Ok, here we go again with another Ranger with problems. From a 1999 to a 2002, nothing has changed with Ford's quality control. Has anyone seen that their FX4 is now recalled due to the rear differential housing exploding and causing possible seizure and loss of vehicle control. The recall states, "The rear axle differential case could fracture under a high torque event such as when customers accelerate rapidly from a stop or when a spinning tire suddenly gains traction." Ok, so does it sound like Ford did any testing on this issue. How many young kids take dads truck out and beat on it a little? I remember when I was a kid. Heavy acceleration from a stop? Anyone ever need to get ahead of the car beside them to make the next light?
The bottom line is that I have owned 2 Rangers and have nothing but problems, all due to Ford not testing these trucks. My first truck a 1999 XLT 4.0L, 4 door supercab had the engine go at 1000mi., 2X transmissions, 4X driveshafts, rear axle seals, fuel pump, power steering pump, 4X4 hubs all happening within the first 20,000 miles of ownership. This truck is driven 60 mi./day all highway at 60miles/hour. Why would it fall apart? Ford bought this truck back and charged me $2000 to get into the FX4 that they claimed was a better truck. Well during the first snow storm in Colorado, the 4X4 system would not engage. This was at 800 miles in a truck that cost $24,000. Now the transfer case is leaking and the truck vibrates excessively above 75 miles/hour. Now with the recall and having the entire rear axle being replaced. How many people would put up with this type of vehicle? I guess $20,000+ isn't enough money to get a good truck these days. I know lots of you out there have had no problems, but how many own 1999-2002 Rangers and think that you truck falling apart is normal? Not many I would hope.
Has anyone had these same problems?
Does anyone want to find out what legal actions can be placed upon Ford for obviously not testing their trucks and allowing us to be the lab rats! From one lemon to another and a loss of cold hard cash, people this is what is happening with the new Ford Rangers. Please comment, good, bad or the ugly, I will take all comments with respect, but enough is enough.

 

We might be building those rear ends where I work but it wouldn't be in my area! I'll ask around tomorrow at work but I think that I heard something about torque flexing a housing causing it to lock up.

The more they outsource, the more trouble we have. This ISO 9001 or whatever number they're up to doesn't mean squat!!

 

Okay, please don't take this the wrong way but if you are having this much bad luck with Rangers, why not get an F150 or something? And if having this much trouble with all Fords, why not get something else? Don't get me wrong, I have a '96 Ranger and I love it. Granted, I like many of us would expect a $20,000+ truck to come out having everything we want on it and function right 110% of the time and never get recalled, but guess what? This is the real world, welcome to it. Thats like asking why doesn't Ford put on a true cold air intake, headers, performance exhaust, a decent cam setup, MSD ignition, bullet proof windows and metal and something that'll give up the power of a tank, speed of a race car, gas milage of a little touring motorcycle? They have the money to do it, and the time to do it, but it jacks up the end cost too. Take a 2002 Ranger, base model, reg cab, 2.3L twin cam. Can probably get it for $10,000 out the door. Okay, now lets go ahead and put a bunch of goodies in there so it performs really well yet still has good gasmileage. Would you want to pay $50,000+ for this small truck that is going to be like a dream but leaves you very uncomfortable? I'm not disagreeing with the fact that recalled items and things having to be fixed is irritating, and after warranty, expensive. But what I am trying to say is that most of us can afford making payments on a $15,000 truck and build it up as time goes by where if we went the other way, its like buying two houses at the sametime and its bad enough in some cases we'll die before the house is paid for. Its nice to be able to say "I own my truck." And believe me, you're not the only one having problems with their trucks. We all do. Some worse than others and here I've learned ways to easily and cheaply fix most problems. We've all been through Ford's song and dance on things and we're all sick of it too. But we also seem to be happy with our trucks that seem to take most of what we through at them and still keep asking for more or else why would we bother buying more than the first piece of junk, right? Not trying to be harsh or anything, and I do respect your opinion and I agree that it would be cool that they finally fixed the problems, but it takes time and money. Heck, '93-97, wipers and door chimes and dome lights. Still a problem? I really don't know if its as bad as it was but seems to be getting better from what I hear. Anyways, best of luck to you and I hope your purchase wasn't the waste you seem to think it is at this point.

James

 

 

Such a shame for such problems. I hate to say the bottom line is something called mass production and cost restraints. Don't get me wrong, we would all like to buy that perfect automobile that is bullet proof amongst everything else. I purchased a 2001 edge with all the goodies, and love it. It has been trouble free, gets respectable mileage for what it is, and most importantly, it is made in the usa. I treat my ride with respect, and I don't expect it to let me down. As for recalls, praise the lord for them. Don't forget that once upon a time we would never had heard about those deficiencies. You know, even those great Toyoto's have problems, and i'm not just talking about the rust! I wander if you could get one of those foreign cars replaced under the lemon law, or tade assist programs, and don't tell me they don't have problems. Take a deep breath and appreciate the warranty on you're vehicle.

 

andyroett:

I'd like to correct one thing that you posted! It's "not" made in the USA, it's assembled in the USA. Ford like others I'd guess imports parts from all over: China, France and Germany. Parts from those three countries go into your transmission aned drivetrain of your Edge. I work at the Visteon(Ford) plant that assembles the above. I've seen boxes with parts from countries that I've never heard of!

 

THis recall only applies to FX4's with a manual tranny. All others are OK.

 

I recently purchased a 2002 Ranger FX4 with the manual transmission and transfer case. The dealership wouldn't let me drive it off the lot until the rearend was swapped out. Just a safety precaution. I agree that if you are having problems with a certain vehicle type or make, try something else. Between my boyfriend and I, we have 6 vehicles, five of them are trucks, and the are all FORDs. We wouldn't buy anything else. Hopefully my new Ranger will not have the problems that your other Ranger did. If it does, then I'll just deal with it or trade it in. Problems such as the ones you mentioned are all covered under the 3 year, 36000 mile bumper to bumper warranty. There is also an additional warranty available, bumping the warranty up to 6 years and 75000 miles. I know is it a pain to have to bring your vehicle back to the dealership constantly. I've already found a flaw with my new truck...I am missing a trim fastener on the passenger side. Not a big deal, but it is something that should have been taken care of prior to me driving the truck of the dealer's lot. I picked the truck up at night, so I didn't notice the flaw until the next day. Like I said, it's not a big deal. I sure hope you have better luck with your new Ranger than you had with your old one.

Angie