2008 is the Ranger's last year, as Ford is closing the last Ranger plant in Minnesota.  From what I understand, there are no plans for a replacement.  The Sport Trac is on its way out too.  Why are they leaving the compact truck market empty, and will anything ever fill it?

Quote from: SaltyDog on August 02, 2007, 06:52:46 PM
2008 is the Ranger's last year, as Ford is closing the last Ranger plant in Minnesota.  From what I understand, there are no plans for a replacement.  The Sport Trac is on its way out too.  Why are they leaving the compact truck market empty, and will anything ever fill it?

Link for either statement? I find both hard to believe.

Quote from: SaltyDog on August 02, 2007, 06:52:46 PM
2008 is the Ranger's last year, as Ford is closing the last Ranger plant in Minnesota.? From what I understand, there are no plans for a replacement.? The Sport Trac is on its way out too.? Why are they leaving the compact truck market empty, and will anything ever fill it?

Yes, the Tacoma.

I don't know if its a good or bad move for Ford, but consolidating their line-up isn't an unexpected move for a company in their situation.

Why would they stop the Ranger? 

http://www.thecarconnection.com/Enthusiasts/Future_Cars/Ford.S283.A8367.html

We've been waiting and waiting and waiting, and time after time the scheduled remake of the Ford Ranger has been put on hold - and this is no exception. Although there are yards of vinyl covering crucial styling details, the model year 2006 only brings a facelift and freshening to the aging Ranger. An all-new Ranger, codenamed P273, is now expected to arrive around 2010

I hope the Ranger remains a compact truck.

Quote from: the Teuton on August 02, 2007, 07:01:29 PM
I hope the Ranger remains a compact truck.

Although it's not likely, I hope so too. Right now, it's the only truck that's still about the same size it was in the 80's... not such a bad thing.

Quote from: NACar on August 02, 2007, 07:03:30 PM
Although it's not likely, I hope so too. Right now, it's the only truck that's still about the same size it was in the 80's... not such a bad thing.

It's also the same truck it was in the '80s...

Which is a bad thing.

I certainly hope they keep the Ranger. Would be stupid to drop it. Maybe bring over the Ranger they sell overseas which is far more modern then ours.

Someones needs to make an actual compact truck again. But I won't be sad to see this one go away.

Quote from: the_koof on August 03, 2007, 12:53:11 AM
Which is a bad thing.

I certainly hope they keep the Ranger. Would be stupid to drop it. Maybe bring over the Ranger they sell overseas which is far more modern then ours.

I remember someone posting about Europe's Ranger, and it looked nice, but Ford said something about it not being suitable for American buyers.  I think it also has a diesel...why can't we get that?

Quote from: SaltyDog on August 03, 2007, 10:52:48 PM
I remember someone posting about Europe's Ranger, and it looked nice, but Ford said something about it not being suitable for American buyers.? I think it also has a diesel...why can't we get that?

Because merry-cans are too dumb to realize that diesels kick gas.

Quote from: ifcar on August 02, 2007, 06:53:56 PM
Link for either statement? I find both hard to believe.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2006-04-13-ford-plants_x.htm

Quote from: SaltyDog on August 03, 2007, 10:55:11 PM
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2006-04-13-ford-plants_x.htm

That doesn't say the Ranger is being dropped, just that it's plant closed. Ford moved Town Car production when its plant closed. It also doesn't mention the Sport Trac.

Quote from: Soup DeVille on August 02, 2007, 07:06:43 PM
It's also the same truck it was in the '80s...

No it's not.

Quote from: ifcar on August 04, 2007, 05:54:58 AM
That doesn't say the Ranger is being dropped, just that it's plant closed. Ford moved Town Car production when its plant closed. It also doesn't mention the Sport Trac.

Yeah I couldn't find anything about the Sport Trac and I don't remember where I saw that.  Here's another link for the Ranger, although it isn't definitive: http://news.windingroad.com/trends/report-ford-considers-ranger-phase-out/

Mazda BT-50





I want it!

That truck looks like it'd work better for Australia/NZ or South Africa.

They need to dump the  B truck they have now and bring this over. We need a small 4 cylinder truck in the US again other than what we have now. With gas going up and all the other trucks getting bigger and bigger I would think they would sell very well here.
I'm looking for a good running B2600i truck now just so I can have something like that.

Quote from: Onslaught on August 04, 2007, 04:55:13 PM
They need to dump the  B truck they have now and bring this over. We need a small 4 cylinder truck in the US again other than what we have now. With gas going up and all the other trucks getting bigger and bigger I would think they would sell very well here.
I'm looking for a good running B2600i truck now just so I can have something like that.

I didn't think you liked Rangers/B's?

I felt the Ranger would be all the truck I'd ever need. A nice 2.8 Tdi with a good 5 speed stick is more than fine for a daily driver, no need of a full size truck with something like a 350 where I have to be very careful with the throttle all the time worrying about squeezing the slightest MPG.

Granted some may really need a truck with engines that big. But most of the time I see say a Land Cruiser I only see a barely 5 feet tall woman behind the wheel and can barely look over the dash. My mom has visibility issues with the hood scoop and hood bulge in the Patrol and she adjusts the seat as close as possible to the steering wheel. I tried getting in the car with the seat adjust her way, I barely got in and there was no way I could work the pedals or much less even try to get out.

Quote from: SaltyDog on August 04, 2007, 08:24:48 PM
I didn't think you liked Rangers/B's?

I'm not a fan of them. But the B2000, 2200 and 2600 aren't the same thing. They had nothing to do with the Ranger. I had a 87 B2000 truck as my first car and I wish something was still available like that now.
I mostly don't like Rangers because I find them difficult to work on. I can't look past that when I'm around one.

Maybe in the future you'll be able to get a deer.

They sell a pretty new Ranger here, maybe they will phase that into the American market.

Quote from: Secret Chimp on August 04, 2007, 03:56:00 PM
That truck looks like it'd work better for Australia/NZ or South Africa.

The midsize ute segment is quite robust here:

Toyota Hilux


Nissan Navara


Mitsubishi Triton


Ford Ranger


Mazda BT-50


Holden Rodeo


Mahindra Pik-Up


Ssangyong Actyon Sports

We have the Navara as our Frontier, and I believe the Hilux and Rodeo are mechanically identical to our Tacoma and Chevy Colorado, respectively. How would you say the others compare to those three?

Run, run from the Mahindra and the Ssangyong, unless one likes being laughed at and the doors falling off mid-trip. I hear the Triton is a safe bet, but it's nothing special.

I believe you're right about the Hilux/Tacoma and Rodeo/Colorado, but we get different engines. For the Toyota, as well as the 2.7 litre I4 and the 4.0 V6, we have a turbodiesel 3.0 I4; and for the Rodeo we have a 2.4 I4, turbodiesel 3.0 I4, or 3.6 V6.

I believe the Hilux and Tacoma are not mechanically identical.

I remember reading that the suspension is different

A pickup based on the Edge

Quote from: omicron on August 05, 2007, 08:36:31 PM
Run, run from the Mahindra

Do they also sell the Scorpio there? I just rode in one and I think that despite the fact that the fit and finish is absolutely appalling, the new one's going to sell like hotcakes going solely on the fact that it's a pretty sharp-looking SUV.