Explorer? Ranger? F150? or Jeep?

Sn95Snake

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Hey guys,
Well my brother that just turned 17 and got his first job is looking for a vehicle of his own.
Sadly to say he isn't really into mustangs at all. :bash:
Well he has a budget of about 3k and he really wants a truck/suv.
Well he likes the idea of a ranger alot but isn't really sure what he wants.
So as the title says, what are you opinions on Explorers, Rangers, F-150, and Jeeps? Probably all from the mid 90's.
 

MachsFastr

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Hey guys,
Well my brother that just turned 17 and got his first job is looking for a vehicle of his own.
Sadly to say he isn't really into mustangs at all. :bash:
Well he has a budget of about 3k and he really wants a truck/suv.
Well he likes the idea of a ranger alot but isn't really sure what he wants.
So as the title says, what are you opinions on Explorers, Rangers, F-150, and Jeeps? Probably all from the mid 90's.

Ranger would be the best bet, IMO.
 

UnorthodoxCreat

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I have both a 97 F150 and Explorer. F-150 is going to be hard to find in that price range, especially 4x4 models unless it has 200,000+ miles. Both are great vehicles though my V8 truck gets better mpg than the V6 Explorer. My brother has a 94 V6 4x4 Ranger still running great with 220,000 miles. All 3 of those are great vehicles and the Ranger and Explorer can be found in that price range. I'd go with the Explorer for someone in his position. Cheap, reliable, parts are easy to get, reasonable to work on, 4x4, holds 4 adults comfortably, big trunk and rear seats fold flat. Only real downside in my book is mpg. I would just buy the best one he can afford.
 

sunburned

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Jeep Cherokee. Dead freakin reliable and you can get one from the mid-late 90s in great condition for $3-4k. People routinely put 250k+ miles on the 4.0L engine. Plus they are a dime a dozen in junkyards if you need spare parts.

I've beat the shit out of my '98 Cherokee offroading for 4 years now and the engine still runs perfectly.
 
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clean93

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mid 90's jeep cherokee theres a ton in that price range and theyre easy to work on. seen plenty in the 200k and up miles still running strong at the jeep dealer i worked at. parts can be found everywhere and cheap. rarely seen any transmission issues unless abused. im looking for a beater truck myself might get a 95 96 cherokee sport
 

cody_288

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Ranger. 2.3 or 4.0. 4x4. 5 speed with the 2.3. 4.0 doesn't matter. I have found that the auto is strong if taken care of and that more people have issues with the hydraulic clutches that are close to 20 years old in the manual trucks.

I have had three of them and with basic maintenance last forever. My current '98 4.0 4x4 has 207k miles on it and I would trust it to drive to Florida tomorrow from Erie, PA.
 

Five-ohh-Love

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^ I agree with everything that every one is saying about Jeeps. My buddy picked up a (1997 i think?) Cheroke a couple years back for around 3k. Had leather, 4.0, 4x4, i think about 100k miles, and power everything. He beat the SH** out of that thing off road. Mudded it and daily drove it for about 2 years with no problems other then getting water in it from a rust hole near the rear wheel lol.

My second vote would be a Ranger. Great small little trucks.
 

chinchilla

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bought my 97 jeep cherokee sport 4.0 auto for 1k two years ago. started with 150k and im up to 199k and have only replaced minor things, water pump, crank position sensor, 02 sensor, plugs, wires, dist cap, dist rotor at 190k just to do it, they were originals. still running original fuel injectors.

Total repairs for 2 years: $170

Also I take it off road a fair bit, nothing crazy but its enough to beat up most vehicles and the jeep just takes it and keeps rollin. best 1k I've ever spent
 

FISHTAIL

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Ranger or the cherokee. I've had both. The ranger (2.3L) was dog slow, but never broke. Had it for years and never had to fix anything other than the things that I knew were wrong when I bought it.

Also had a 98 Jeep 4.0L we picked up for 2500. It always ran great, but we did have to fix a few other minor issues with it(airbags, flex plate, bad cat, and shift solenoids). None of those things were expensive though, and if he can work on it himself, the Jeep is a pretty easy car to fix.
 

Silver2003Cobra

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Hey guys,
Well my brother that just turned 17 and got his first job is looking for a vehicle of his own.
Sadly to say he isn't really into mustangs at all. :bash:
Well he has a budget of about 3k and he really wants a truck/suv.
Well he likes the idea of a ranger alot but isn't really sure what he wants.
So as the title says, what are you opinions on Explorers, Rangers, F-150, and Jeeps? Probably all from the mid 90's.

I've had 2 Explorers (both 01's), 1 Ranger a 94, and now a 92 F150 ..

the "best" family rig out of them is of course the Explorers, the best pickup by far is the F150, hands down over the Ranger..

if I had to take just one of them, it would be the F150..
 

SID297

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Jeep Cherokee. Dead freakin reliable and you can get one from the mid-late 90s in great condition for $3-4k. People routinely put 250k+ miles on the 4.0L engine. Plus they are a dime a dozen in junkyards if you need spare parts.

I've beat the shit out of my '98 Cherokee offroading for 4 years now and the engine still runs perfectly.

This. I love mine. I'd buy a new one today if they still made them.
 

tcstang17

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Jeep cherokee with a 4.0 or an f150 with a 5.4. My 99 f150 has 215000 and its super reliable. Bought it with 179 on it for 4500. When you're looking for at vehicles with higher miles its more important to look at the maintenance history. You do need to be really picky about jeeps. I've worked in the automotive service industry for 3 years and there's a reason why we say jeep stands for just empty every pocket.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk
 

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