Ford Ranger Problems

This is one of those questions where there are no hard and fast answers. The lifespan of pretty much any automotive engine will be determined far more by the way it’s been used and maintained than any rule of thumb being tossed around the industry.

Vehicles that do mainly highway kilometres tend to last longer since the engine is under less stress than one idling in traffic and then accelerating from every traffic light. The same goes for vehicles that have never had a tow-bar fitted versus one that has hauled a three-tonne trailer every day of its life.

Servicing plays a huge part, too, and a well maintained engine will always outlast one that has had skipped oil changes and other preventative maintenance. Overall, diesels used to live longer than their petrol equivalents, but the extent to which modern turbo-diesels are tuned to deliver power and torque means that’s not always the case these days.

Over the years, we’ve seen these Ranger engines fail at mileages as low as 100,000km, while others make it to 300,000 or even 400,000km while still in good health. Common engine problems to watch out for with this model Ranger engines include failed EGR coolers, contaminated and even blocked inlet tracts, worn turbochargers, DPF problems and failures, leaking and faulty fuel injectors and coolant leaks.

I can see why the internet cohort might be confused by this question (and why your mate at the pub may or may not know what he’s talking about) because it’s a bit of a weird one. For reasons of friction reduction (efficiency) and reliability, the camshafts in the Ford Bi-turbo are driven by a rubber toothed belt. But – and here’s the strange bit – the belt is partially submerged in the oil in the engine’s sump, so it’s a 'wet' timing belt. While the vast majority of other rubber, toothed timing belts run in a 'dry' environment.

Ford reckons this gives the engine the low noise of a conventional rubber timing belt, combined with the low friction running of a conventional `wet’ timing chain. But the high-strength cords and the oil-resistant rubber the belt is made from, says Ford, also mean that it should last a lot longer than a conventional timing belt. While conventional belts should be changed between 80,000 and 120,000km (roughly speaking) the Ford belt is said to be good for 230,000km.

For the record, the Bi-turbo’s oil pump is driven by a second belt of the same construction.

No, the new Ranger is code-named PY, while the vehicle in question is a PX. Admittedly, it’s a very late-build PX (a Series 3, if you like) which got a revised look and extra tech, but it’s not a 'Next Gen'. The real giveaway is that it has the five-cylinder 3.2-litre engine fitted. This engine was dropped for the newer models, Ford electing to stick with the 2.0-litre bi-turbo and 3.0 V6 diesel engines and the twin-turbo 3.0-litre petrol unit for the Raptor.

Noisy tappets (also known as hydraulic lifters) are relatively common on engines that have done their fair share of work. By using oil pressure generated from the engine’s oil pump, the hydraulic lifter can adjust to maintain the perfect gap between itself and the engine’s intake and exhaust valves. This improves efficiency and reduces engine wear, so it’s an important job.

Over time, the lifters may become a bit lazy (or weak) and may not be able to maintain that correct gap. At which point the extra clearance causes the tapping sound we associate with worn lifters. Replacement is the solution, and best practice says replace them all at once on the basis that if one lifter is already weak, the rest won’t be too clever either.

However, there’s one thing you can try before that, and that is to give the engine an oil change with a high-detergent (as most diesel engine oils are) content oil and a clean filter. Sometimes, fresh oil will clear out a small piece of grit or rubbish that is blocking the oil flow to a lifter and restore it to full health.

While many car-makers now profess that their automatic transmission no longer need regular fluid changes, many mechanics believe there’s no harm in doing so and, in fact, there are benefits in doing so. They include reduced wear over time and the removal of any contaminants that might cause problems. Also, if a transmission has ever reached high temperatures, the fluid should be replaced.

The thing to know is there are two types of fluid change. In the simplest, the transmission fluid is drained, the filter changed and new fluid added. Inevitably, some of the old fluid will remain in the torque converter and other components. But a more complete approach is what’s called a fluid flush where new fluid is pumped through the entire transmission, purging it of all the old fluid. The full flush method is best practice and shouldn’t cost a lot more.

Start with the basics. Is the coolant level correct (and the radiator overflow tank intact)? Are the fan belts that drive the water pump tight and not slipping? Is the electric fan turning on? Is the second electric fan turning on with the air conditioning? Are the radiator hoses in good condition and not collapsing when you rev the engine? Are the car’s brakes dragging and causing the engine to work harder than it should? Is the radiator clean and flowing properly? Is the radiator cap holding the correct pressure? Is there a build-up of mud, bugs and grass on the radiator’s surface? All these things can lead to overheating.

If all that checks out, you might have to dig a bit deeper, including a check of whether the water pump is pulling its weight (and not worn internally) whether the thermostat is operating correctly and even a test to see whether the head gasket has failed. Ford’s Ranger engines have also ben known to experience failures of the Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) valve’s cooler which is part of the overall cooling system. The 2.2-litre and 3.2-litre Ranger engines seem more susceptible to this, but it shouldn’t be automatically ruled out on the 2.0-litre engine.

The last decade of dual-cab four-wheel-drive utes have emerged as the tow-vehicles of choice, and you see them everywhere filling roles exactly like the one you have planned. Popular models include the Ford Ranger you’ve nominated, Toyota HiLux, Mazda BT-50, VW Amarok, Mitsubishi Triton, Nissan Navara and Isuzu D-Max. But there are also cheaper alternatives including makes like the South-Korean made Ssangyong and various Chinese brands like LDV and Great Wall.

Just make sure you know exactly how much you need to tow before making a decision as some of the cheaper models don’t have the same outright towing capacity and even if they do, some of them don’t have the engine performance to make towing as easy as it should be. For parts availability, the Toyota would be king in really remote areas, but any of the major brands are pretty well covered in Australia.

Meantime, don’t rule out ute-based wagons such as the Ford Everest, Isuzu MU-X, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Toyota Fortuna. These offer better ride comfort when unladen thanks to more sophisticated rear suspensions and most have as much or almost as much towing capacity as their ute brethren.

Your Ranger was sold with a factory warranty that should cover it for the first five years and with no limit on the kilometres covered. Provided you’ve maintained and serviced the vehicle properly (with the paperwork to prove it) then the warranty should definitely be intact.

But whether that warranty applies to an EGR valve is the real question. Ultimately, it will depend on why the valve has failed. That’s because most warranties don’t cover wear and tear, so a build-up of carbon and soot inside the EGR system may not be covered. But if the valve has failed due to a materials or manufacturing fault, then it should, on the surface, be Ford’s responsibility to replace the unit.

If there’s any form of dispute between Ford and yourself on this matter, the best advice is to have the vehicle (and EGR) independently tested (motoring clubs are a good place to start). That way the facts should determine the outcome, rather than opinions.

As an aside, don’t be tempted to drive the vehicle any farther with a coolant leak within the EGR system. Eventually enough coolant will be lost that the engine could overheat. And even before that happens, a leaking EGR valve can allow coolant inside the combustion chamber and the turbocharger with equally devastating results.

First instinct says the clutch is broken and not disengaging properly or at all. If that’s the case, the gearbox internals will be whirring around the whole time the engine is running and will not allow you to select a gear. If the clutch was working properly, you could disengage it, allow the gearbox internals to slow down and this would enable gear selection. That’s – very simply - kind of what a clutch does.

The fact that you can stop the engine (and, therefore, the bits inside the gearbox) select a gear and then restart the engine, also suggests that the clutch is worn or damaged and requires replacement.

Or you might be lucky and this is a simple case of the clutch hydraulics having failed. If that’s the case and the hydraulic system that links the clutch actuating arm to the clutch pedal inside the cabin has failed or seized up or run out of fluid, then you’ll get the same symptoms (because the clutch isn’t disengaging) but in a much cheaper to fix form.

The first thing to check is the level of hydraulic fluid in the clutch’s master cylinder under the bonnet. If it’s low or empty, you may have just found the culprit. Either way, these are sealed systems, so any loss of fluid suggests a leak somewhere. For the record, this model Ford Ranger did have a reputation for noisy clutch release bearings and problems with the clutch slave cylinder, the latter of which could certainly cause a fluid leak.