Before anything, skip to the 12:05 timestamp of the following video. That’s Ford previewing the new Ranger Raptor. In addition to a start-up sound and the design of the front grille, the Blue Oval has also flashed a QR code that redirects to a video that says one thing: February 2022. In other words, the off-road truck is due to be revealed as a 2023 model.
Unfortunately for potential customers, we don’t know too much about it. Spy photos of camouflaged prototypes suggest four main differences over lesser variants, starting with a coil-sprung rear axle à la the F-150 Raptor.
The second change involves a higher ground clearance, which is due - in part - to BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 tires. Fox shock absorbers need to be mentioned as well, and that’s four. But if you listen closely to the start-up sound, you’ll notice a fifth difference that’s still open to speculation.
For the U.S. market, one could argue that Ford is going to borrow the 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 of the Explorer ST, a twin-turbocharged mill that’s also expected under the hood of the Bronco Raptor. The global variant has already been proven to be 3.0 liters in the guise of the Power Stroke turbo diesel, which is why the aforementioned EcoBoost should fit in there perfectly fine.
As for Australia and other markets outside of North America, it remains to be seen if the 2.0-liter EcoBlue bi-turbo diesel four-cylinder lump will soldier on. You see, all the launch videos of the Ranger feature the V6-esque sound for the Raptor, which probably means that six cylinders and gasoline are the way to go for every Ranger Raptor based on the T6.2 architecture.
Going forward, a plug-in hybrid powertrain may also happen due to the Bronco’s “EV Coaching” feature that we’ve covered last July.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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