29th Mar 2005, 08:53

I have an 04 ford ranger with the 2.3 engine. it clearly states in the owners manuel not to be alarmed by a knocking sound unless it gets worse. A lot of Ford 4 bangers will have a knock to them. I have owned 3 and most have had over 100000 miles on them.

9th Apr 2005, 00:15

I have a 2004 Ranger XLT with the 4.0L V6 (7,500 miles). This is my third straight Ranger (previously I have an 87 2.3L, and a 95 3.0, both XLT extended cab). The pinging characteristic is common to Rangers who get a lot of city driving. I agree that the 87 octane fuel yields the best result in mileage and power, and I've found the best way to reduce the pinging effect is to blow the carbon out of the system with good runs at 3,000+ RPM from time to time (a nice hard acceleration from a stop light will handle this). Obviously, use a respectable gasoline and be consistent with the brand.

With respect to the reduced field of vision, I admit this is true in the 2004, but the high back bucket seats are much more comfortable than previous years, and are worth it. Solution to blindspots: two-inch convex mirrors on the lower outside corners of the rear-view mirrors. Costs about $2.50 for the pair at Autozone.

Finally, concerning the Ranger with low highway mileage, this isn't right. My 4.0L Ranger gets around 22 MPG on the highway, more if I drop the tailgate to lower the wind resistance. It doesn't miss or do anything weird while accelerating, so the line about the torque converter is BS, imho.

Just my two cents...

25th Sep 2005, 18:35

My 2004 ranger XLT reg cab is the best truck I've ever had 32.5 mpg my last tank (The 2.3 runs like a dream.) On 87 reg gas. Only took 42 years for me to find the truck I love and I would kill anyone if they tried to take it away from me.

3rd Jan 2006, 01:06

I own a 2004 Ranger XLT FX4, and it is my dream truck. I've owned many other vehicles; cars, 2WD trucks, and 4x4 trucks, but this one is the absolute best! I've had no problems with it (@ 32,000 miles), and I see nothing that points toward future problems. Kudos to Ford Motor Company for bringing back a lapsed devotee!

Joe in Phila., PA.

3rd Jan 2006, 11:52

Wait till you get in an accident with those higher seats. AS you whipwash your head back and forth you'll appreciate that ford has higher headrests so your head hits something soft and supportive. Not the rear glass which might cause a little more than an owie.

18th Jan 2006, 23:17

Got a 1987 Ford Ranger XLT.

Major problems I have had has been windshield, it was cracked along the bottom, and now its all over the place, but it may have been cause of the rearview mirror or someone hit it with a ball or something, not sure. The cracks along the bottom seem to be common with ford trucks..

Got a whooshing sound when I accelerate, any ideas? Injector or what? got the O2 sensor replaced, but not sure what it did.

I went from having an okay MPG around 12.5 to much lower of late, maybe cause of the cold and all, I do plug it in, but sometimes I do not and the MPG goes to crap when I do that..

Went from a 3/4 tank to 1/4 a tank in 12 miles, not sure what is up, maybe got a gas line leak that only seems to come on when it is cold or.. Also have dual tanks, I do not use the back tank any more cause of gas going away, but..

Any ideas, please I need some help on this, cannot afford the loss of fuel, and winter here is -30F or so, and I sometimes need to leave my truck running to keep it warm, I delivery pizzas (not a good vehicle to do that in, but I get creative).

Abrigon@gmail.com.

Plan to if I can, take it to a buddy to see, cannot afford to get much fixed.. The O2 sensor was cause of I'm standards, so not sure, may have been a faulty one or..

I do love my truck, like having 4wd even if it is not working right at this time.. Maybe the cold. But it starts at -30F and the heater works great, a lot better than my Chevy car I had before, and hated my old VW when it came to heat..

Mike

North Pole.

30th Jan 2006, 21:07

I drive a 1999 Ford Ranger XLT 4x4 SuperCab with a tailgate cover and with 94,000 Miles. I calculated 12.3 city miles on my last fill up with Regular Gasoline. Does anyone know how to boost my city mileage.

Thanks,

Michael.

18th Feb 2006, 10:00

I own and drive a 93 Ranger XLT. Has covered 120,000 miles, with no problems. Change the oil and filters at the right service gaps and it`ll run forever.

18th Feb 2006, 12:50

The guy with the 1987 ford ranger...

Just replace the windshield, its not the fault of the truck. Whoosing sound? Coming from where? Or maybe its air coming in through the windshield you can't seem to fix.

Bad mpg? Tune up.

Gas tank? Broken or rusted fuel lines. I'd check the brake lines as well.

Well, really, there isn't much you can do about your truck seeing as you have no money to maintain it and its falling apart. The only way to keep it in good condition would be to spend some money and get it fixed.

The lack of a 4wd system is probably due to lack of maintainace...

21st Feb 2006, 10:30

I bought my 2004 FX4 with 12k on it, it now has 22k, I've had no problems what so ever. I love this truck, I added a K&N filter and a Tornado induction piece, along with a full synthetic oil night and day difference. I get around 22mpg on the highway and 17 in the city. I don't know if I agree with the comment that using 87 octane is better than 89, but it all comes down to opinion I prefer 89 myself. This truck has probably one of the best 4x4 systems out there, I can't even feel it switching into 4 hi. I've taken it through some horse paths with ease. I traded a V8 cougar for this and I think the 4.0 with the 5 speed auto trans is just as powerful. I hope to drive it until the wheels fall off! lol.