I'm Driving A Ford Ranger Raptor For Four Months: What Do You Want To Know?

Ford's toughened pick-up is joining Car Throttle as a long-term test car, but will its off-road ability seem wasted in the real world?
I'm Driving A Ford Ranger Raptor For Four Months: What Do You Want To Know?

As the Performance Blue Ford Ranger Raptor came back down to Earth with a thump and the long-travel Fox suspension deftly soaking up the impact, I wondered - where in the real world are you supposed to make the most of this thing? The launch of Ford’s burly pick-up in Morocco and its closed off-road courses were hilarious fun but tinged with the overall feeling that the average buyer would struggle to find anywhere to make the most of this impressive ability.

That’s why I’m now hacking around some green lanes in the decidedly less exotic environs of northern Cambridgeshire, in a Ranger Raptor which will be with Car Throttle for four months. Can we actually find anywhere to properly stretch its legs, or has the Raptor been compromised for the sake of making it better in the kind of environment you’ll never experience?

Cambridgeshire Fenland didn't test the Raptor's ability all that much, but we still had some fun...
Cambridgeshire Fenland didn't test the Raptor's ability all that much, but…

The Raptor, you see, is inspired by the beefed-up recce vehicles used for off-road competitions like the Baja 500. Its ladder chassis has been strengthened so it can take up to 1G of load without bending. There are 2.5-inch-thick Fox Racing dampers in each corner, increasing suspension travel by 32 per cent at the front and 18 per cent at the rear. The final main piece of the puzzle is a set of chunky BF Goodrich tyres.

All of this makes the Raptor heavier, less efficient and more expensive. A lot more expensive - it’s £51,000, which is £10,000 more than the priciest regular Ranger. And that’ll be a Ranger you can use as a commercial vehicle and claim the VAT back. No such luck with the Raptor - thanks to the new suspension, the strengthening, the underbody protection and some other bits, it’s 250kg heavier than its less burly siblings. That eats into its gross payload, so it can’t be classed as a commercial.

I'm Driving A Ford Ranger Raptor For Four Months: What Do You Want To Know?

Sounds boring, this is important, as it takes away one of the biggest draws for UK pick-up buyers. You do at least get plenty of equipment for your money - the sole option on ‘our’ Raptor is Performance Blue paint (£700), and the standard features haven’t left us wanting for anything. Apart from a front camera, maybe - due to its sheer size, it isn’t the easiest thing to parallel park.

Over the next few months, we’ll attempt to find somewhere to make the most of the Raptor’s off-road nouse, see if the changes Ford Performance has made compromise daily useability, and learn to live with the less-than-spectacular 210bhp, 369lb ft 2.0-litre diesel engine.

I'm Driving A Ford Ranger Raptor For Four Months: What Do You Want To Know?

And as ever, we want some reader input. Is there anything you want to know about the car or anything you’d like to see us do with it? Let us know in the comments.

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Comments

That_1_Guy

how good is it for shooting (photos and videos) of cars? Does the suspension help or make it worse?

09/09/2020 - 12:02 |
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The ride isn’t bad, but it does struggle to settle down even on smoother roads. Yet to shoot anything out of it but it would be far from my first tracking car choice…

09/09/2020 - 13:18 |
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Kevin Rivero

How’s the fit and finish of the interior? Does it feel well-built and properly put together?

09/09/2020 - 14:42 |
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Interior’s great, actually - certainly on par with something like a Focus. I haven’t been in a pre-facelift Ranger but I gather the cabin was a bit ropey. Very quiet and refined too.

09/09/2020 - 15:15 |
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Olivier (CT's grammar commie)

I’m personally curious to know how it will fare in towing, since it’s generally one of the biggest selling points for pick-up trucks in North America. It’d be especially interesting if you’d compare it against a regular Ranger, since the high-travel suspension doesn’t seem especially well suited to towing.

It’d also be interesting if you’d simply do a regular comparison test against a regular Ranger (like a Wildtrak) both on-road and off-road, or against a similar off-road oriented pick-up if it exists.

09/09/2020 - 17:00 |
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Getting a regular Ranger in is on the to-do list - ideally the Thunder since it has the same engine. Be interesting to see how much different the ride height, extra weight, the tyres etc affects economy

09/09/2020 - 20:04 |
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DEFECTED STREETRACER

Is the 2.0l TT I4 Diesel really that slow as people say or is much better than people think??

09/09/2020 - 21:06 |
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It’ll be fast enough for most, but it does sound and feel a bit strained under load, and the 10-speed gearbox behaves strangely. It reminds me of a CVT…

09/10/2020 - 06:39 |
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Anonymous

0-60mph
40-70mph
70mph to zero brake test
Real world fuel consumption
How many extra things for a weekend away can you fit in the back

09/11/2020 - 05:32 |
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