect the manufacturers to fix them for free unless they’re a safety issue. I think they probably ought to, but I don’t think they have to. 

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4 hours ago, SoonerLS said:

Oh, I agree that it’s a design flaw, but every vehicle ever made has some kind of design flaw. We just don’t expect the manufacturers to fix them for free unless they’re a safety issue. I think they probably ought to, but I don’t think they have to. 


it’s one thing to not necessarily pay for it on the 2024 model, but moving forward I think these kind of small things are something that should be part of a running change on the next model year as far as I’m concerned.  It’s a small change that makes the entire situation disappear.  
 

2 hours ago, akirby said:

A goof for sure but how many people put on a camper top more than 88 lbs?  Very very few.


It probably depends. I’ve seen quite a few more of these trucks being used for commercial purposes, outside of lifestyle vehicles.  

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11 minutes ago, tbone said:

it’s one thing to not necessarily pay for it on the 2024 model, but moving forward I think these kind of small things are something that should be part of a running change on the next model year as far as I’m concerned.  It’s a small change that makes the entire situation disappear.  

Yeah, if they can throw it in for free when you buy a Ford accessory, they ought to be able to incorporate it as a revision to the design at minimal cost. I don’t know if compliance issues would allow them to add it as a running change, but they should at least be able to add it for the next model year. 

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I would have never imagined having to reinforce the bed while installing a fiberglass shell.  I was real close to purchasing a '24 Ranger in November when I totaled the '19 Nautilus Black Label.  I thought the Ranger at $54K was overpriced so went with a '24 F150 Lariat which was also overpriced :)  I miss my Nautilus.

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7 hours ago, T hawker said:

I would have never imagined having to reinforce the bed while installing a fiberglass shell.  I was real close to purchasing a '24 Ranger in November when I totaled the '19 Nautilus Black Label.  I thought the Ranger at $54K was overpriced so went with a '24 F150 Lariat which was also overpriced :)  I miss my Nautilus.


Everything is overpriced. It sucks. 

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