After being absent from the United States market for eight years, and after consumer outcry for a return to the U.S. market was appeased, the 2019 Ford Ranger has officially hit show rooms. In fact, it’s been there for several months now.
It might be safe to assume that it would be a huge hit. It was received with much hype, the compact truck segment is booming, along with the flourishing SUV market, and it’s a Ford pickup… what more can you ask for?
Apparently, not everybody has asked hard enough.
Ranger sales through April have been much less than most people would have probably expected. At least, we think most people expected it to do better because reports have been written and speculation has been raised as to why the Ranger isn’t doing better.
Through April, the Ranger has sold far less units than the Nissan Frontier, Chevy Colorado, and Toyota Tacoma.
You can check the actual sales numbers by going HERE.
The Tacoma’s strong sales numbers should be no surprise. The Colorado… a miniature Silverado is hard to argue against. The Nissan Frontier, though? As much as we love the Frontier at The Unlimited Driver, this news comes as a little bit of a shock to us.
Of course, everyone thinks they know exactly why it hasn’t done well. Even Ford has come out and said they didn’t expect strong sales numbers right off the bat, a claim that we think is dripping with Ford’s own nervousness and speculation about why this is the case.
We have to jump into the party and tell you why we think the Ranger has gotten off to a slow start.
The Ranger is still new:
The Ranger only hit dealerships this year. No matter how good or how highly anticipated a certain vehicle is, they aren’t like the movies. It is going to take a little time for the Ranger to get into circulation around the U.S.
On top of that, there wasn’t really a predecessor. The Tacoma, Frontier, and Colorado all had previous generations of themselves before a major refresh. Both the Tacoma and Colorado had a refresh within the past three years. And, even though the Frontier hasn’t been updated in ages, there was a previous generation Frontier. The Ranger has been gone from the U.S. market for almost a decade.
The F150 offers better value:
The Ford F-150 is one of the best-selling vehicles of all time, and for good reason. It can do just about everything that any person wants and needs it to do. It can be a work truck and a family vehicle. The aftermarket industry is plentiful with modification opportunities for added horsepower and off-road adventures.
Because of all those things, it presents a better value to the average consumer. Despite the fact that it generally does cost a little more than a Ranger would, it is larger, it can do more, and it has years and years of history to back it up.
The F-150 is more practical:
We already mentioned that the F-150 is larger and can do more things than the Ranger can. That includes towing capability for those who really do need a work truck. One of the good and bad aspects of the Ranger is that it only comes with a four-cylinder engine.
As good as that engine might be, it won’t beat out the V6 and V8 engines offered in the F-150, especially in the long haul. For a truck, the Ranger just doesn’t have as much cred… yet.
The F-150 is better:
Add up everything we’ve just said, and the F-150 is just a better overall truck, even if it can cost a little bit more. Critics and reviewers say the same thing.
The Ranger is lacking in the pickup truck department:
Trucks have become more family-friendly over the years, but a pickup truck still needs to check the right boxes, especially for those who actually use them for work.
The Toyota Tacoma has a reputation for being the next best thing to immortal. Even used examples with over 300,000 miles can command a five figure price tag.
As simple, old, and lifeless as the Nissan Frontier is, those qualities also allow it to be a truck without worrying about messing up anybody’s hair. It gets a job done without being offensive in any way, and it just works when it needs to.
The Chevy Colorado is like a Silverado lite. It doesn’t exactly look like a Silverado like it used to, but it can do just about everything its big brother can. Chevy even offers a dedicated off-road version for weekend fun. The Ranger doesn’t feel like an F-150 lite. It’s just too different. A family member it may be, but it almost feels adopted.
The Ranger falls somewhere in between all of these trucks and the Honda Ridgeline.
The Ridgeline is the un-truck in the segment. It’s basically a Honda Pilot with the back end cut out, and it performs, looks, and feels fragile. It’s why it hasn’t been a big hit with truck guys or anybody else. Its sales number show this as it even falls below the Ranger’s sales numbers for the first months of 2019.
So, right now, the Ranger is trying to fit in… trying to find its place in a highly competitive segment with perennial giants walking alongside it and treading above it.
It isn’t a bad truck. Nothing about the Ranger is glaringly problematic. It will just take some adjustment, some growing pains, and some younger truck buyers to come along and help it find its footing.
We don’t think there is any reason to panic despite the truck’s slow start. It may not be the same as the old Ranger, but it is good enough and modern enough to make a new name for itself as it lives in a different world from that which it departed almost a decade ago.
