Did the same comparison shopping - never got to the test drive once I saw how little leg room in the back seat and that stupid screen that sticks up above the dash - especially troubling when looking in the direction of the passenger side fender. Never regretted picking the Ranger. Have owned 80 vehicles in my life and this one is in the top 10 for sure.Well, after finally being able to test-drive the Tacoma Limited I had been waiting for for a year and a half, I immediately bought the Ranger Lariat instead!
Things I prefer about the Ranger
1. I find the V6 engine is way smoother. The Tacoma 4-cylinder puts out power, but I found it rough. I'd make the decision again on this one factor alone; the Ranger 2.7 is just so smooth
2. The Ranger cab seemed somehow less confining to me (and it's super quiet BTW)
3. I much prefer the vertical screen below the dash vs. the Tacoma novelty-sized horizontal screen sticking up out of the dash...
4. The Ranger has a dedicated button to turn off the autostop/start, and I didn't see one in the Tacoma (maybe because of the hybrid)
5. Didn't like all the chrome on the Tacoma Limited
Things I still like about the Tacoma Limited
1. All-time four-wheel drive. I wish Ranger offered this in the non-Raptor models, like they do in Australia (maybe diesel only?)
2. HUD. Not "important", just a nice-to-have
Some random observations on my new Ranger
- the V6: I drove the 2.3 and 2.7 back-to-back and would go for the 2.7 every time, for the extra smoothness and power and very reasonable option price
- Lariat vs. XLT: I could go either way on this, and bought the Lariat because it's what was available with the options I wanted. The deciding factor was when the dealer agreed to swap out the wheels for the XLT wheels
- FX4 package: I know some writers say the FX4 makes road driving harsher, but I could never see how that would make sense, and for me I'm happy to say it doesn't. I drove with and without FX4 back-to-back at the dealer, and there's no doubt in my mind that the FX4 made for a better on-road experience in terms of soaking up any bumps. Haven't tried off-road yet
- The transmission is smooth. During the test drive it sometimes seemed a bit clunky, but I'm happy to say this has gone away and there are zero issues in day-to-day driving. The truck has about 800 km on it now
- The adaptive cruise control is great & works flawlessly. The lane centering OTOH seems stupid in its insistence to keep both hands on the wheel, thereby defeating its own purpose of making your life easier. Hoping for a software update
- My gripes: (a) lack of all-time four-wheel drive, even as an option, (b) the stupid shifter in the Lariat - it's just a bad design all around in my view, (c) tailgate is pretty heavy going down and coming up, and (d) the billowing leather seats - I've read up on this seat issue now and conclude Ford does not yet have a fix for this. So I think I'll wait and monitor this and make a warranty claim perhaps later once I believe there's an actual fix. The cloth seats on the XLT don't seem to have this problem (they stay taut)
Overall, I think this is a great truck, a very competent vehicle, and I'm really happy I bought it!
When there are F150s, 250s, 350s and larger, I would still consider this a small truck. In technical terms yea its a midsize truck and the Maverick is a compact truck but its still "small" in comparison to a full size truck.
