Maverick vs OG Ranger with pics...so now I get why I like this thing.

[EJK33]

My 05 Ranger Edge is being totaled due to a deer torpedoing its rear on the highway...yes, that is a true story.

As sad as I am to let it go...it was time. I love small trucks, and something about the Maverick just felt familiar...and shockingly, now I know why. Check the pictures, the OG regular cab Ranger is hilariously similar in dimensions/wheel base to the Maverick. The Ranger is sitting on .31s, the Maverick is a Tremor with 235/65/17s.

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[Cancunbadlands]

Equal size?

 

[EJK33]

Equal size?

Unbelieveably close...Maverick is a hair wider and the Ranger a hair taller, but the wheel base is what really gets me...you see how close they are...and the rest is basically just chopping the bed in favor of a larger cab. The Maverick has a longer rear/bumper, but really...hilariously close and I would never have thought so until I had them ligned up. An extended cab OG Ranger has to be noticeably longer with a much wider wheel base than the Maverick.

 

[OR3X]

Did you purchase the Ranger new? Any major issues with it? What was the final mileage?

 

[EJK33]

Did you purchase the Ranger new? Any major issues with it? What was the final mileage?

Haha...nope. I bought it used back in 2011 with 65k miles on it/to be retired at only 108.5k miles. It has clogged cats, is a total rust bucket underneath and on its last legs as far as the frame goes, and is on its second engine. True story; 04 and 05 Rangers used scrap for the valve heads and are susceptible to all sorts of problems...it's only those two years where Ford cut corners; it was almost a class action suit with a lot of online backing. Aside from that, it was a great little truck and I loved that thing to death, lol.

 

[matmondro]

I've said it many times but they should've called the Maverick the Ranger! It would make a lot more sense.

I've had two older Danger Rangers, they're excellent trucks!!

 

[EJK33]

I've said it many times but they should've called the Maverick the Ranger! It would make a lot more sense.

I've had two older Danger Rangers, they're excellent trucks!!

Exactly...F150s are too big, the current Ranger is an F150 in size, and the Maverick just fits like a glove. I'm not a fan of all the tech/nannies/digital crap, etc...but it's my choice of truck by far right now. Most importantly...it's fun, when most vehicles are absolutely not these days.

I love the old Ranger...THAT along with the OG Tacoma have been my favorite trucks for quite a while. I'm not happy about losing my Ranger, but it likely had one or two more winters in it anyway as a second vehicle. That thing was amazingly simple, reliable, yet a total dog of a thing all at the same time...never did have any sort of luck with gas mileage, but it was so fun to drive.

 

[Scupking]

I've said it many times but they should've called the Maverick the Ranger! It would make a lot more sense.

I've had two older Danger Rangers, they're excellent trucks!!

Exactly. The Maverick should have been called Ranger and the current Ranger the F-100.

 

[Blue_Max]

My 05 Ranger Edge is being totaled due to a deer torpedoing its rear on the highway...yes, that is a true story.

I'm gonna need some more info about this scenario.

 

[EJK33]

Exactly. The Maverick should have been called Ranger and the current Ranger the F-100.

Yup...I do love the name Maverick though. Ford is locked into Mustang and Bronco everything...stupidly...but they really should bring back some of their better old namesakes like Falcon, Ranchero, and Galaxie. Maverick is such a great name though; glad they used it here and not on yet another CUV.

 

[EJK33]

I'm gonna need some more info about this scenario.

Well...driving down a highway at 6:40am, going 60 in a 70 because old Ranger, and there's a lovely super-large hill/greenspace separating the north and southbound lanes so that you can't see anything on the other side.

Just happily driving along, and then out of the corner of my eye to the left...something launches itself full-steam ahead from overtop of the dividing hill. It must have almost been hit on the opposite south-bound side, scared, and just bolted...somehow managed to launch itself full-power right into the rear corner of my truck behind the wheel well. I had no clue what happened, looked into my mirror and saw something red go flying straight upward...thought I had decapitated the poor thing...but no, that was just my Fender flare. The deer actually got up and ran off into the woods.

So...decent cosmetic damage, some structural damage to the body and support points to the frame(it's a rust bucket underneith), and my insurance company is giving me $10k for some reason to total it...tempted to patch it back up/do a buy back, but I'm not sure if it would pass the stricter inspection due to cab mount and frame areas rusting out...so R.I.P. and now I own a Maverick. I daily drove a 2015 Mustang for years minus winter and wanted to garage it/prolong it anyway. Couldn't find a cash truck replacement, used was a crap show; so Maverick and a vehicle payment for the first time since 2019 it is.

Pics incoming in a bit...let's just make this a shrine to my Ranger, R.I.P. Here's some damage shots and a couple of photos from better days at the end, lol.

 

[Cherokee]

EJK33,

Wonderful photo shoot !

Yeah I don’t want these bloated overgrown contractor size gas hogs like the 150 or even the New Rangers.
I just don’t need that much truck to haul air 95% of the time.
And I don’t need compensation for anything :’P

 

[EJK33]

EJK33,

Wonderful photo shoot !

Yeah I don’t want these bloated overgrown contractor size gas hogs like the 150 or even the New Rangers.
I just don’t need that much truck to haul air 95% of the time.
And I don’t need compensation for anything :’P

Seriously...the Maverick is a good thing moving forward. I cross-shopped everything and just kept coming back to the Tremor after being close on an FX4 and a hybrid Lariat. It's the most truck-ish, I like how the suspension rides, and I don't have to mess with an audio project, new tires, bedliners, whatever. It was good to go for me as-is and although not my old Ranger(for better and for worse), it'll be more than good enough for some trails and outdoorsy stuff.

F150s are too big...Rangers have been sort of "meh" since the relaunch compared to the Tacoma/Colorado/Canyon, and the Maverick just fits...plus it's inexplicably FUN. Ford actually made a FUN new vehicle this decade, lol...imagine that. It's goofy...but it wouldn't shock me if the OG Maverick is more likeable than the Gen 2/electric truck project. I can see Ford calling the EV truck "Maverick" to establish a family like what they've done with Mustang/Bronco, and then it just gets a giant wraparound screen with boring monocolor CUV interior and oddball exterior, becomes even more "creature comfort" and tech centered, an ICE version of that hits as the gen 1 Maverick replacement a year after...or not, etc.

 

[Cherokee]

Seriously...the Maverick is a good thing moving forward. I cross-shopped everything and just kept coming back to the Tremor after being close on an FX4 and a hybrid Lariat. It's the most truck-ish, I like how the suspension rides,

My 2026 Tremor has all the Lariat toyz,
And Tremor capabilities.
It’s truly top of the line.
I’m very happy with mine.

IMHO the FX4 had the least value for the up charge.

 

[EJK33]

My 2026 Tremor has all the Lariat toyz,
And Tremor capabilities.
It’s truly top of the line.
I’m very happy with mine.

IMHO the FX4 had the least value for the up charge.

That's what I kept running into...at one point I was even thinking XL and dumping money into audio/wheels/tires/bedliner/etc after...but dealers around me were only knocking off like $1,750 on the XL, because they sell, $3,500 on Lariats, $4000 off of XLT/FX4s, and then $3,800 on Tremors with some dealer trinket throw-ins.

The lack of movement on XLs made the XLT/FX4 basically cost as much after upgrades, the FX4 Pirellis are mostly fine but not quite what I really would want...plus PITA bedliner and audio work and costs...the Lariat hybrid is cool, but again, tires and wheels...at the end of the day, after weeks of running around on these, it was just "screw it all and get the Tremor, you need not change a thing on it and you like it; stupid." I REALLY tried to sell myself on that FX4 though, as it was a great deal on it from my favorite dealer. I even ran into a leftover 25 Lobo at 5k off advertised plus incentives, etc.

The FX4 is totally bunk when you consider having to also pay for the XLT Luxury Package to spec it...can't remember if you have to have the 4k towing package too, which oddly overlaps in features and upgrades, etc...so you're paying twice for stuff like the radiator upgrade? It's like $800 for the FX4 package, but you need to add like $1,800-$3000+ worth of stuff before being able to add it, lol, so it doesn't seem like such a great deal once you've noticed that. I do wish I had 4k towing, but I don't really tow anyway.

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