How Many Miles is Too Much?

Congrats! They are great trucks, the perfect blend IMO of modern enough to be reliable and efficient (and comfortable enough to be a DD) but still simple and old school enough to where you can fix them when they do break

 

Congrats !

 

This is the exact reason I am replacing/rebuilding 85% of the frame under the 1997 I was given. It has 47k miles and will last a LONG, LONG time. I have had Rangers and know of many S10's that are long gone or would not touch that have around 100k miles of the same age. They just do not last.....and I'm a Ford guy. My two Rangers are 1985 and 1990. The 90 is a good runner with the 2.3L/5spd but only has 106k on it and is a rarity among NE US trucks....minimal rust.

 

I can relate... I've had a couple Rangers... the 4.0 and the 2.3 and they weren't near as put together as my Taco is.

 

Mine were all 2.3, 2.8 and 2.9 trucks. The 2.8/2.9 were noisy motors...always rattled. I did have a 2.0L/4spd and still own the chassis. But it is now pulled around by a 387W stroker. That's my 1985 that started life as a 1984 until rust and a tree ended the cab. The Tacoma 2.7L will run over my current 1990 2.3L Ranger. Gearing has a lot to do with that though. Ford never put good gears in those trucks.

 

For all Ford cars, trucks minivans and SUVs I have driven in USA I admire Ford for ergonomic, beauty and functionality. But quality and reliability just sucks. Cheap plastic, soft metal, rotting rubber, terrible assembly quality. And some technical solutions just make me say "what the hell they were thinking?". If only Ford vehicles were made by Toyota, that would be perfect. But I guess you can't have all.

On the other hand Ford in Europe is different story. They are classified as the most reliable cars here - now after Mercedes, Audi and BMW went for cheap production, Ford is much better car for the money then any French, Italian or German production. Unfortunately the only pickup available here is Ranger made in Taiwan. The international Ranger is still way better than the USA version but it is not Toyota yet.