Ford Bronco Raptor Breaks Cover With 400+ Horsepower and Extreme Off-Roading Skills

The Bronco is one of the most popular vehicles Ford introduced over the past years. The revived nameplate proved a darling for off-road fans that saw this Wrangler-killer machine as one of the best moves Ford pulled off. And yet, something was missing for the Bronco, especially when looking at the Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 392 with its 6.4-liter V8 capable of delivering 470 horsepower. Ford fans long-hoped for a Bronco to match this level of performance and, sadly, today is the moment they will probably be left miserable.

The Bronco Raptor fails to match the Rubicon, engine-wise, with an advertised 3.0-liter EcoBoost engine that promises to deliver “400+ horsepower.” Ford already has a 3.0-liter V6 under the hood of the Explorer ST, so we expect a tuned-up version of this to get under Bronco Raptor’s hood. The Explorer ST gets exactly 400 horsepower out of this V6, with 415 pound-feet of torque. Since the regular Bronco also squeezes 400 pound-feet of torque out of the 2.7-liter V6, we expect Ford to up the game and offer some significant improvements, at least in the torque department.

Of course, 400+ horsepower could mean anything, but certainly, it does not mean 500 horsepower to beat the Rubicon 392. Right now, both the power and the torque of the new engine Ford deems “exclusive” to Bronco Raptor are marked as “to be determined.” We hope the final figures will be closer to the HEMI’s V8 mill in the Rubicon. If not, the Bronco Raptor would still be “the most powerful street-legal Bronco ever,” if that counts for something.

The engine will be mated to a 10-speed SelectShift automatic transmission tuned to Ford Performance’s standards. The true dual-exhaust system allows the driver to alter the sound of their Bronco Raptor with four selectable exhaust modes, including Normal, Sport, Quiet, and Baja.

We’ve already seen the new Bronco Raptor in tests and noticed it was a lot wider than a regular Bronco. Ford confirms the performance model is 9.8 inches wider for improved high-speed cornering, although the real Raptor’s focus is off-road racing. The beast gets some serious Ultra4-inspired off-road technology, and Ford will make it the official Ultra4 series SUV.

Bronco Raptor’s development was done by Ford Performance with a clear goal to produce the “ultimate vehicle for hardcore off-road enthusiasts.” They modified the standard suspension and the chassis with new shock towers to allow for more wheel travel and off-road durability. The Ford Performance-designed front and rear control arms allow for maximum wheel travel of 13.0 inches in front and 14.0 inches at the rear, which is 60% and 40% more, respectively, than a Bronco base model. The torsional rigidity was increased by 50% by using a B-pillar crossbar and a C-pillar reinforcement.

Ford Performance graced the Bronco Raptor with the same axles it uses on the Bronco DR race truck. The solid rear axle is upgraded to a semi-float Dana 50 Heavy-Duty AdvanTEK with 235-millimeter ring gear, while the Dana 44 AdvanTEK front-drive unit includes upgraded half-shafts with 210-millimeter ring gear. The 4x4 system was also reinforced with a higher-capacity clutch designed to withstand the demands of high-performance desert events. The upgraded transfer case also features a 3.06 4x4 LO ratio for up to 67.7:1 crawl ratio.

Of course, the Bronco Raptor features a High-Performance Off-Road Stability Suspension (HOSS) system with Live Valve technology, similar to the one on the F-150 Raptor. Suspension sensors at each corner monitor terrain conditions independently hundreds of times every second and adjust suspension tuning accordingly.

The Ford Bronco Raptor is not only mechanically distinct from the regular Broncos, but also visually, inside and out. Ford made it clear this is not a run-of-the-mill off-roader, starting with model-specific LED headlights and going all the way to the dashboard focused around off-road features.

The new Bronco Raptor will make its first real-life appearance on February 3 at the famed King of the Hammers race in the Johnson Valley in California. We hope Ford will sort out Bronco Raptor’s datasheet by then, so make sure you stay tuned for more details as they emerge.