1991 Ford Ranger XLT from North America - Comments

One week after purchasing the truck the transmission blew.

Heater core was cracked and had to be fixed.

Tire magically flew off, shredded the brake drum backing plate.

This car is an all around clunker. The 3.0 is slightly more powerful than the 2.3, but still more seems to go wrong with the 3.0 than with any other engine.

The cabin and interior are comfortable and cozy, but the performance and reliability are horrible.

Keep in mind you bought it with 100,000 miles on it, and probably don't know what the previous owner did to it. I've had the same truck new since 1991, and got 245,000 miles on it before it overheated due to rusted out freeze plugs, which is just because it's old.

All your problems sound like they come from a lack of service. My 1991 3.0 liter Ranger has 450,000 miles and it's still on the original clutch and has never had an engine rebuild and I do all fluids every 3000 miles.

I've never had any trouble with any of my 4 Rangers, and my family has 2 companies that use them as company vehicles (all are base XL's with 4-cylinder engines). They easily go 300,000 miles or more with just routine maintenance. I've also driven Dodge, and it was also reliable, but the build quality was not as good as Ford's.

Isn't it funny. The Guys that have had their truck form new of almost new and have taken care of the vehicle seem to have so much less problems. Hmm, I wonder if there is something to this!!

I'd have to agree that proper servicing DOES extend the useful life of ANY vehicle. I always switch to synthetic oil and K&N air filters as soon as my new trucks have 5,000 miles on them, and make sure that the oil is always changed regularly. Actually, that's really all there is to do on a Ranger with the exception of changing the timing belt at about 100,000 miles and checking the brake fluid, power steering fluid, and coolant at about 50,000 to 80,000 miles. I generally do brake jobs on mine at around 100,000 miles whether the pads are worn down or not. I went 120,000 without doing a brake job on my Dodge, but that was pushing it a little as the wear sensors were beginning to buzz.

It seems that the weakest link of any ranger is its transmission. Auto or manual. If you have the manual you have to worry about the slave cylinder and if you have the A4LD auto they have the reputation of being weak. Other than that they are good little trucks.