Hey gang. Joined the forum today.

I'm a Subaru nut, a guru and moderator on a couple of sites, and have been around the car forum block for 11 years. But I've been thinking of picking up a truck for a while now, and yesterday may have found one.

It's a 2000 Ranger 4x4, white, manual, V6. Looks like an XL/base model, judging by the wheels and front grille. I've done a little hopping around on Wikipedia and other forums for basic info, but haven't had time to do much.

Anyway here's the truck:







The price is quite low, on it. I asked the owner why, and she stated it's due to mileage: 241K. Supposedly it runs "decently," but needs new plugs/wires. Those are simple. Inspection expired at the end of May.

I'm going to look at it tomorrow. I see a bit of rust on the bottom of the tailgate, there, but can anyone point out easy things to watch/listen for? I have an OBD-II scanner to check a CEL that's supposedly up.

The price? $1500. Yeah. I know. Maybe it's a hooptie and a half, or maybe she really just wants to be rid of it. So it's either: ..or:

Thanks!
S2

 

Oh, if I do get it, the plan would be to clean it up, of course, and maybe pick up some Ranger alloys that are 1" or so bigger.

 

that thing looks like its been to hell and back 3 times bud, check for the basics, funny engine noise, oil leaks(or fluid leaks of any kind), id check for undercarraige rust and ofcourse the overall look of the truck. just look at it real close before you spend your 1500 that you could put into a nicer truck.

 

unless that truck is in great shape i would pass... if there is rust on the tailgate where else is it hiding... plus thats a lot of miles... is it a 3.0 or a 4.0 V6?

 

MY05,
Yep that's the plan. It is only 8 years old, but with that kind of mileage, who knows. :D Still, a bit of rust or some minor repairs won't scare me off, if it's nothing major.

Since I'm not a Ford veteran, I just didn't know if there's any particular things I should watch for, or ask the owners about. For example, certain years and engine runs of Subarus had headgasket issues, in non-turbo models in the late '90s. So we advise owners to check for those, pre-purchase.

gator,
I'm not sure of the V6 size, didn't ask that. I did see a few mentions of rust being common on tailgates, so if that's the case I might not worry too much, for the price at least. My wife and I are buying a house, so I'm not in the market for a newer or nicer truck. I don't want a total POS though, which is why I'm here to talk to you fine chaps. :D

 

i bet its a 3.0

 

That would be fine with me, doesn't really matter.

 

I have a 3.0, its a good motor. That truck is an xl, lots of mods you can do to it!

 

Yeah I figured it was. The XLT had the alloys at least.

I've got enough mods with my car! Good lord I don't need more. :D Though I do live 1/2 mile from www.mcnewsautomotive.com, a Ford performance place, so if I bought this or another Ranger, hey who knows.

Clean-up and better wheels would be the only priority. A nice Magnaflow never hurts, either.

 

xlt's have chrome bumpers and grill. Well if you do get it, this a good place for the rangers, I have got a lot of ideas of how to put lots of money into my truck on here. its been worth it.

 

That's cool. I checked a few Ranger forums before registering here. Forum layout looked good, seems to have its stuff together. Hard to tell as a first-timer sometimes, but I know what to look for, being such a forum vet.

I'll post what pics I take, tomorrow afternoon/evening. I'll go see it after 3:30p probably (Eastern).

 

eh, if you like speed (subaru) the 3.slow will disapoint. you want the 4.0

 

id pass, 1500 is a coo price but that rust is definitley a deal breaker for me at least .. im sure you can find somethin better.

 

241K Miles n it looks like its been threw hell....idk man 1500 seems like a high price for something like that.

 

Yeah but it's a truck for utility, I've got the car if I want speed. So that doesn't matter.



Melt,
I'll see what the rest of it looks like. Most vehicles have weak spots for rust; on several trucks, it's the tailgate. A lot of Subarus, it was right over the rear wheel well for whatever reason. (My guess is that water/junk collects in the fender liner, and it doesn't drain properly.) Yet the rest of the car has no problems. *shrug*

I'll know tomorrow.

 

Minimum value on KBB was in the low $3K area. I'd have put it in the high $2K range. If it's not a total loss, I'll offer less than asking. She hasn't pressured me with "there's other people looking" thing yet, so they probably will take offers.

 

I just realized I had one pic in there twice; it's fixed now, with a new pic of the rear 3/4.

 

oops hit it twice.

 

i bet you could get it for 800

 

Seems crazy, for a 2000. $1500 seems crazy. I know the mileage is high, but...

 

Rust would be my main concern with it. 1993 and newer Rangers don't seem to rust as bad as most vehicles, but with 241K and 8 years in PA, you need to look it over well. Check around the body mounts, around the doors, the whole frame, etc... Rust would make or break the sale for me, not the miles or age. If that truck isn't rotted out and has been maintained, it should have many miles left in it. The 3.0 is a very tough motor, and the M5OD manual transmission isn't bad either. Of course, with 241K you need to look out for general high mileage issues like oil leaks and worn out parts.

People tend to exaggerate the 3.0's supposed lack of power. Unless you tow a lot, the 3.0 is just fine. Mine handles my 40 mile round trip commute across Charlotte as good as any other vehicle. Other drivers, traffic jams, my desire to not get pulled over, etc...are what limit my speed, not my truck's engine. FWIW, I haved owned a 2.5L Ranger, a 4.0L Explorer, and a 3.0L Ranger. None of them are fast. In fact, I would say the 2.5L I4 Ranger was the quickest of the bunch because it was so light and had a manual.

Even if you don't get this truck, I'd still keep Rangers at the top of your list. They are one of the best small trucks and are a much better value than a used Tacoma. A completely trashed 2WD 2000 Tacoma would cost more than the asking price on the Ranger you are looking at.

 

Check the core support for rust around the front body mounts. I bought a truck in good shape yet the core support was almost rusted in half around the body mounts, and with the rust that the tailgate has that truck might be rusted there also.

One other thing is, I think they changed from vacuum operated hubs to live axle midyear in 2000, so that truck may have pvh and if so they had a problem with leaking which ment the hubs wouldnt lock or unlock. To fix that you either have to find the vac leak and fix it or remove the hubs and install manual avm hubs.

Someone correct me if im wrong.......

 

Thanks, everyone.



Can't beat good bushings, can you? :D

I grew up in NH, lived there until '04, so I'm used to northeastern cars. Southcentral PA gets very little snow, but we still have our fair share of road salt (though not as much as New England), and cold temps.

 

Okay, I saw it. And yeah it's a POS. :) Though it is, in fact, the 4.0L.

Oh well! Definitely worth a look, it's only about a half hour drive from home. But it had quite a bit more rust (engine bay, under the doors), there was a small hole in the bedliner (that I could see the owner's yard through), and the interior was total crap. The girl kept thinking of things that were wrong with it, too. I didn't want to laugh, so I played nice as she told me things like...

"The engine kind of bucks a lot. Misfires I think..."

Some other things, too. I took pics but I may not bother to upload them, we'll see. If you guys want them, you'll have them. :) Oh and to top it off, when I first arrived, she said:

"I don't have the keys, my Dad took them to work."

So, I'd have to go back, to hear it run.

Somethin' tells me I'll be coming up with an excuse to tell her, about why I won't be paying a return visit.