I would take a guess those around then will be flying around like George Jetson. That is, unless earth has been taken over by Aliens and humans are now living on Mars or another planet out there in space. I know what you mean though. Me being me couldn't resist a little smart comment, sorry.
Now. Yes, the 2014 (Ford ) Ranger was/is a good machine. Back in those dark ages it was one of the best of its breed. I looked and test drove one when I was researching back in 2014 and liked it, a lot BUT the Colorado won on the day with an offer I couldn't refuse. I still love my Collie. The Rangers weights and measures at the time made life easy to tow an aluminum tent around this great country. Just keep in mind at 2014 vintage they are 11 years old and showing some signs of travelling around. IMO, tow something about 300kg lighter that what they say a 2014 ranger can tow. Even today's models more than likely don't like the weights the stats book says.
Keep Safe on the roads and out there.
__________________
Live Life On Your Terms
DOUGChief One Feather (Losing feathers with age)
TUG.......2014 Holden LT Colorado Twin Cab Ute with Canopy
DEN....... 2014 "Chief" Arrow CV (with some changes)
Dougwe! I take exception to that. I have a 2008 Ford Transit Van and a 2007 Ford Falcon. Both of which are still going strong and haven't cost me money other than for maintenance items.
Can anyone tell me how to get the pictures to come up. Doug, there were a few in your post e.g. "(Ford "photo"biggrin)" I wanted to put up a smile but can't.
Well up until recently I had a 2014/15 Ranger Wildtrak that towed my 3 tonne van across the continent and back 7 times including a complete lap.
I had very little trouble with it in all the miles I did with it, in fact the repairs I did in nearly 10 years of use that were a failure of the car was one split upper turbo hose, one split CV joint boot and one replacement blend door actuator on the air-conditioning. I had such a good run out of it I recently traded it on a new V6 Wildtrak.
Like all odels these days, some have a great run out of them and others have a very average experience.
There are some things to note though on a Ranger of that age.
They do need religious servicing and regular fuel filter changes. If there is no evidence of a strong service life, walk away.
Do not buy one that has any more than 150,000 ks on it.
After that there are a few things that can and do go wrong with them.
The first and very important is the EGR cooler.
These rot through and can cause catastrophic engine failure.
A change to a new cooler is recommended on a vehicle of that age purely for safety sake. Far cheaper than an engine.
The variable vane oil pump can give trouble and also cause the vehicle to have a strict oil change time frame.
You have 10 minutes to change the oil and filter and get the new oil back in the engine. All quite possible to do but you need to understand it.
I never had problems with mine but there are aftermarket gear drive pumps available if you want to proof your engine.
The 6 speed transmission is quite strong and I found it good but if you are towing, service it every 60,000ks max.
Again there are after market parts to improve transmission performance such as deeper sump pans, heavy duty valve bodies and better torque converters.
All in all though, my Ranger was basically stock just with a canopy, bullbar and spotlights as the only mods and it went into some amazing places.
Quite a capable 4WD in stock form.
I hope the above will help you with your decision.
I have tried to be as fair as I can with my assessment of the vehicle.
I have driven a few Hiluxs of similar vintage both on and off road and the Ranger eats them in my opinion, both ride comfort and ability.
The Ranger is a good tow vehicle but as others have noted, there's a few things to watch out for - the same applies for Hilux or any other common tow vehicle as they all have some foibles. With any car of that age there's always a risk of mechanical failures so I'd suggest going for the lowest km car you can find.
I was under the impression that potential issue with EGR coolers is that they can get cracks (not corrode). I have a new one on the shelf and I haven't looked at it for several years, but I think it's aluminium. I considered changing mine, but local 4wd mechanic's opinion was I might be swapping one which will may never fail with a new one which might. He recommend using a water level sensor and keeping my fingers crossed. Of course I've only done almost 350,000km so it's still early days .
I'd urge anyone buying a diesel for towing to install an exhaust gas temperature (EGR) gauge. I installed a Redarc EGR gauge which has a programmable alarm. You can google it or speak to a 4wd mechanic it if you want to find out more about them.
-- Edited by Rodsvan on Sunday 21st of September 2025 05:34:46 AM
I know what you mean though. Me being me couldn't resist a little smart comment, sorry.
.
