After a seven-year hiatus, Ford brought the Ranger nameplate back to the U.S. market. It’s an all-new compact pickup truck that will face off the likes of the Toyota Tacoma and Nissan Frontier.
The Blue Oval’s vehicle comes with a 2.3-liter turbo-four EcoBoost that delivers 270 horsepower and 310 pound-feet (420 Nm) of torque. The engine is mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission, a combo that works well so that drivers won’t feel the need for a V6.
This was Consumer Reports’ remark after buying a 2019 Ranger of their own. The truck starts at $24,300 in XL form, yet they opted for the mid-range, four-wheel drive XLT, which adds a $3,640 premium. Their truck, however, came with a few optional extras, too, including the trailer tow package, dual-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control and SYNC3 infotainment system, which have raised the price to $40,355.
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Granted, this is not a passenger car but a mid-size pickup truck, yet users can still complain about a few things. The interior doesn’t have enough flair, there is some hard plastic trim and the ride could get jumpy on the bumps. Nevertheless, most of these are expected from a vehicle in this segment, which brings us to another interesting remark made by the reviewer: the bar for mid-size trucks is set pretty low these days.
On a more positive note, the driving position is better than the Tacoma’s and the infotainment system is easy to master. That price tag wasn’t easy to swallow, though. The rest of CR’s findings can be viewed on the video below, with more reports due as they start putting on some miles.