2024 Ford Ranger: 60 Day Update

After shopping for a new midsize pickup, I landed on the 2024 Ford Ranger as my choice.  This was after ordering (and abandoning) a 2025 Ford Maverick, and test driving a Jeep Gladiator and Nissan Frontier. I did not consider the Chevrolet Colorado or GMC Canyon, as I am taking a break from buying GM products.

I covered all of that in the related article below, but now that I have owned the Ranger for 60 days, am I happy with my purchase? The short answer is “yes.”

Related article:  Choosing The Right New Vehicle

Overall Impression: Positive

I chose the Ranger because I was impressed with its traditional truck styling and overall structural integrity. I am forgiving about a lot with a vehicle, but issues stemming from noise, vibration or harshness drive me nuts.  For some reason, I am highly tuned in to those things.  

The 2022 Subaru Outback that I sold in order to buy the Ranger had a slight dash rattle that was evident under specific conditions.  Even though I corrected about 95% of it, it still played into my decision to sell it.

Of the vehicles I test drove, the Ranger displayed the following positive characteristics after the first 1,600 miles of driving;

• Very solid body structure, which contributes to its rattle-free cabin (a HUGE win for me!).
• Door closures are solid and positive.
• Excellent construction: good body panel gaps, high quality paint finish (love the Cactus Gray color).
• Firm (but not harsh) ride with good handling (especially for a tall vehicle).
• Interior design layout and material quality are excellent for this price range.
• Pickup bed is wide enough between the wheelhouses to allow a four foot wide sheet of plywood to lay flat on the bed floor.
• Above average performance from the 2.3L Ecoboost engine.

One Irritating Issue

In light of these positive attributes, one issue did bother me after purchase–a vibration at low speeds.  At first, I thought it might be flat spotted tires.  The truck did sit on the dealer’s lot for about four months before I bought it.

After nearly 1,000 miles of driving, the vibration was still present.  I decided to take it to my dealer, Blackwell Ford (Plymouth, MI), for evaluation.  They are terrific to deal with and took the time to address my issue.  The front two tires were balanced and the vehicle was returned to me within the day.

That wheel balance helped, but now I felt a different vibration.  At this point, I thought it might be an inherent engine imbalance so I asked to drive a similar new vehicle for comparison.  That truck had the some vibration, but not as much as mine.  Am I too picky, or is there more that can be done to correct it?

Online Forum Research

I searched throughout a couple of Ranger forums to see if anyone else had this issue. To my surprise, no one did.  I did discover, however, several concerns in the transmission calibration that seems to force the transmission to shift into higher gears quickly.  I believe this is designed to get the best fuel economy from the engine.

In my mind, this caused the engine speed to remain low, causing the engine to lug in higher gears.  This translates to a low level vibration.  Ford does not see this as a problem (for now), so how can I finesse my truck to keep me happy?  

Solutions

A couple of Ranger owners installed a Ford Performance calibration tune that increases engine power and changes the transmission shift calibration.  That sounded interesting, but the $825 cost of the tuner plus another $200 for installation did not make sense to me. I’m happy with the engine’s power output, but not the relationship between engine and transmission.

Thinking this transmission calibration through, the challenge was getting the transmission to upshift quicker with light throttle application. That would require a more sensitive throttle, which I know can happen with a performance throttle controller. I already installed a Roar Pedal on my Camaro to great success, so I ordered one for the Ranger.

Within a few days, my new Roar Pedal controller arrived.  It took five minutes to install and another minute for me to realize this could be the solution!  With a light throttle application, I can keep the engine/transmission balance right to minimize my vibration.  For $170, this was a great start!  Time will tell if I can live with it.

Fun Stuff

Even though this is a cold winter, I have still been able to make some personalization changes to the Ranger.  It’s not much, but it keeps me happy:

• Custom vinyl graphics on the pickup bed (replacing the lame one applied by Ford).  I made those with my Cricut vinyl cutter. See pictures of the before and after.
• Installation of two fake hood vents, which I detailed in Guilty Pleasure: Fake Hood Vents.
• Installation of front tow hook covers that I made using a 3D printed design.  

Final Thoughts & Questions

Now that the first 60 days are under my belt, do I have any regrets?  None. To anyone else, the vibration I felt may not be objectionable.  Luckily, I like to tinker and I was able to make some slight changes to make my Ranger more enjoyable for me.  I suspect Ford will offer a revised transmission calibration in the future.  If they do, I will seek to have it installed.  Until then, I am going to keep enjoying this well built and thoughtfully designed truck.

Do you own a 2024 Ford Ranger and have anything you’d like to add?  Please do so in the comments below. I will provide updates as events occur.