New Member from Texas

[blackwell]

New here, 19, got my first truck as a standard. it is a 2001 Ford Ranger Edge V6 5-speed standard transmission, and i love it.

i originally found this place because it's in the shop right now and i was looking online to see if there were any bad habits i had that i could get rid of

or driving/shifting advice. if you have any advice i'd love to hear it. I don't ride the clutch and i coast in to a stoplight in neutral.

[potownrob]

New here, 19, got my first truck as a standard. it is a 2001 Ford Ranger Edge V6 5-speed standard transmission, and i love it.

interesting to have a V6 Ranger driver in here (vs. members in here with 4 cylinder Rangers). does that have the 3 litre or 4 litre V6?? others will probably have more questions about your truck.

i originally found this place because it's in the shop right now and i was looking online to see if there were any bad habits i had that i could get rid of

bienvenido al foro; ¡¡que disfrutes de tu estadia!! why is the truck in the shop??

or driving/shifting advice. if you have any advice i'd love to hear it. I don't ride the clutch and i coast in to a stoplight in neutral.

way too much to say without narrowing down with questions, but some of us will offer blind advice. it's good you don't ride the clutch. not sure it's necessary to coast in neutral to stoplights; you can also stay in gear (with the clutch out/engaged) and then just press the clutch in when you get down close to idle speed. it's good to get good habits in practice, and then you don't have to worry too much about stalling, slipping the clutch and overrevving by mistake now and then. if you practice bad habits like riding the clutch, resting your foot on the clutch (especially when not in use), braking with the clutch and shifting without pushing the clutch down all the way, then you are just asking for trouble, while it's hard to ruin a clutch or transmission by making most other mistakes.

[blackwell]

it's a 3 liter. idk if it's the norm, but the gear speeds range from 1 = 0-(somewhere below 10 mph, speedometer only goes down to 10), 2= somewhere below 10 - 15, 3 = 15-23, 4 = 24-30ish, 5 = 30 and up. i haven't paid attention to the rpms, should i?

Thank you for the warm welcome, it's in there because it became very hard to shift, as in 7/8 of the time now i couldn't shift without relentlessly pumping the clutch. got a new clutch in june, so i don't know if the clutch is bad or something else.

the main reason i coast in in neutral is because my foot is too big for the pedal, i wear a US size 18, so i actually have to pivot off of my heel and holding it can be hard to do if i press it in if my heel slips forward a little bit on accident.

[Squint]

Welcome! Just wear a smaller shoe (obvious sarcasm)!

Really though, coasting isn't bad as long as you are paying attention and can put it in gear if necessary. I believe in Europe - if memory serves from talking to a couple of Finns and Frenchies, it is taught to always be 1)in gear or 2)on the brakes not ever just in neutral, though I do the same thing when just coasting to a stop light.

I would pay vague attention to the RPM just so you know roughly where they are. You can drive a stick by complete feel without a tach with no problems at all, however having the tach helps you notice things like... the engine is still running cold - need to raise the RPM a hair, the truck is idling funny - should look into that. Not saying you wouldn't notice these things without it, but it's a nice tool to have.

[AHTOXA]

Welcome from a fellow Texan (a transplant in my case)!

Sounds like you're having a hydraulic issue with the clutch if it's hard to shift, it grinds when trying to shift or you need to pump the clutch prior. Have you checked the fluid level in the reservoir before it went into the shop?

[theholycow]

i haven't paid attention to the rpms, should i?

If you want, or if it supports a goal that you have. I do recommend it, regardless of manual or automatic, because I think it's an important part of being one with your vehicle, knowing your vehicle, and being able to drive it the best way that you can.

Thank you for the warm welcome, it's in there because it became very hard to shift, as in 7/8 of the time now i couldn't shift without relentlessly pumping the clutch. got a new clutch in june, so i don't know if the clutch is bad or something else.

I know 1990s Rangers with I4 engines are known for clutch slave cylinder failure and it is recommended to replace the slave cylinder when replacing the clutch. Was yours replaced?

the main reason i coast in in neutral is because my foot is too big for the pedal, so i actually have to pivot off of my heel and holding it can be hard to do if i press it in if my heel slips forward a little bit on accident.

Neutral coasting is harmless. Staying in gear down to idle RPM is also harmless. Both are equally acceptable, with only the slightest minor advantages and disadvantages to differentiate them.

i wear a US size 18,

[ClutchFork]

Thank you for the warm welcome, it's in there because it became very hard to shift, as in 7/8 of the time now i couldn't shift without relentlessly pumping the clutch. got a new clutch in june, so i don't know if the clutch is bad or something else.

Did they change the slave cylinder when you had the clutch done? I always do, but on my last two, the master cylinder was bad too and I had problems from it after the clutch was changed out. By the way, my 2001 Ranger had to have everything replaced at 82,000 miles, clutch, slave, and master.

the main reason i coast in in neutral is because my foot is too big for the pedal, i wear a US size 18

You would like the '77 F150 I had many years ago. Look at the size of this clutch pedal (besides there is more floor space in a full size truck):

That be my sister in the driver's seat (circa 1980), just so ya'll don't think I have wimpy arms.


You can run those gears out a lot more. I have the 4 cylinder and normally often hit 4000 rpm in 1st and 2nd. But sometimes even drive it like this:



Neutral coasting is fine, but would not do it going down hill on much of a grade. Do you live in a flat area? How are your starts on an uphill grade coming?

[AHTOXA]

A size 18 shoe!!!

Holy shit, and I thought I had big shoes - I wear a 15. Man, if I have a hard time finding the right size of shoes, I can imagine trying to find an 18.

How tall are you? I may no longer hold the title of the tallest known member on here.

[tankinbeans]

Welcome to the board!

[ClutchDisc]

Welcome! What kind of mpg do you get out of the 3.0?

[blackwell]

ok, i see i should pay more attention to the rpms mainly to be aware. ill start doing that

i did check the fluid and it was fine, that was the first thing i checked when the problem arose, checked it again before sending it to the shop to be sure

not only do i have no idea what a slave cylinder does (sorry, not the most knowledgeable about vehicles) but i got this truck with about 126,000 miles on it. i believe it was a preowned vehicle when my uncle had it too.

i would love a truck that size (especially with the room around the pedals!)

i am 6'6", so it may not be proportional lol

i'm not exactly sure of the gas mileage, somewhere in the low 20's. i'm sure if there was somebody smaller in there it might get better gas mileage lol.

when i had the clutch replaced in june it was replaced, they are this time as well to be sure. they said nothing was wrong with the master cylinder

[AHTOXA]

Jeez. I'm 6'7" and wear a size 15. I'm amazed that I can even balance myself standing.

[theholycow]

not only do i have no idea what a slave cylinder does (sorry, not the most knowledgeable about vehicles)

It's pretty simple. The master cylinder is mounted near the pedal. When you push the pedal, it pushes fluid out of the master cylinder. That fluid arrives at the slave cylinder and pushes stuff (specifically the release bearing, which pushes the clutch cover assembly's fingers, which take pressure off of the pressure plate, which stops putting pressure on the clutch disc). In older vehicles the slave cylinder looked a lot like the master cylinder, but in yours it looks like a donut that expands or some kind of old-timey camera lens.

I made a very simple demonstration video:

i'm not exactly sure of the gas mileage, somewhere in the low 20's. i'm sure if there was somebody smaller in there it might get better gas mileage lol.

It is unlikely that a smaller person would make a measurable change in fuel economy.

[ClutchFork]

He has to look at the previous repair receipt and see if they replaced the slave or not.

I hate the new fangled concentric slaves. My 1984 F150 had hydraulic clutch linkage with the slave on the outside of the bell housing. I changed out the clutch once and just pulled the slave off it's bracket and left it intact, then put it back on when I was done and the clutch worked perfectly without my having to bleed it or add fluid. Funny, that truck's hydraulics went nearly 300,000 miles with no fluid change or component replacement. Ah, the case for simplicity!

[blackwell]

It is unlikely that a smaller person would make a measurable change in fuel economy.

oh i know, i was kidding. it's like 0.2 mpg per 100 lbs or something i think. is that right?

but that was cool, had no idea how that worked.

i may get it back today or tomorrow.

also, i am currently in Lubbock so the only downhill i face here is the parking garage and off ramp lol. originally from somewhere in the middle, and actually it is named the center of Texas, sits just east of the heart of Texas.