TRD Pro vs Ranger Raptor

I’ve been saying this for years. If one does the actual math 17 or 22 MPGs is really not a big difference money wise. People spend way more on dumb shit like Starbucks coffee or eating out all the time.

 

Exactly. As an Engineer, I hate when people don't think about things logically and/or use math when comparing things like this. Yes, on the surface it sounds like a big difference. But as you say, it's really not. Props for making the point.

 

At 12,000 miles a year, $4/gal.
17 mpg is $2823
22 mpg is $2181
Difference of $642 a year. Over 10 years that's $6420 15 years $9630. That's a lot of cash.
I'm an engineer also, but to me that is a big difference worth looking at.
Take that $642 and put it into SPDR every year. In 15 years you would have a good down payment on a new truck.
Deduct 20% if using high test in the Raptor which I believe it requires.

 

Here is an interesting video at an Idaho Ford dealership. The Ranger Raptor (with markup) is 5:15 in the video and near the end of the video Bronco Raptors with discounts listed on the windows. I like these types of videos because I can get a feel of what inventory and pricing is like.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsTzOeu3eSM&t=373s

 

Good point. So deduct about 20% in the difference for high test.

 

Good luck putting more than a beer cooler and a couple of lawn chairs in the back of a Gladiator.

And if you want something that becomes a money pit after the warranty expires, then by all means get a Jeep. Or a Mini Cooper. Or any vehicle made in Italy.

 

Its not alot of cash when you're talking about $65k+ vehicles. Now thats alot of cash.

 

I don’t have much interest, just curious as it is taking some share of the midsized truck market, however small that may be.. so it seems somewhat relevant I guess

 

Needs to be a Pro color

 

Very interesting video, thanks for sharing. I had never looked at the Ranger Raptor until I came across this thread, that’s a nice looking truck inside and out but far too expensive.

On the Gladiator topic…I love the interiors of those and the functionality of a Jeep with a bed. They are perfect for my use case (and I’m sure a lot of others here) but I used to own a Ram 1500 and I will never own another Dodge/Ram/Stelanits whatever-they-are now vehicle.

 

For someone who can just about afford that, yes it is. While Warren Buffet still drives 2014 Cadillac XTS.

 

Ranger Raptor is a bargain compared to a TRD Pro

 

I 100% agree. If i was in the market for a Pro, I would likely buy the Raptor instead given the prices and what you get in each.

 

Even though this may be a stupid opinion, the lack of ventilated seats in the Raptor was pretty much a deal breaker for me.

I think it's definitely the more capable truck given the V6 and dual lockers, but I noticed insurance was about double + premium gas required. So not even factoring potential unknown maintenance, while the Raptor may seem like a bargain initially, I firmly believe the cost of ownership will be more than the Taco after a few years. At 12K miles per year, you're looking at an extra $1,500 annually in fuel alone given premium and the MPG difference.

Plus less towing and payload, if you actually plan on doing truck stuff. Just my 2 cents.

 

you can keep your Fords....jmho...well I would take a GT of course

 

No ventilated seats is a deal breaker? If it's an option you want, and once a vehicle hits a certain pricing threshold where you the customer believe you should get X option for X price I hear you.

I'd probably choose the Tacoma over the Ranger, Ford makes it easy by limiting the Ranger to 4 door short beds.

 

That's exactly my take. It's ridiculous that a 60K truck wouldn't have a feature that's even available as an option. I pretty much run ventilated seats 24/7 in the summertime. To each their own I guess - but I've learned that just because something is better on paper doesn't always mean it's the right fit for everyone.

Only thing that I wish the Taco had was power folding mirrors. Not that it's a super critical feature, but a nice one to have for people (like myself) that park outside in populated areas. Just a nice visual check that your truck is locked. But I guess it's not a huge deal anymore as the app will pretty much alert you if you leave your truck unlocked.

It's the same thing with front lockers. People complain that Toyota has never offered a factory front locker, when 99.9% of people will never use (or need to use it).

 

Ford's front torsion diffs like to explode for what ever reason.

 

It actually sells pretty well considering how outrageously overpriced they are. A base Sport S can be the price or a Raptor Ranger. It outsold the Ranger in 2022 and 2023 somehow.

I have both. Granted my Tacoma Pro is a 3rd gen. Not sure what the bed comment means, they have similar payload, Gladiator is a bit higher, but not much.

I have 0 intentions of keeping it past the 5-year engine/transmission warranty so it becoming a money pit is irrelevant for me. I do however find myself driving it a lot more than the Tacoma as it's just more fun overall, way bigger inside, has a much more drivable engine and transmission compared to 3rd gen.

One is a lease one is owned though for obvious reasons.

 

Buying wife a Bronco so I checked out a ranger raptor this weekend. Was waiting on allocation for a Trail hunter. Not anymore. The ranger is just a better truck. Sheldon Brown needs to spend a week riding in the back seats of one of these iforce turds as punishment. I don't worry about resale since I drive my cars until they turn to dust. Current turdgen though has not aged well considering how low the miles are. Coolant seep, timing chain leak and I just replaced the evap core and heater core. That was fun. The timing chain cover seep should help keep things rust proof though. I have yet to see a quote for under $3500 even at local independents so just monitoring and wiping down now and then.