New Ranger RT178 - 3 recalls already!

[RobA]

I took delivery of a new Ranger RT178 in April and have gotten 3 recall notices!!  And my nearest Ranger dealer is almost 1-1/2 hours away.

 

- Mercury has a recall because they put the wrong idle air control valve on the engine causing the it to idle too fast.  Luckily there's a Mercury outboard dealer 35 minutes away and it was a quick fix.

- Ranger has a recall on the fuel filler cap due to filling/venting problems.

- Ranger has a recall on the bilge pump wiring as the wrong kind may have been used.

 

I have read comments here and elsewhere that since Bass Pro bought them the quality of the product isn't what it used to be but I certainly didn't expect this.

[gim]

That sucks Roba. The acquisition of Ranger by BPS was not great for Ranger Boats. Hopefully the problems are fixed easily and you can get back to what you enjoy doing.

[detroit1]

That blows. Hopefully those will be your only problems for the next 15 years. Enjoy!

[E-rude dude]

So Ranger made a mistake, admitted they made a mistake, made you aware they made a mistake, and is paying to correct the mistake. But somehow this is wrong?

p.s. Ranger does not manufacture Mercury motors. 

[RobA]

16 minutes ago, E-rude dude said:

So Ranger made a mistake, admitted they made a mistake, made you aware they made a mistake, and is paying to correct the mistake. But somehow this is wrong?

p.s. Ranger does not manufacture Mercury motors. 

I realize some of the problems and recalls were not their fault.  Recalls are good since they admit the problem and correct it.  However, I wasn't expecting 3 recalls in such a short time (who does?).  It might have been easier to take if I got the notices all at once.

 

I chose Ranger for various reasons - quality being one of them.  The nearest dealer is almost 90 minutes away which makes it more of a pain to get things straightened out.

 

There were other problems as well - punctured fuel line prevented motor from getting fuel, tail light fell off, 3 of 4 seat bolts fell out, pedestal seat fitting broke, 2 of the rod tubes in rod locker fell off the support bracket and then 3 recalls.  All that in less than 2 months has made it a frustrating and disappointing experience.

[Boomstick]

It could be worse. They could have turned their head on known problems like many car manufacturers do and left you with a boat that takes on water with a motor that fails randomly etc.

[Biglittle8]

9 minutes ago, RobA said:

I realize some of the problems and recalls were not their fault.  Recalls are good since they admit the problem and correct it.  However, I wasn't expecting 3 recalls in such a short time (who does?).  It might have been easier to take if I got the notices all at once.

 

I chose Ranger for various reasons - quality being one of them.  The nearest dealer is almost 90 minutes away which makes it more of a pain to get things straightened out.

 

There were other problems as well - punctured fuel line prevented motor from getting fuel, tail light fell off, 3 of 4 seat bolts fell out, pedestal seat fitting broke, 2 of the rod tubes in rod locker fell off the support bracket and then 3 recalls.  All that in less than 2 months has made it a frustrating and disappointing experience.

That stinks! Seems like their quality control is lacking. Recalls happen, but all the little stuff gets agrivating and is avoidable. I own an old Ranger the build quality is outstanding.

[Gfd63]

I find it hard to believe that Ranger would compromise their reputation & QA wither there was a merger/acquisition with BPS or not. But given the world & the way things are these days nothing would surprise Me. I inquired about 2 boats Ranger makes The RT188P & RB190. The person I talked to at Ranger said that they're just getting back to full production & they're working on orders from last year that weren't filled due to the pandemic. I certainly hope they aren't rushing things through in production just to meet schedules. Cause that kinda haste leads to those a fore mentioned recalls & shotty workmanship. Which definitely isn't what the Ranger reputation that Mr. Forrest Wood built.

[Dwight Hottle]

22 minutes ago, RobA said:

I realize some of the problems and recalls were not their fault.  Recalls are good since they admit the problem and correct it.  However, I wasn't expecting 3 recalls in such a short time (who does?).  It might have been easier to take if I got the notices all at once.

 

I chose Ranger for various reasons - quality being one of them.  The nearest dealer is almost 90 minutes away which makes it more of a pain to get things straightened out.

 

There were other problems as well - punctured fuel line prevented motor from getting fuel, tail light fell off, 3 of 4 seat bolts fell out, pedestal seat fitting broke, 2 of the rod tubes in rod locker fell off the support bracket and then 3 recalls.  All that in less than 2 months has made it a frustrating and disappointing experience.

 

I understand your frustrations but welcome to boat ownership 101. Recalls happen so do little problems that creep up on a regular basis. For example seat bolts falling out happen on all brands that I have owned or been in. Very common.  

[gim]

4 hours ago, RobA said:

All that in less than 2 months has made it a frustrating and disappointing experience.

 

I would definitely be frustrated too, especially being 90 minutes away.  I don't blame you for that at all.  Hopefully it is not a pattern that we see emerge with Ranger boats.  Forrest Wood would not be proud of it.

[TnRiver46]

4 minutes ago, gimruis said:

 

I would definitely be frustrated too, especially being 90 minutes away.  I don't blame you for that at all.  Hopefully it is not a pattern that we see emerge with Ranger boats.  Forrest Wood would not be proud of it.

+1, I don’t think I could handle that plus all the other stuff falling apart that wasn’t recalled

[J Francho]

Forrest Wood sold Ranger 34 years ago.  I doubt he cared then, and wouldn't care if he was alive still.  Recalls suck.  I have had a few on my truck over the years, and going to dealer is a pain and it's only 30 minutes away.  Unless the recalls are of "the boat may explode" nature, I'd say have them taken care of at your next fall maintenance trip, all at once.

[22RangerZ520R]

Hope it gets fixed for you without anymore issues.

 

I noticed zero quality differences between my "Pre-Johnny Morris" 2009 Z520 and my current "Johnny Morris" 2018 Z520L.

 

Imo Ranger is still the "golden standard" in bass boats, like the NRX is in bass rods.

 

I plan on ordering a 2022 Z520R in a couple weeks after they're released at the Classic.