Ok Im new to the board but Ive been lurking here for awhile and have always been pleased to find that there's a web site devoted to my favorite brand of trucks. I now own a 95 Ranger, but within a year Im planning on upgrading to either a new F150 supercab or a 2002 or 2003 Ranger.

I guess the main thing that's making it hard for me to decide is fuel costs. I know what I could probably expect with a Ranger, but Im not sure about an F150 in the configuration I want. Id like to step up to an F-series because Id like to have the capability to carry more than 2 or 3 passengers when necessary. Im trying convince myself though that the fuel penalty if I got an F150 instead would not make that a very significant difference. If I get a Ranger it would be a 4x4 V6 5-speed manual. If I get an F150 it would be a 4.6 liter 5 speed manual 4 wheel drive, either one wold be a supercab. My question to F150 owners, and I apologize in advance because I know its probably already been asked lots of times, is what kind of mileage are you seeing with F150s in that configuration? 5speed, 4x4, small V8, supercab. What is your normal range on a tank? Driving style? I could see myself paying 50 bucks per tank for gas, but Id like the tank to last at least 5-6 days in that case.

 

Hey,

I had a 99 Ranger Ext cab 4.0 auto.
Traded for my 98 f-150 4x4 4.6 5 speed.

Spent about $20 on avg to fill up the ranger and could squeek almost 300 miles out of it.
Spend about $24 to fill f-150 and get just a bit over 200 miles to the tank.

Fairly aggressive driving style but I'm no lunatic.

Hope this helps
Stan

 

I assume then that your truck has a 20 gallon fuel tank? I thought 25 gallon was standard. I think Id definitely want the 25 gallon tank. 24 dollars aint that bad though. In the height of the mini-gas crisis earlier this summer I was 26-27 bucks for a tank on my Ranger.

 

I had a little Ranger (the Rebel model) It had the 4 banger and the difference between my Ranger and my V6 4x4 Manual F150 wasn't that big of a deal. I guess the 110Hp engine in the Ranger doesn't cut it (This was back in 97). Now I drive an Escorte LMAO Gas difference = big.

 

The reality is that gas prices are not going down again. If you really want an F150, you should look at V-6 and 2wd to save on fuel costs. If you cant live without 4x4, stick with the Ranger.

Good luck

 

I had a 1995 4x2 Ranger 3.0 5-speed 3.73; and replaced it with a 1997 4x2 F-150 XLT 5.4 automatic 3.55.

The usage remained the same.

I routinely got 19.5 MPG with the Ranger; and 14.5 MPG with the F-150.

If I were not needing the truck for towing a trailer, I'd rather have a Ranger 4x4.

BTW, my Y2K gets about .5 MPG less mileage -- but the jury's still out, since it only has 28,000 miles on it.

 

In fact Im trying to consider worst case scenarios, meaning that calculating the most I'd be willing to spend on a tank of gas is is based on the worst prices Ive seen this summer, up around 1.80. I'd be willing to pay up to 45-50 bucks for a tank, which I think assuming I stay around my area and that we don't have another gas crisis is the most Id ever have to spend on an F150. Im just trying to get a sense of how far it would take me. If Im still gonna be hitting the gas station every 250 miles its a no-go. If on the other hand I knew I could reasonably expect 350 miles or so out of it, its an option.

 

I have had a 1999 F-150 4x4. 5.4 motor. It did have oversized off-road tires and it got about 14 MPG.

2000 Ext. Cab Ranger with the 3.0 motor. Got about 18 MPG. Had to run high octane gas or the engine would ping.

I now have a 2001 F-150 Ext. Cab 4x4 with the 5.4 motor. I get about 15-17 MPG. Run the cheapest gas I can find and it does well. For the money I would get the F-150 with the V8. It has alot more room and I just like a full size truck plus I have talked to people that have had the V6 in the F150 and their gas mileage no different than mine. The V8 is a better buy in my opinion.

Bottom line is you have feel ok about it when you sit down to write out your payment check every month. Get what you want within reason. Don't let 20 or 30 dollars a month keep you from getting what you want unless you really can't afford it. If you do you'll always say I should have done it different. Good luck with your decision.