When Ken Block first took the Ford F-150 RaptorTrax to play in the snow, around a decade ago, we almost held our breath all through the video. It was this insane contraption, this “maniacal automotive creation,” that would plow through the snow like no tomorrow. It was just one of the many bonkers vehicles his team built over the years.
With the window down, Ken Block drove the RaptorTrax over create covered in snow, to the top of the mountain, along edges where a single wrong move would have thrown him, together with the modded Ford and the snowboarders that were towed to the truck, hundreds of feet down.
The video shows ridiculously incredible stunts performed by the absolutely insane duo: Ken Block and the Ford F-150 RaptorTrax in the company of the two pro snowboarders.
Back in 2014, it was its debut video for Monster Energy, dubbed 'Ken Block’s RaptorTrax Shredfest with Zak Hale & Ethan Deiss.' The video was shot at Baldface in Nelson, Canada. Over the years, 5.3 million people watched the video uploaded on YouTube.
The Ford in the video started out in life back in 2009 as a regular F-150, rated at around $27,800. The model received elements from an F-150 Raptor. But this is no ordinary Raptor. Not in a million years.
Photo: LBI Limited
The team removed the stock 5.4-liter V8 engine and transplanted a more potent 6.2-liter V8 instead, in the company of a Whipple supercharger, which took it all the way to 650 horsepower. The power plant is mated to a six-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel-drive system.
A rear roll cage from SVC Offroad was installed on board, to protect occupants sitting in the Recaro seats, in case of a rollover. Custom Glassworks Unlimited fiberglass fenders are also on the menu.
The tracked monster has wheels for backup
Yet, the most important of the changes was the replacement of the stock wheels with a set of Mattracks 105M1-A1 tracks, which made it capable of roaming through snow like a real plow. This is how the Ford F-150 RaptorTrax came to life, following countless nights at the SVC headquarters.
The ultimate snow plow is now for sale over at LBI Limited in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for a small fortune: $195,000. Most likely, it cost a small fortune to build as well. That is now almost double than what you would normally pay for a brand-new Ford F-150 Raptor R. But considering all the work that went into it, all the places this contraption has been, and the hands that drove it there, it is most likely worth every cent.
Photo: LBI Limited
For those who would rather take it to the road instead of trails covered in snow, the tracks can be removed and replaced with Fifteen52 wheels with Toyo Open Country tires, which are included in the price.
It’s not just tracks it’s got, but also a pair of seats in the load bed, a rack on the sides to strap down boards, and a hitch-mounted grill to prepare dinner after a whole day of adventure.
Hoonigan completely changed the looks of the F-150. They fitted a wide body kit, skid plates, and Baja front bumper. It also received auxiliary LED Rigid Industries lights, mounted on a roof rack, to light up the trail covered in snow. A few dents and scratches show in the paint, nothing out of the ordinary considering where this truck has been.
The tracked Ford is not the first vehicle that went up for sale after the tragic passing of Hooligan daredevil Ken Block a year ago. The list includes several other vehicles, such as his 1977 Ford F-150 "Hoonitruck," the super rare 1986 Ford RS200 Evolution, his 2011 Fiesta GYM3, and 2013 Ford Fiesta ST RX43.
Ken Block said goodbye in his own fashion, with a breath-holding video filmed last fall in New Mexico, the Electrikhana TWO. After the racer’s tragic passing, in January 2023, the team shelved the footage with no idea whatsoever what to do with it. They eventually took it off the shelf and into the video editing room.
Photo: LBI Limited
The 12-minute film is a rollercoaster of emotions, taking viewers all across the town, with the Audi S1 quattro Hoonitron chasing through the city like a fireball, eating up corners, slamming into a protective plastic wall, and even into the camera filming from the tarmac in an attempt to catch that one special shot.
The last four minutes of the video are a tribute to the stunt hero, walking us through all of his absolutely insane adventures and taking us behind the scenes where we get to see a smiling Ken Block, being his usual self.
The director of the Electrikhana TWO, Brian Scotto, announced on social media that this is not the end of the Gymkhana. The series will continue with a new driver.
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