2001 Ranger XLT Review

The Ranger has been around for 37 years in the US for a big reason, value.
Sure, it's not the best at almost anything, but it gets the job done, generation after generation, without the foaming, wild eyed fans that the Tacoma has garnered in its 30 year existence.
It's a coffee from Mcd's, not very good, but it'll get you on your feet for the work day ahead.
It's underpowered for speeding or towing, but, then, when are you actually towing with a compact pick up again?
It will need a trans re-build at around 150-180k miles if it wasn't babied, so look for one that had a loving owner if it's used.
The engines are solid in these, they will weep oil from every gasket after about 120k miles, but that won't stop them.
You'll have things like coils crack, compressors wear out, camshaft synchronizers cause missfires, but the engine will keep going until you find an autoparts store.
Overall, a trusty pickup, that will get decent highway mileage, is easy to work on and most important, is affordable used.