Safety Ranger: 2010 Ford Ranger Adds New Standard Safety Features
Production of the Ranger is slated to end in 2011, but that won’t stop Ford from adding key new safety features to its compact pickup. Ford will add electronic stability control and side airbags as standard equipment on all 2010 Rangers.
“We’re bringing the Ranger up to the standards we have with other Ford vehicles,” said Steve Kozak, Ford’s chief engineer of safety systems. “It will use the same roll stability control as the new F-150 and seat-mounted side airbags that are very similar to what we offer in the Mustang.”
The Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon, Hummer H3T and Toyota Tacoma are the only small trucks that offer stability control standard, but they don’t have roll prevention systems, as the Ranger does.
“In addition to a yaw sensor [used to determine if a truck is experiencing understeer or oversteer] we also have a roll sensor,” Kozak said. “The combination of both allows us to do a much better job calculating changes in the vehicle to differentially brake the truck to keep it under control.”
If the Ranger senses a rollover is about to occur, it has a four-channel antilock braking system to brake individual wheels and can cut engine throttle to try to bring the vehicle back into an upright attitude.
Front passengers will get side airbags that help protect the head and chest from injury.
“They’re expected to improve our NHTSA and IIHS side-impact ratings,” Kozak said.
The current Ford Ranger has a four-star (out of five) side-impact rating for the driver from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and carries an overall Marginal rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Other standard Ranger safety features are four-wheel antilock brakes and driver- and front-passenger airbags. Ford’s front-passenger sensing system helps ensure airbags are not deployed on the passenger side when small children are detected.
The 2010 Ford Ranger goes on sale this summer.
Comments
Why no improved gas mileage? The truck market needs a compact truck with 4x4 that gets good gas mileage. The truck manufactorers wounder why sales didnt increase when gas prices went through the roof, becuase you can buy a full size truck and get the same gas mileage or even better. Take for example the ford escape and convert that into a truck better gas mileage 4x4 I would bet it would be a hit and sell like crazy. It would be like the sport trac but get good gas mileage and suit alot of peoples needs.
I love the current ranger because it's tough. The new European Ranger looks metro sexual! I'm glad to see some safety improvements, but why not put an Eco Boost I-4 in there. Something like 2.5L which should pump out a solid 275HP, and pair it with a 6 speed auto. And where did the step side Ranger go. I've owned three step-side rangers. 1996 Splash with a 4.0V6 Single Cab 2x4. Awesome truck, a 2000 step side, 3.0 which was way under powered, and just because i liked the step side and they made the cab 3 inches bigger I got a 2003, 3.0 V6, again under powered. I sold it and bought a 2005 STX step side STX F150, then got a 2007 King Ranch F150, which I just sold. Now I'm just waiting for Ford to come out with something that really gets me excited. I would love to see a Ranger, Step Side again, at least offer it in a single cab version with the current 4.0V6 at the least, so that truck enthusiasts like myself can put a nice wheel and tire package on it, level out the suspension, and add my own twin turbo package from STS out of Provo Utah. I'll just make my own eco boost. With some softer gear ratios I bet I can keep some awesome power and improve the mileage significantly. Please Ford Stop taking the fun out of Vehicles!
The Ranger already offers the same 4 banger as the Fusion, Focus and Escape. Fuel economy If your looking for that is a key factor with the Ranger. Ford offers the BEST fuel economy offered in a compact truck. My 06 gets 23 MPG Powered by the 4.0 v6.
As to the Fuel price spike.... The Ranger sales jumped then. That is why the Ranger wasn't finished in 2009... Ford decided to meet market demand. Production ends in 2011 now. But every one knows that Ford has someting ready for that day. As every one has seen Ford prepared for the worst and came out with a spotless shine!
Ford Ranger air bags : My Mrs is 61 yrs old weighing 97 lbs and the passenger side air bage is turned off signal is light up. We have followed instructions in the owners hand book to no avail. This is a 2010 brand new truck. When i told the dealer service manager he refused to test the vehicle or to even look at it while he kept saying ( Quote: there is nothing wrong with the truck ) . He said my Mrs was too light and i asked what the minnimum is and he said Ford engineering wont tell him.
After reading many posts on the internet by folks encountering the same problem with the Ford Airbag System not functioning on the passenger side that this is an ongoing problem that Ford does not wish to correct. They are just going to keep on producing these trucks for another year while risking customers lives and security with air bags that do not function properly. My Mrs is not a child , she is 5' 8" and 97 lbs. please reply
looking for a Ford F150 King Ranger
The comments to this entry are closed.