Used Ford Ranger or Toyota Tacoma?

[recycled sixtie]

Am looking for a used Ranger or Tacoma. It seems that the Tacoma holds it value better than the Ranger. A 2009 Tacoma extended cab with 125000 miles the seller is asking $16000 us. A 2008 Ford Ranger is $12000 with 60000 miles.

What do you recommend or suggest to be aware of? Rust on the frame of the Tacoma?
I don't want to spend a ton of money but want a reliable truck that is not rusty and is capable of hauling landscaping materials, cement and occasional moving.

Your suggestions are welcome,
Cheers, Guy

[ckelly78z]

Even though I am a diehard Ford fan, I believe the Tacoma is a better truck that will last a much longer time without big mechanical problems. If you can find the Ford cheap enough, it would offset this though.

[unclebilly]

Tacoma.

[Seahawk]

As always, condition is king along with good records. Trim level and drive train (4x4) are also key. For instance, the TRD version of the Tacoma is a real bonus in my mind.

If this is not a DD, either one would work for me depending on what my needs are. If you plan on towing much, number of cyls will come in handy.

For a DD, Tacoma. The miles are very reasonable for its age and, based on reliability numbers, if well cared for will see 200k without issues.

Hard to go wrong with either, frankly and I have owned a lot of Toyota's

[fastfredracing]

Rangers rust here also , frame rails, spring hangers, front suspension spring hangers, look it over carefully .

[Seahawk]

I need to add that people in my area of Maryland, in the mean, take ridiculously good care of their trucks.

I see absolutely spotless Rangers of the age you are looking at all the time...well used but tidy.

I like the look and size.

[sammyg2]

The absolute worst vehicle I ever owned was a furd ranger.
The absolute worst customer service i ever received was at a furd dealership where I came very close to being handcuffed for the only time in my life.
I drive a toyota.
My wife drives a toyota.
My son drives a toyota.
My daughter drives a lexus.

Guess which one I would pick?

[Eric Hahl]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

Rangers rust here also , frame rails, spring hangers, front suspension spring hangers, look it over carefully .

Everything rusts in PA!

[Tidybuoy]

I have a 2010 Ford Ranger XLT. I like the truck simply because I can haul just about anything which I could not do well in my Cayman.

However, it has the worst suspension I have ever seen and rocks around corners very excessively. When I first bought it (about 2 years ago) I changed the shocks and that made no difference. I added a beefier front sway bar and I purchased (not yet installed) new rear leaf springs and a rear sway bar. Hopefully the rear upgrade will improve the ride - I can't imagine it was this way when the truck was new.

That said, I like the simple looks of the Ranger. There is a difference with 4WD vs 2WD as the 4WD uses torsion bars in the front and the 2WD uses coil springs. Other than that, they are basically the same.

[fastfredracing]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

The absolute worst vehicle I ever owned was a furd ranger.
The absolute worst customer service i ever received was at a furd dealership where I came very close to being handcuffed for the only time in my life.
I drive a toyota.
My wife drives a toyota.
My son drives a toyota.
My daughter drives a lexus.

Guess which one I would pick?

I was also going to mention, that back in the day when Rangers, were popular, I made a lot of money off those . . Wheel bearings, clutches, fuel pumps, rust repair, coolant leaks, broken flywheels, ac components, fan relays etc. Rear differentials ,and wheel bearings, springs,
Those and chevrolet s10 , blazer , and trailblazers funded a decade of my life .

[sammyg2]

Fuel pumps on older rangers, nailed it.

In the first year of ownership, one day it made a HUGE smoke screen.
The dealer had it for a week. I had to rent a car to get to work, cost me $$$.
Turns out the rubber intake manifold gasket sucked in allowing oil to get into the intake.
The dealer tried to charge me $800 it, saying it wasn't covered under the warranty. Liars.
Then they said they'd cover it but I had to pay $100 for oil and rags and incidentals. liars.
Later I found out from Ford north America that there was a service bulletin over that, and a replacement upgrade for the defective gasket design should have been installed with no charge and no questions asked and they should have loaned me a vehicle.

Six months later, it was showing no oil pressure.
The dealer said the oil pressure sender was bad and had the truck for three days (more $$$ out of my pocket for rental).
Then they said I owed them $250 and it wasn't covered under the warranty because it only needed to be adjusted, not replaced. Liars. the $12 sender is non-adjustable.

It was in a different dealer's shop two more times under warranty for various things but still had to fight to get them to cover it.
Had the clutch replaced at 30k and that one I had to pay for. I would have done it myself but didn't have a place to do it at the time.
They used to same 4 cylinder clutch in the V6 that year and it was a common failure point.

At around 40k miles, it started bucking and died on the freeway and had it towed to dealer. They replaced the catalytic converters which were plugged and the fuel injectors. Big $$$$ and no warranty. And was in the shop over a week.
It ran OK but not perfect, and it went back in two more times which they charged me for with no improvement.

At around 50k it died again, cats plugged again. Towed to dealer and another rental car.
$2200 to get it out of the shop after two weeks but it still ran funny after.
It turned out it had two fuel pumps and one or both were weak and couldn't keep up with demand under more than half throttle making the engine go lean. The fuel injection was designed in a way that didn't adjust or protect itself so it just ran lean and got hot and cooked the cats.
The dealers never correctly diagnosed that problem, an independent shop figured that one out.
Spent almost as much in repairs and I did purchasing the truck and then traded it in with less than 60k on it and said to heck with ford.

[pete3799]

Tacoma but only after a through rust exam.
Take a ball peen hammer with you and slam the frame good and proper.
Other than rust they're bullet proof.

[Dantilla]

Neighbor was moving across the country, wanted to get rid of his 2000 Ranger.
240,000 miles, he sold it to me for $1000.
I didn't really want it, bought it to do him a favor.
Had some rust, but ran perfectly as long as I had the little beater.
4.0 V6, 5 speed manual tranny.
Drove it like a rally driver every time I climbed the gravel road up to our house- 2nd gear, foot to the floor. Couldn't kill it.

[gregpark]

Originally Posted by recycled sixtie

A 2009 Tacoma extended cab with 125000 miles the seller is asking $16000 us. A 2008 Ford Ranger is $12000 with 60000 miles.

I guess I'm out of touch with used truck values. A 12 year old little 6 cyl. truck with 125k miles? Really? And $12k for the 13 year old ranger too! What's the blue book on these trucks?
Whatever it is the Toyota should be worth 3 x the Ford , its 3 x the vehicle

[Bob Kontak]

Sugarwood's "bulletproof" thread where he surprisingly pissed people off, included input from mentally unhampered folks that said the newer Taco is not the truck it was.

However, we are talking a 12 year old Tacoma. Well before the alleged quality reduction.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

Rangers rust here also , frame rails, spring hangers, front suspension spring hangers, look it over carefully .

I still don't understand why this isn't a huuuge after-market business for anyone with a lift in salt country...

Even the new trucks have surface rust? wtf.
I finally got rid of a perfectly usable 95' legacy. Jack went up. Car stayed on the ground.

Here is the blueprint:
1). Massive legal waiver about slowing down rust but not preventing future, rust can be covered and continue, some areas may not be covered due to location etc, damage by road debris may allow penetration points, continued inspection and treatment required, customer responsible for follow-up etc.. best effort only ie NO FUTURE SUING ALLOWED.

2). Video everything closely on lift of all existing damage. Video procedure.

3). Wash and dry. Maybe soda blast. Cover exhaust and engine. Isolate brakes sensors using templates.

4). Ospho or chemically treat existing visible rust areas with small sprayer. Dry.

5). Undercoat with Eastwood product and large sprayer.
Wrap that up over rails and especially around wheel wells.
Chassis paint with small sprayer for moving parts.

6). Spray FluidFilm inside door panels, through frame rails, and other underside points not previously covered.

7). The entire underside should be salt-proofed and good for another 5-10 years of use hopefully.

[Bugsinrugs]

Toyota. 415000 on my Tacoma with everything still working. Original alternator, power steering pump, air con compressor. Still gets 20 mpg.

[onewhippedpuppy]

For this comparison, Tacoma. I’m not a big fan of the newer ones but the older ones are damn good trucks. The Ranger isn’t bad but in comparison it will feel cheap and crude. Honestly I’d look at a Nissan Frontier before a Ranger, they are relatively comparable to the Taco for less money. There’s also the Honda Ridgeline if you’d like more car-like features, better MPG, and a better driving experience.

[LakeCleElum]

About 8 years ago, I shopped long and hard for a used Tacoma......Beaters and high mileage example were 10-12K............I looked at Ford Rangers and they sold for 3-4K less than that.

Then, I found the Mazda was the same as the Ranger for another 2K less than the Ranger.....Had an '04 Mazda 4.0 5 speed for Several years and it was flawless......

Finally, I'm 4 years into a '15 Tundra and may keep it forever....

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by LakeCleElum

About 8 years ago, I shopped long and hard for a used Tacoma......
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