Long-term reliability

[surfstar]

The only reason that expensive "work" trucks are a thing, is because of the tax benefits. We taxpayers are subsidizing all these overpriced "fleet" vehicles for business owners to drive around in, sucking down gas, instead of a cheaper, higher mpg base model truck (if a truck is actually needed for their line of work).

As a taxpayer, you're welcome.

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[BWXT]

Much appreciate all the input and responses. Thanks! FYI, because some have asked, we do residential appliance repair. We aren’t your typical company though. I was on the road 13 hours yesterday, 460 miles, and a fair amount was on dirt roads in the back woods of VT. We operate like that year-round, and encountering blizzards, downed trees, goat paths, etc. is not an uncommon occurrence. We spend a lot of time in our trucks and don’t want to spend it in a stripped tin can that lacks capability. The RR isn’t a $100k luxury vehicle, it’s a $55k pickup which is cheaper than most 1/2 tons being sold.
Anyway, I wasn’t looking for suggestions on which truck to buy, just the relative reliability/common problems specific to the Ranger Raptor. Thanks again for all the responses!

 

[emjay24l]

@BWXT
As a small business owner I understand the need to balance appearance with economy. I think a RR is a good balance between the two for the reasons you mentioned.

One major reason that I think a Ranger is a good choice is that its drive trains, and other components, have been vetted over long timeframes. The 3.0L V6 and transmission in the Raptor have been around for nearly a decade and have been refined over this time period.

Also, Ford has been making high performance off road pickup trucks for a very long time and they are very good at engineering these types of vehicles. Don't let capability or reliability be a reason you don't buy a RR. If you test drive one and find it is the best of your available options then buy one.

 

[surfstar]

An XLT FX4 is more than enough of a truck and would save the business purchase costs and ongoing fuel costs (and increased tire costs). If the business is about making money, why would they overspend on a line-item like this?

Luckily the base 4x2 Ranger is heavy enough to qualify for the 6000 lb GVWR tax write off. So any Ranger would get the tax benefit.

The money saved vs a RR could fully outfit the trucks with caps/shells, drawer systems, etc, etc that seem much more appropriate for a work truck than a vehicle designed for high-speed Baja style offroading.

 

[HighDesertRanger]

Much appreciate all the input and responses. Thanks! FYI, because some have asked, we do residential appliance repair. We aren’t your typical company though. I was on the road 13 hours yesterday, 460 miles, and a fair amount was on dirt roads in the back woods of VT. We operate like that year-round, and encountering blizzards, downed trees, goat paths, etc. is not an uncommon occurrence. We spend a lot of time in our trucks and don’t want to spend it in a stripped tin can that lacks capability. The RR isn’t a $100k luxury vehicle, it’s a $55k pickup which is cheaper than most 1/2 tons being sold.
Anyway, I wasn’t looking for suggestions on which truck to buy, just the relative reliability/common problems specific to the Ranger Raptor. Thanks again for all the responses!

For your use case the Ranger Raptor sounds like the perfect vehicle. And it's a very rugged platform. You're going to love it!

 

[superj]

S10. your welcome.

I dont think they were called s10s though. Maybe it was colorado and I just am not remembering seeing the door badge. They were the after the s10 and I think one had a 5 cylinder engine.

Either way, they were Chevy trucks and worked fine. Dad still has one at the house that he uses when ever the county has a plumbing issue and needs help

 

[superj]

Much appreciate all the input and responses. Thanks! FYI, because some have asked, we do residential appliance repair. We aren’t your typical company though. I was on the road 13 hours yesterday, 460 miles, and a fair amount was on dirt roads in the back woods of VT. We operate like that year-round, and encountering blizzards, downed trees, goat paths, etc. is not an uncommon occurrence. We spend a lot of time in our trucks and don’t want to spend it in a stripped tin can that lacks capability. The RR isn’t a $100k luxury vehicle, it’s a $55k pickup which is cheaper than most 1/2 tons being sold.
Anyway, I wasn’t looking for suggestions on which truck to buy, just the relative reliability/common problems specific to the Ranger Raptor. Thanks again for all the responses!

An old high school friend does that here in texas. You are right, long times in the driver seat.

 

[HighDesertRanger]

I dont think they were called s10s though. Maybe it was colorado and I just am not remembering seeing the door badge. They were the after the s10 and I think one had a 5 cylinder engine.

Either way, they were Chevy trucks and worked fine. Dad still has one at the house that he uses when ever the county has a plumbing issue and needs help

That sounds like a Colorado then. Just a previous generation. Chevy hasn't had the 5cyl in a minute.

 

[BWXT]

I dont think they were called s10s though. Maybe it was colorado and I just am not remembering seeing the door badge. They were the after the s10 and I think one had a 5 cylinder engine.

Either way, they were Chevy trucks and worked fine. Dad still has one at the house that he uses when ever the county has a plumbing issue and needs help

That was the 1st gen Colorado/Canyon. They are currently on the 3rd gen.

 

[Lion77]

I think that if the 3.0L ends up in the Ranger it will be an exact copy of what is in the F-150 just like the 2.7L has been.

I agree, but there will be two variants of the 3.0L, tuned and setup differently just like the 5.0L in the F-150 vs. the Mustang GT. Same block but different pistons, rods, induction etc. optimized for the application.

 

[Lion77]

Much appreciate all the input and responses. Thanks! FYI, because some have asked, we do residential appliance repair. We aren’t your typical company though. I was on the road 13 hours yesterday, 460 miles, and a fair amount was on dirt roads in the back woods of VT. We operate like that year-round, and encountering blizzards, downed trees, goat paths, etc. is not an uncommon occurrence. We spend a lot of time in our trucks and don’t want to spend it in a stripped tin can that lacks capability. The RR isn’t a $100k luxury vehicle, it’s a $55k pickup which is cheaper than most 1/2 tons being sold.
Anyway, I wasn’t looking for suggestions on which truck to buy, just the relative reliability/common problems specific to the Ranger Raptor. Thanks again for all the responses!

If you drive on a lot of rough roads (like some of the logging roads up in Canada that Car and Driver tested their RR on over 10k miles), the Fox Live valve and 33" KO3s are going to be money! Also the RR is more capable offroad than an F-150 Tremor if you dont need the size of the F-150 (that was my second choice to the RR at this price point).

Better approach, breakover, departure angles, 1" more ground clearance too. RR is a very well rounded truck if you dont need the towing capability or cargo capacity of a full size, BUT, if you can swing a full size, the F'-150 Tremor would be even nicer to spend long hours in.

RR is a nice truck, but none of the mid size trucks are as luxurious as the modern 1/2 ton trucks.

From a driving dynamics standpoint the RR is untouchable and will out handle an F-150 Raptor. Its the only offroader with a watts link and the chassis tuning is very rally car like (which makes sense since the Ford Aussie team developed it for that type of use).

To me thats more practical than a giant Baja truck meant for massive wide open spaces in a desert I dont live within a 1,000 miles of like the F-150 Raptor, so the Tremor is like an inbetween of FX4 and a Raptor at a similar price point to the RR, making it a compelling work / luxury / road trip / trail truck. Very capable even if not as much as the RR.

At least around me though, the Rally nature of the RR fits a lot better with the smaller, narrower twisty back roads with deep ruts, potholes, bumps etc. I also like to drive it like a performance vehicle so its a better fit for me there too than the F-150 tremor. Also a lot of gravel and dirt roads, including some logging roads in Amish country lol. The theres a lot of dirt trials around here for Jeeps / Tacos / 4Runners, so the RR fits on most of those too, although it is as wide as a F-150 (non raptor), but shorter so still more maneuverable.

Also the F-150 Tremor still lacks 4 Auto which is basically AWD for trucks. It works really well in rain / snow without needing to risk transfer case binding in 4H if your constantly going between high traction and low traction surfaces. I use it often in heavy rain and snow in the winter and would miss that if I had gone with the F-150 Tremor...but for long trips and hauling stuff, you cant beat Fords modern classic 1/2 ton in its "trail truck" trim level.

If I could only have two cars instead of three (got two Mazdas for daily duty and RR for a do it all family road tripper / surrogate hot rod truck / quasi utility truck), I would get the Tremor over the RR for sheer practicality and luxury + solid general purpose offroading.

But I would miss the superior driving dynamics of the RR and off road capability to tackle harder terrain than what the Tremor can handle. Its a great truck and still very good for long trips even if not quite as luxurious as the F-150.

 

[emjay24l]

I agree, but there will be two variants of the 3.0L, tuned and setup differently just like the 5.0L in the F-150 vs. the Mustang GT. Same block but different pistons, rods, induction etc. optimized for the application.

I was referring to the engine only and not the tune and other external items. Basically the engines used for general use and not specialty engines. It the Ranger, the 3.0L won't break a sweat in Lariat and lower trim levels.

 

[Lion77]

S10 Picks on Autotrader

isnt that what yall talking about? They had the Vortex V6 that was a stout little engine back in the day.

Vortex V6

All the sites refer to them as S10s, but maybe that was the chassis code kinda like S550 and S650 are mustang chassis generations or the Ranger T6. Thats probably why I recall it as the S10.

Also the 90s Blazer and Jimmy were based on that chassis.

 

[BWXT]

If you drive on a lot of rough roads (like some of the logging roads up in Canada that Car and Driver tested their RR on over 10k miles), the Fox Live valve and 33" KO3s are going to be money! Also the RR is more capable offroad than an F-150 Tremor if you dont need the size of the F-150 (that was my second choice to the RR at this price point).

Better approach, breakover, departure angles, 1" more ground clearance too. RR is a very well rounded truck if you dont need the towing capability or cargo capacity of a full size, BUT, if you can swing a full size, the F'-150 Tremor would be even nicer to spend long hours in.

RR is a nice truck, but none of the mid size trucks are as luxurious as the modern 1/2 ton trucks.

From a driving dynamics standpoint the RR is untouchable and will out handle an F-150 Raptor. Its the only offroader with a watts link and the chassis tuning is very rally car like (which makes sense since the Ford Aussie team developed it for that type of use).

To me thats more practical than a giant Baja truck meant for massive wide open spaces in a desert I dont live within a 1,000 miles of like the F-150 Raptor, so the Tremor is like an inbetween of FX4 and a Raptor at a similar price point to the RR, making it a compelling work / luxury / road trip / trail truck. Very capable even if not as much as the RR.

At least around me though, the Rally nature of the RR fits a lot better with the smaller, narrower twisty back roads with deep ruts, potholes, bumps etc. I also like to drive it like a performance vehicle so its a better fit for me there too than the F-150 tremor. Also a lot of gravel and dirt roads, including some logging roads in Amish country lol. The theres a lot of dirt trials around here for Jeeps / Tacos / 4Runners, so the RR fits on most of those too, although it is as wide as a F-150 (non raptor), but shorter so still more maneuverable.

Also the F-150 Tremor still lacks 4 Auto which is basically AWD for trucks. It works really well in rain / snow without needing to risk transfer case binding in 4H if your constantly going between high traction and low traction surfaces. I use it often in heavy rain and snow in the winter and would miss that if I had gone with the F-150 Tremor...but for long trips and hauling stuff, you cant beat Fords modern classic 1/2 ton in its "trail truck" trim level.

If I could only have two cars instead of three (got two Mazdas for daily duty and RR for a do it all family road tripper / surrogate hot rod truck / quasi utility truck), I would get the Tremor over the RR for sheer practicality and luxury + solid general purpose offroading.

But I would miss the superior driving dynamics of the RR and off road capability to tackle harder terrain than what the Tremor can handle. Its a great truck and still very good for long trips even if not quite as luxurious as the F-150.

Yeah, I drove full-size trucks for 10 years and I’m done with that. Mid-size is quicker, easier, handles better, fits in tighter spots, better offroad, etc. And yes, I wouldn’t even consider a truck without 4-auto/AWD at this point. I live and operate in the northeast and use 4-auto A LOT! Even in heavy rain or blasting down wet backroads, it is a game changer.

 

[Lion77]

Then I think the RR is your truck, go test drive one and youll quickly get why its the top pick in almost every comparrison video between the ZR2 / AT4, Gladiator Mojave and TRD Pro.

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