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The Ranger -- Fords compact pickup truck -- received its first major revision for the 1989 model year. While it remained mostly unchanged below the surface, the truck received a thorough exterior refresh, including a more streamlined hood, grille and front fenders, as well as flush-fitting, composite headlights and wrap-around parking lights. The pickups interior also received a thorough refresh. The previous base inline-four engine was replaced by a new, fuel-injected version. Rear-wheel ABS was also offered for the first time in 1989.
A Pint-Sized F-150?
The 1989 Ranger was available in regular cab and SuperCab body styles. SuperCab models featured a pair of folding, center-facing jump seats mounted behind the front row. Regular-cab buyers could choose between a 6-foot or 7-foot bed. The SuperCab truck came only with the 6-foot bed.
Compact Dimensions
The regular-cab, short-bed truck measured 176.5 inches in length, 66.8 inches in width and 63.8 inches in height. Its wheelbase was 107.9 inches. With the long bed, length increased to 188.5 inches and the trucks wheelbase grew by 6 inches, to a total of 113.9. The SuperCab was 193.6 inches long, 66.8 inches wide and 64.3 inches tall, with a 125-inch wheelbase. The regular-cab, short-bed model had a curb weight of 3,128 pounds. The longer bed bumped the regular cabs weight up slightly to 3,168 pounds. The SuperCab Ranger weighed in at 3,464 pounds.
Four or Six Cylinders?
The Rangers entry-level engine was a 2.3-liter, fuel-injected, inline-four that produced 100 horsepower at 4,600 rpm and 133 foot-pounds of torque at 2,600 rpm. The Rangers optional, upgraded engine was a 2.9-liter V-6. It was only offered on SuperCab models, though. The fuel-injected V-6 produced 140 horsepower at 4,600 rpm and 170 foot-pounds of torque at 2,600 rpm.Both engines were available with either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. The Ranger was offered in rear-wheel-drive and part-time, four-wheel-drive configurations.
Thirsty for Fuel?
The Ranger was only moderately fuel-efficient. As one would expect, the mileage leader of the bunch was the two-wheel-drive, inline-four model with the manual transmission. It was EPA-rated at 21 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway. The automatic brought those numbers down a bit to 18/22. Upgrading to the V-6 but sticking with the manual and rear-wheel drive delivered fuel mileage of 16/22. The rear-wheel-drive V-6 with the automatic was rated at 15/20. The most fuel-efficient four-wheel-drive model was the manual, inline-four truck. It received an 18/22 rating. The four-wheel-drive truck was not offered with the four-cylinder and the automatic transmission. The V-6-equipped, four-wheel-drive Ranger was rated at 16/20 with the manual and 15/19 with the automatic.
