Ford by name, Ford by nature. So let's push this dirt-plug to its very border
Why we are working on it: to find out if it's as capable as we think, or if it's just stupid.
Month 1 — Specifications
Life with the Ford Ranger Raptor: Month 1
Welcoming Raptor Rangers to the Fleet - November 13, 2019
If all things are as it seems about the Ford Ranger Raptor, this is the least that has been seen, which is the most impressive. So you have to explain.
Explain that, yes, it's a Raptor. And no, it's not that fast in a straight line. And yes, it's expensive. And yes, it has a 2.0-liter diesel rather than a powerful turbocharged V6 petrol. But honestly, you just have to get it on the right track and then it's genius.
In its ethos, the Raptor is unlike other double-cab pickup trucks. It's more like a supercar in that it has features that you rarely get the chance to fully explore. Therefore, over the next few months, we will try to find its limits. Double cab pickups tend to be versatile, do-all vehicles that can accommodate five more one ton plus a bay load which, in the UK, gives them van tax status. The Raptor throws some of those who did-all the elements. It was designed by Ford of Australia to basically pound the rough tracks of starvation, and to hell with being a commercial vehicle.
You have to see the Predator in the bare chassis to fully appreciate just what Ford has made of it: how the front end is reinforced to withstand Bach-style rally-raid impact, while the rear end has been completely redesigned and ready to accommodate the springs, which would have lighter unsprung masses and much faster responses than springs that the Rangers, like most other pickups, would otherwise go with me.
And then there's the dampers from off-road specialist Fox, which is like "a candy store for dynamics engineers," says Simon Johnson, lead dynamics engineer for the Raptor Ranger.
Forgive me if I go to dive into these. The most noticeable part of them, if I understand correctly, is the bypass valve in the middle of the damper travel. So there's firm initial damping, then a fairly soft phase in which the valves allow oil to bypass the plunger, so it rides light and comfortable, and apparently the phases you ride in quite often. Then the braking force increases and reaches again by the end of the trip, after the piston has moved to the bypass valves. Ultimately, it's a bit like soft-closing a drawer - easy to travel, but as hard to get in as you like, and it never slams shut.
There are other impressive chassis things too. Ground clearance up to 51mm to 283mm. The approach angle is a terrific 32.5deg, the departure angle is 24deg (pickup trucks have long tail ends) and the rollover angle is 24deg. The depth of Wade is a pretty amazing 850mm. There is an order for BF Goodrich KO2 tires on a much wider track, with a Watt lever on the back to limit wobble resulting in a car that Johnson calls a “four-wheeler” and two things have struck me in my Raptor experience so far. For example, Johnson was not mistaken. Two, as trying to use all of the Ferrari 488's performance, you'll have to go hunting for the right place to do it.
As with supercars, some people get it and some don't. Some of those who haven't figured it out think the Predator should have a beefier engine than a 210bhp twin-turbo diesel that leaves it with a 0-62mph time of 10.5sec.
In fact, some of those who understand cars think so too. But the price is already prohibitive and nobody buys pickup trucks, Ford claims that with this kind of engine in Europe. So we have.
Another issue is the price. It's a £47,874 SUV and, thanks to springs, its payload has been reduced from more than a ton to just 620kg, meaning it should be treated as a car rather than a minivan for tax purposes. Which makes the VAT refund more difficult, and the 20/40% monthly in-kind benefit to the taxpayer is not £57/£114 as it would be on the Ranger Wildtrack A £295/£590. Every month. Towing capacity has also dropped from other Pathfinders, from 3500kg to 2500kg.
So the Raptor is very expensive as a car and hopeless as a commercial vehicle. Or vice versa. Or both. Other questions? Well I'm getting 27mpg so far and it doesn't really fit into parking spaces. The 12.9-meter turning circle isn't fun, which is all on a separate chassis—it's even less refined than load-bearing on the road and the interior breathed on a pickup cabin, not one befitting a $50k car. The engine, despite some synthesizing through the speakers, is grumbly. And I'm sure people look at it like it must have been one of those infamous '…' license plates BO55 and perform their driver is 90% dope. It's a very, very stupid car.
And God help me, I love him. I love that Ford's engineers watched cross-country rally scouting tools and decided to put it into production. I like that you have to go searching for the right place to use the full limits of its processing. And most importantly, I love how fun it is. This is exactly what was meant to be. It's like a driver's car, like a Caterham or a Ferrari or a hot hatchback, just designed for different kinds of roads.
So even if it makes me look ridiculous, too big, and has limits that are incredibly hard to come by, it's not a problem with the car. I just live in the wrong place.
Second Opinion
We have road tested earlier this year and I really liked it. No car has felt more at home in the air than the big Ford. But it was nonchalant the way she got back in a surprisingly comfortable road car that sealed the deal for me. It's massive though, and I think it would get annoying if I run it daily.
Simon Davis
Specification Ford Ranger Raptor
Specifications: Price new £47,874 price as checked £48,474 Parameters special paint £600
Test data: engine 4 cyls in line, 1996cc, twin-turbo, diesel мощность 210bhp at 3750rpm torque 367lb ft at 1750-2000 rpm Curb weight 2510kg maximum speed 106mph 0-62 mph 10.5 sec Fuel consumption 31,7 mpg SO2 233g/km Disadvantages No costs no
