1994 Ford Ranger

THE TWO PROBLEMS ARE SPEEDOMETER DOES NOT WORK PROPERLY AND HASN'T FOR SOME TIME, AT SPEEDS OVER 55 THE NEEDLE EITHER GOES TO 85 AND STAY'S THERE OR BOUNCES AROUND BETWEEN 50 AND 85, BOTH DEALERS CONTACTED ABOUT THE PROBLEM HAVE SAID W/O EVEN SEEING TRUCK IT NEEDS NEW SPEEDO B/C THE ORIGINAL BATCH USED FROM THE FACTORY WERE DEFECTIVE. PROBLEM 2 IS THE PARKING BRAKE, WAS FIXED UNDER RECALL BUT HAS NEVER WORKED CORRECTLY AND DEALER HAS SAID THEY WON'T FIX AGAIN.

THE OWNERS MANUAL STATE THAT YOU MAY TRANSFER TO 4X4 UP TO 55 MILES AN HOUR BEFORE DAMAGE OCCURS, I WAS TRAVELING AT 30 MILES PER HOUR AND THE FRONT DRVIER HUB MADE A CLUNCKING SOUND. I ASKED EVERY FORD DEALER ABOUT MY SITUATION AND THEY SAID THAT THAT IT'S RIDICULOUS TO ENGAGE 4 WHEEL DRIVE WHILE MOVING AT ANY SPEED PERIOD! AND THAT THE TRANSFER SHOULD BE MADE AT STAND STILL. SO NOW I'M NOT REALLY SURE WHICH WAY TO DO IT. ALL THAT I'M SURE OF, IS THAT $300.00 EXPENSE FOR A NEW HUB.

I WAS TOLD BY A MECHANIC AND A POSTINGS ON A FORD RANGER WEB SITE THAT RANGERS HAVE A BAD HABIT OF COLLECTING LEAVES AND OTHER SMALL DEBRIS IN THE FAN COMPARTMENT. THE MECHANIC WHO CLEANED THE COMPARTMENT OUT SAVED A LEAF AND IT SHOWED SINGE MARKS (PARTIALLY BURNT). I WAS TOLD THAT THE BEST WAY TO NOT LET THE BUILD UP GET SO BAD IS TO CLEAN IT OUT AS SOON AS THE WHIRRING NOISE STARTS WHEN YOU TURN ON THE FAN/AIR CONDITIONING. THE BUILD UP OF DEBRIS IN SUCH A SMALL COMPARTMENT CAUSES THE DEBRIS TO BECOME VERY DRY AND COULD CAUSE A FIRE. ALSO, THE O2 SENSOR! NOT ONLY HAVE I BEEN TOLD BY OTHERS WHO SUFFERED FROM THIS PROBLEM, BEEN FORWARNED OF IT BY OTHER RANGER OWNERS, IT HAPPENS ONLY ON LONG, EXTENDED DRIVES. A SIMPLE DIAGNOSTIC TEST CONFIRMED MY O2 PROBLEM, ONLY AFTER THE DEALER FAILED TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM. MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WOULD COME ON, CAUSING PANIC (ON A LONG DRIVE, BY YOURSELF), MONEY SPENT TRYING TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM DUE TO INEPTNESS AT JOE MYERS, AND THEN EXTREMELY POOR GAS MILEAGE, AND POOR IN-TOWN PERFORMANCE. I WAS TOLD TO EXPECT TO REPLACE THE O2 SENSOR AGAIN IN 6 MONTHS TO A YEAR...THEREFORE, POSSIBLY POINTING TO A COMPUTER PROBLEM. AT THE VERY LEAST, IT IS A BUILT-IN BI-YEARLY REPAIR THAT AFFECTS OTHER SYSTEMS. IF I DO HAVE TO REPLACE IT AGAIN (AT A HEFTY $160 A POP) - I'LL LET YOU KNOW.

THE PLUGS IN THE TRANSMISSION CASE (I'M NOT SURE OF THE EXACT ANATOMY) SHRUNK RESULTING IN THE LOST OF TRANSMISSION FLUID. IN TURN, THE TRANSMISSION WAS DAMAGED FROM DRIVING WITHOUT FLUID. I WAS UNAWARE OF THE PROBLEM AT THE TIME AND DID NOT REALIZE SOMETHING WAS WRONG UNTIL TOO LATE. THE TRUCK WAS STILL DRIVEABLE, BUT ONLY FOR A MATTER OF TIME. IT IS BEING REPAIRED NOW. I'VE SPOKEN WITH SEVERAL MECHANICS LOCALLY WHO HAVE ALL TOLD ME THAT THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE FORD TRANSMISSION FOR SEVERAL YEARS. I'VE FOLLOWED ALL OF FORD'S CUSTOMER SERVICE CHANNELS AND HAVE RECEIVED NO HELP. I'VE ALSO MET WITH AN ATTORNEY. THANK YOU FOR ANY HELP YOU CAN GIVE.