Advice needed on small towable truck

Ranger mid-1990s to end of production, with 5-speed manual transmission, were towable based on the transmission. Same for the Mazda pickups that were badge-engineered Rangers in those years. Depends on transmission in neutral, transfer case in 2-high.

Ranger 1992 and earlier, some drive train combinations used a 5-speed that did not lubricate well, rather than the one Mazda that did, so the Owner's Manual has short towing limits. Earlier Rangers, back to 1983, used five different manual transmissions, 4-speed and 5-speed. One, Mazda M5OD-R1, will flat tow.

There was a neutral switch option for 4x4 Explorers, but I don't know that it works, or was made available, for Rangers.

S-10, the answer is no on basis of manual transmission, but might be yes for a manually shifted 4x4 transfer case, depending on model year and the TC used. You would need to consult a transfer case expert about a particular example.

Toyota says no for their pickups, but I know people who tow the earlier (pre-Tacoma) compact pickups with manual transmission.

Nissan says the manual transmission Frontier is towable, with distance and speed restrictions similar to manual transmission Ranger. 4x4 or 4x2, uses neutral in the transmission, transfer case in 2-high.

Colorado and GMC twin is towable with 4x4, any transmission. This uses neutral in the transfer case.

I kind of like this winch assisted way of loading. Although in my younger days I would have do it this way but a lot faster.
The 2x4 that I added across the front of my bed that stops the front tires of my ATV before the rack takes out the back glass has paid of itself when the ramp slipped out and I gassed it to finish getting in. Now I know what those straps on the the ramp are for. :S
A good long ramp will be money well spent.

PUCampin wrote:
A manual transmission ranger is towable 4 down and I have never hear of anyone having problems with one. The Ranger can be found with a long bed of just over 7ft (regular cab only) and has a payload of 1000-1200lbs. I had a 95 xlt 2WD regular cab long bed with the 3.0 V6, which while a little anemic is virtually bullet proof. It was a great truck, I drove it for 13 years and 275k miles at which point I wanted something newer for my daily 100mi commute.

That's exactly what I'm looking for. Just needed confirmation that it and others like it can be "flat" towed w/o issues. Thanks

A manual transmission ranger is towable 4 down and I have never hear of anyone having problems with one. The Ranger can be found with a long bed of just over 7ft (regular cab only) and has a payload of 1000-1200lbs. I had a 95 xlt 2WD regular cab long bed with the 3.0 V6, which while a little anemic is virtually bullet proof. It was a great truck, I drove it for 13 years and 275k miles at which point I wanted something newer for my daily 100mi commute.

Ivylog wrote:
OP, the weight police are every where on this forum and most have never carried anything heavy in their PU. I carry a 700 lb ATV in the back of my 09 Ranger without the "tail wagging the dog". No my 4x4 Ranger is not towable four down.
How are you going to get it in the back of a PU? If using a ramp is it going to high center at the tailgate? Here are several ways that you do not want to try.
There are several loading systems... EZ loader or Rampage put they are 200+ lbs added to the wet weight of 800 for your cycle

Yea, Don't want to be that guy lol. Once I find the right truck, I'll build the appropriate ramp, one that has foot supports as well. BTW rode the bike (Honda VTX 1800 750lbs) up into your neighborhood in Oct for about 10 days, planning another trip in May. That is some beautiful country you live in !!!

OP, the weight police are every where on this forum and most have never carried anything heavy in their PU. I carry a 700 lb ATV in the back of my 09 Ranger without the "tail wagging the dog". No my 4x4 Ranger is not towable four down.
How are you going to get it in the back of a PU? If using a ramp is it going to high center at the tailgate? Here are several ways that you do not want to try.
There are several loading systems... EZ loader or Rampage put they are 200+ lbs added to the wet weight of 800 for your cycle

Michelle.S wrote:
I think I would stay with something with a long bed. Folks next to us carry a Harley in their F150 Short Box, so have the tail gate down with those bed extender bars as the back of the bike is sitting on the tail gate, tends to put a lot of extra weight on the rear "P" tires with so much overhang.

Isn't a F-150 a little big to be used as a dinghy, especially when you driving only a 27-29 ft. Class C or A ?
BTW Bike weighs in at about 750 lbs. (Honda VTX 1800)

Better off asking the mods to move your post to dingy towing section.

People here are going to tell you you need a diesel dually.

Yes, you can do what you're thinking of, just verify with the owner's manual that the particular vehicle in question is flat towable. Not all manuals can be. Some have to be a 4x4 with a transfer case neutral e.g. GM and with those you can flat tow an automatic.

I think I would stay with something with a long bed. Folks next to us carry a Harley in their F150 Short Box, so have the tail gate down with those bed extender bars as the back of the bike is sitting on the tail gate, tends to put a lot of extra weight on the rear "P" tires with so much overhang.

donn0128 wrote:
Could be, but depending on the weight of your bike,might not be suitable. Most small trucks are lucky to carry 500 pounds in the bed.

This is true of some newer small "trucks" like the Honda Ridgeline or Subaru Baja. The Ranger, S10, etc., can easily handle 1000 pounds in the bed. The payload of many of the mini trucks is higher than some modern full size pickups.