<P> For the 1983 model year, Ford introduced the Ford Ranger for the United States and Canada . Replacing the 1971 - 1982 Ford Courier (a rebadged Mazda B - Series), the Ranger was the first compact pickup truck designed by Ford Motor Company . In 1995, exports of the Ford Ranger began in select Latin and South American countries . To accommodate the demand for the vehicle, in 1998, Ford Argentina commenced local production of the Ranger, introducing a four - door cab not sold in North America . </P> <P> Over its 29 - year production, the Ford Ranger was produced over the same chassis architecture . Alongside a major redesign in 1993, the model saw mid-cycle updates for 1989, and 1998, with smaller updates in 2001 and 2004 . In South America, for 2010, the Ranger saw all - new exterior sheetmetal not given to its North American counterpart . The Ford Ranger served as the basis for several models, including the Ford Bronco II compact SUV, the first two generations of the Ford Explorer mid-size SUV (alongside the Mazda Navajo and Mercury Mountaineer), and the first - generation Ford Explorer Sport Trac mid-size pickup truck . In 1994, Mazda began sales of the B - Series in the United States and Canada by rebadging the Ford Ranger, the reverse of the Mazda - sourced Ford Courier . </P> <P> On December 22, 2011, the final Ford Ranger produced for North America rolled off the assembly line, becoming the final vehicle assembled at Twin Cities Assembly . For the 2012 model year, Ford Argentina began assembly of the Ford Ranger T6 . </P> <P> In 2017, Ford announced that a redesigned version of the Ranger T6 would be sold in North America as a 2019 model; the Ranger would form the basis for a Ford Bronco SUV as a potential 2020 model . </P>

When was the last year ford ranger was made