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Does Ford Need a Super Duty Raptor for Quicker Commercial Business?

The Raptor moniker doesn’t have a long tradition with Ford. In fact, it was first used on the 2010 F-150 SVT, which was so well received that the Blue Oval eventually dropped a similar version of two more generations of the popular truck.
Ford Super Duty Raptor - Rendering 6 photos
Photo: Instagram | Jlord8
Ford Super Duty Raptor - RenderingFord Super Duty Raptor - RenderingFord Super Duty Raptor - RenderingFord Super Duty Raptor - RenderingFord Super Duty Raptor - Rendering
A few years later, in 2019 to be more precise, the Dearborn company gave the Ranger the Raptor treatment, which was carried over to the latest generation that shares much of its DNA with the new Volkswagen Amarok, as both are based on the same platform.

As for the third installment in the series, as far as the vehicle lineup is concerned, it revolves around the Bronco. The iconic model returned in 2020 to battle it out with Jeep’s Wrangler, and the Raptor variant takes things to a whole new level by featuring lots of upgrades inside and out, and beneath the skin, all of them with emphasis on making it look sportier and improving its prowess on arduous terrains.

Besides the ‘look-at-me’ design, other traits of the Raptor family include reinforced ladder-frame chassis, heavy-duty suspension with different dampers, jacked-up styling, uprated brakes, and very punchy engines sitting under the bulging hoods, and breathing air from behind the exclusive grilles. All Raptors stand out immediately on the open road, and in crowded cities too for that matter, next to their lesser siblings, and they always seem ready to carve their own path through the woods, should the driver want to.

But is Ford planning to expand the Raptor offering to other models? Maybe, maybe not, as only they can answer this question. Honestly, there is nothing to indicate that at the time of writing, but if they did, then they will have to decide what vehicle deserves the sporty and off-road-ready treatment. Should you ask jlord8, who is the artist behind the rendering shared in the gallery above, about it, then he would say that it is the Super Duty lineup that needs to go down this route. We wouldn’t contradict the pixel manipulator, because on paper, it does seem like an interesting proposal.

In this instance, the vehicle of choice was the Ford F-450, which has received a few special touches. It has tweaked lighting units up front, complete with the extra lights mounted above the new grille, off-road-y bumper, and new wheels. The real thing would sport other modifications, however, like the fatter fenders at both ends, bulging hood, and more inches between its belly and the road. A hypothetical Raptor version of the Ford Super Duty would also need some chassis reinforcements, together with better brakes and new suspension, and a very punchy engine to further improve its performance. So, what mill would you give it if you had the power to decide?

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About the author: Cristian Gnaticov
Cristian Gnaticov profile photo

After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s.
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