Faults:

The interior light does not work.

Replaced radiator.

General Comments:

I bought this truck new. It gets around 24 mpg and around 30 on the highway (unloaded @ 65 mph).

This has been a great little truck. I use it for hauling everything. Mine is the standard white work truck with vinyl seats and rubber floor mat. I use this as my work truck, and for daily transportation.

Only the radiator and clutch have been replaced.

I am still using the original Ford battery!

Manual transmission shifts like the day I bought it.

The little Mazda 2.3 liter is a great engine.

The original tires lasted almost 90,000 miles.

CD player and speakers still sound great after 8 years also.

Air conditioning is still blowing really cold air.

This little truck has seen some hard work and has been heavily loaded quite a few times.

After nearly 120,000 miles, there is not one rattle!

Faults:

At about 10k miles the rear axle came apart. Ford towed the truck and delivered a loaner vehicle at no charge.

The boots on one ball joint has recently been torn, so it will need replacing soon, but affects nothing at this point.

General Comments:

My family bought this truck brand new when the Chevrolet dealer would not sell us an S10. From the time it was new, it has been great. Only problem ever has been with the rear end, and that's been years ago. The check engine light has never once been on.

At almost 90k miles the clutch still feels strong, the brakes stop great. I love the brakes. The air blows very cold and has never been serviced. The Continental tires still have tread left at 90k miles! Though they have dry rotted to the point that they need replacement, but still ride smooth, quiet, and not bad in the rain.

This truck is slightly under-powered, but gets great gas mileage. It has always been a highway truck and has always gotten consistent 28mpg.

I hate Ford cars. Our 04 Taurus gets 21 mpg highway, and doesn't know when to shift. But after this little Ford truck I think our family will continue to buy Ford (trucks at least.)

Faults:

Radiator hoses burst on me because of poor design.

Cruise control had recall because they "Could" catch on fire.

The truck really has no other issues I have experienced.

General Comments:

It's a pretty good truck. It is safe if another car hits you. My truck was hit twice. Not my fault. But I felt safe and wasn't hurt. American baby!

Faults:

Ironically enough, after the warranty ran out, the serpentine belt started to squeal. I had it replaced, and ever since, I have had to replace the damned thing every 6 months or so. Ford tells me it will squeal when worn. Why does the original belt last 5-6 years, then new belts wear in 5-6 months.

My clutch slave cylinder blew at 80,0000 km. What a scam that is. Back, when this great technology was not available, all I had to do, was to replace a clutch cable, which was a cheap and easy fix. Now, it is a major job. How wonderful these auto manufacturers are at creating high-tech garbage.

I am very mechanically inclined, and can tear motors apart, rebuild, etc. The Ford Ranger was my first brand new vehicle. I took it in, according to warranty specifications for the first two years, but decided to do the work myself after a particular incident. I took my truck in for the usual tune-up, and so called 50 point inspection. They (Ford) wrote on the report that the front brakes had 5% pads left, and recommended brake servicing. That was 3 years ago, and I have just changed the front and rear pads, myself. When they wanted me to bring my truck in for brake service, I decided to do the job myself, as brakes are quick and easy to replace. I bought the front and rear pads, then jacked my truck up and removed the wheels. I inspected the pads, and to my surprise, the pads were in pretty good shape. There was no way that they were worn down by 95% as they quoted. So, I never took my truck in for servicing again, and that was over 3 years ago.

By the way, I assumed the brakes would have to be done the next summer, but after 3 years past their quote, I finally put the new pads on, even though the original pads would have lasted another year at the least. So, buyer beware. If you have a good local, honest mechanic, you will save thousands of dollars by having him or her do the warranty tune-ups and inspections, rather than having so-called Ford technicians advise you on unneeded repairs. I am sure that dealers make much more money on parts and service than they could in any other way.

General Comments:

Other than the dishonesty of dealer service departments, I have been happy with my Ranger. I believe that the Ford Ranger is the best of any domestic truck.