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Mustang Shelby GT500 Engine Could Be Utilized In the Ford F-150 Raptor Too

On today’s episode of “From the Rumor Mill,” it appears the Ford Motor Company wants to send off the F-150 Raptor with a bang. A supercharged, 5.2-liter, 700-plus horsepower engine is the culprit, originating from the Mustang Shelby GT500 for the 2020 model year.
Ford F-150 Raptor 39 photos
Photo: Ford
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Car & Driver cites “sources within Ford” about this possibility but labels the development as a rumor. Given this choice of words, the sources aren’t exactly reliable. Even if the Blue Oval does make the impossible happen, how would the eight-cylinder pickup truck compare to the F-150 Raptor?

Ford rolled out the EcoBoost V6 as a combination of performance and fuel efficiency. But swapping the six-cylinder for a supercharged V8 makes do without the efficiency, which goes against the marketing jibber-jabber that Ford used when the F-150 Raptor was revealed in 2015 at the Detroit Auto Show alongside the Shelby GT350R and GT.

Four years ago, from the press release: “Ford's new, second-generation high-output 3.5-liter EcoBoost engine that produces more power with greater efficiency than the current 6.2-liter V8.” The Blue Oval also labeled the engine as “Raptor-exclusive,” but that’s not the case any longer. With all due respect, the Boss engine in the previous generation sounds a lot better than a glorified vacuum cleaner.

Car & Driver also expects the F-150 Raptor swan song with 5.2 liters of supercharged V8 would compete against the Ram Rebel TRX. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles confirmed the 6.2-liter supercharged V8 in the full-size pickup at the Capital Markets Day 2018, but we’re not keeping our hopes up for 707 horsepower.

In the Rebel TRX concept from September 2016, the HEMI develops 575 horsepower and sends all of that suck-squeeze-bang-blow through the ZF 8HP. 37" tires and a lot of suspension travel don’t sound bad at all, right?

Looking at the bigger picture, those who want eight cylinders in the F-150 Raptor can ring Hennessey Performance Engineering in Texas for a conversion. It doesn’t come cheap at $147,950 including the donor vehicle, but 758 horsepower from the supercharged Coyote 5.0-liter V8 are more than the 700-plus horsepower Ford is promising for the Predator V8.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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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.
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