Other than the gap-toothed grille, this 1984 Ford Ranger XLT looks pretty nice on the outside. And even inside, now that I look at the photos again. The seller talks about it with the polish of a stage-hardened comedian, and it’s good stuff. The ad copy is worth the price of admission. They have it posted here on craigslist in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and they’re asking $2,650. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Mike F. for the tip!
A person could take out the upper piece on the grille two slots over to even it out, or just find another grille. I’m surprised how nice this Ranger looks other than that, but there are a few things you’ll see as you look at the exterior photos. The seller has included a nice array of photos inside and out, along with, gasp, an engine photo! This is one of the best craigslist ads of 2026 for me. The left headlight is dark when the lights are off, but it looks ok in the photo above with the lights on.
I can’t find a photo of Del Norte Ford in Del Norte, Colorado, but maybe our vintage dealership guru, Bob_in_TN, can dig up something. There’s a Del Norte Automobile, and I’m assuming that’s what the old Ford dealership evolved into. I can’t make out the left-side sticker, and the license plates seem to have been scrambled a bit. Thanks, internet scammers, for making us all paranoid. Here’s what the bed looks like inside. If that’s just liner paint, it looks great.
GAAA! An automatic. Well, it is what it is, and lots of buyers would want an automatic, so it isn’t that bad. The Navajo-themed (?) homemade console is a nice touch. For how much the seller jokes about the issues with this Ranger, it looks nicer to me than I thought it would. I just bought a nice little hot-water extraction carpet cleaner (new puppy), and I’d hit every square inch of the seat and carpets with that, maybe even the carpeted dash cover. Here’s a fun 1984 Ford Ranger brochure. The XLT was the top trim level in this era.
This engine is Ford’s 2.8-liter OHV V6, which in 1984 would have had 115 horsepower and 150 lb-ft of torque when new. Backed by the optional three-speed automatic transmission sending power to the rear wheels, the seller says that it leaks, which sounds like one of the main reasons they’re giving up on this Ranger. Known for valve seal leaks, there’s also some white smoke with this 2.8 V6. All of those things are fixable, and if the body and chassis are solid, this one may be worth tinkering with. Please read the ad and let us know your thoughts!
Whilst I didn’t care for the 2.8 motor don’t feel bad, I don’t care for any V6, and I simply can’t contain myself, with this offering, there was no valid reason to buy an import. Okay, the S10 was a dud, but these racked up HUNDREDS of thousands of miles. A neighbor has a 4×4 with an astonishing 420K, never opened up. I was surprised to see, the Toyota undercut the Ranger by almost $600, and that’s all it took. That reversed air cleaner top adds a lot( cough), and since most, if not all withered away, a new motor is not the end of the world, and be the last pickup you’d ever need. Great find.
This is indeed another truck we used to see everywhere. I never owned one. But knew plenty of people who did. The ad is well worth the read if you want a good laugh. The only line I would add to it is….. Oil leak??? What oil leak???? Thats just sweat dripping from ALL THAT HORSEPOWER!!! 😆 🤣 😂
For what its worth. You could do a whole lot worse for that asking price.
Oh, and Congrats on the new puppy Scotty. Puppies are a lot of work ( as you know) but the smiles are well worth it.
Creative Writing majors….they live amongst us.
Good write-up SG. The craigslist ad is indeed quite clever and humorous. Especially the HOA/Suez Canal reference.
I suspect you are right about the Del Norte Automotive building likely being the old Ford dealership. It has “the look.” Lots of these small-town new car dealerships have closed over recent decades, as the new car business got bigger, more complicated, and less “local.” The last dealership in my small growing-up town closed 46 years ago.
Back to the truck…. for the price, it doesn’t seem bad at all.
The ad is entertaining, but ineffective, it’s been on the market for 18 days and counting.
Steve R
No matter the cute writing you can’t polish that piece of fecal matter.
Pass.
A couple of friends of mine had this truck and the oil pans rusted out and that might be what’s leaking on this one. One replaced his himself and the other drained the oil out and patch welded it from the outside and it worked.
The ad itself is a real hoot! Just
reading it reminds me of the song
Classifieds by C W McAll where the guy in the song buys a beat up ’57 Chevy pickup truck through the want ads. The Rubber Duck had fun recording that song. Anyhoo, I had one of these til my BIL lunched the engine when he threw a rod through the block. I was gonna put a tricked out 302 in it, but never got around to it. Wound up
selling it to a guy who finally did
put a 302 in it and it scared the living daylights out of him. It swapped ends on him driving home in a rainstorm. Talk about
being squirrelly, that truck broke the rear tires from the pavement
every time you mashed the go pedal! Wasn’t anything to see the
tires smoke and the truck go sideways. Gotta be the best ad
of 2026.
What do ya mean we had the trailer tongue too high when we backed up?
That is one classy console, and the lid flip for +5HP.
Ad reads like a cautionary tale to those of us attracted to rust and junk. I think this would be gone were it a 4-cylinder with a manual transmission.
There is enough oil under the truck (On the street) that is probably in the Truck
The writer of the ad reminds you (between the lines) that weed is legal in Colorado and it figures that he had a hefty buzz on.I had one of these as a daily driver from mid 82′ to early 85′ . It had the 2.0 and got decent gas mileage. The 4 spd aluminum case trans. was a hoot to shift on days around 0-degrees. It was as plain as Miss Jane and anemic as you’d expect. However, I paid $5200 brand new, no radio, and a vinyl bench / floors without a headliner (!). I drove it 44K miles and sold it for around $4000 to a guy I worked with. I think I did OK. Even here in N. Florida, you wouldn’t get the asking price for that Colorado beast.
I like Rangers. I prefer stick trannys. I particularly don’t like leaky automatics. . The 2.8 was a pretty terrible engine. The white “smoke” goes a long way towards explaining that.
Thank you. N-o-o-o.
Best CL ad of 2026? Yes, this one would get my vote.