If you’re feeling constant, powerful vibrations beneath your feet at this very moment, then you’re catching the aftershocks of the absolute bomb that Ford just dropped in Detroit in the form of the mid-engined Ford GT carbon fiber supercar that is positioned to render Ferrari to charcoal 50 years after that fateful Le Mans victory. Ford, wanting to make expressly clear that today was its day and that Detroit is its house, also revealed another significant piece of its Ford Performance artillery cache in the 2017 F-150 Raptor.
“When we created the first Raptor, we set out to prove vehicle performance isn’t just measured on the street or at the track – off-road can be even more fun,” said Raj Nair, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development. “The original Raptor, plus enhancements on the all-new F-150 set the bar for us to make the all-new Raptor better in every way.”
The new 2017 F-150 Raptor will build upon the aluminum and high-strength steel frame and aluminum-alloy body of the all-new F-150, adding 17-inch wheels wrapped in BFGoodrich All-Terrain KO2 tires, 6 inches of width, and a fuel exhaust system—a first for the Raptor.
Powering the 2017 F-150 Raptor will be the second-gen 3.5-liter EcoBoost, which will outpower the current-gen 6.2-liter V8 and its 411 horsepower and 434 lb-ft of torque, and is mated to a 10-speed automatic paddle-shift transmission. The Raptor will get a new four-wheel-drive, torque-on-demand transfer case to distribute power between the front and rear wheels and provide increased traction for off-roading.
The Raptor will feature six preset driving modes from which you can choose: normal mode, street mode, weather mode, mud and sand mode, Baja mode, and rock mode—all of which are pretty easily explained by their names.
The 2017 F-150 Raptor will also feature advanced technology—including LED lighting and 360-degree camera—as well available Torsen front differential and standard FOX Racing Shox.
Gallery: 2017 F-150 Raptor
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