First Drive: 2010 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor Video

MotorTrend

Senior Editor Edward Loh drives Fords newest addition to the F-150 family

Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:03 Hi, this is Edward Lo, senior editor with Motor Trend.

00:26 And we're here in Anza, Borrego with the 2010 Ford F-150 Raptor.

00:31 Now, this is a special edition truck.

00:33 It's what happens when hot rod guys end up

00:35 building an off-road vehicle.

00:37 What this thing is built for is high speed desert off-roading.

00:39 So let's go see how it performs.

00:40 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:44 [ENGINE REVVING]

00:47 So we're now driving the Raptor.

01:09 And this is an amazing purpose-built off-road vehicle,

01:12 primarily built for high speed desert running,

01:14 though it is respectable in rock crawling and mudding

01:17 situations.

01:18 Now, what Ford has done is taken an F-150, standard,

01:21 built on the line, and added a whole host

01:24 of off-road components.

01:27 They've widened the track seven inches.

01:29 They've actually built the body out eight inches.

01:32 And they've given this thing an amazing amount

01:34 of travel front and rear, 11.2 inches in the front

01:37 and 12.1 inches of travel in the rear,

01:39 along with 10 inches of ground clearance

01:42 from ground to skid plate.

01:43 Ford also has our specially designed internal bypass shocks

01:46 from Fox.

01:47 Now, if you don't know the name Fox Racing Shocks,

01:50 they're one of the premier builders of aftermarket off-road

01:55 and mountain bike suspension.

01:57 They build these amazing shocks.

02:00 Ford is the first OEM to offer internal bypass

02:03 shocks on a production vehicle.

02:05 And it really transforms the Raptor

02:07 into an amazing desert runner.

02:09 I've driven this vehicle out here.

02:11 I'm at Anza Borrego at high speeds,

02:13 hit about 75, 80 miles an hour, and then was

02:16 driven by one of their professional drivers

02:19 who took me up to the vehicle's limit, 100 miles an hour,

02:23 on off-road, under conditions that would

02:25 destroy any other truck.

02:27 So very, very impressive.

02:29 Almost eerie in how smooth it is.

02:31 When you go over high speed, hit the whoops,

02:33 you don't feel anything.

02:34 Of course, there's other elements

02:36 that make this really special off-road.

02:38 It runs a 35-inch tall BF Goodrich tire,

02:41 specially designed by Ford and BF Goodrich for off-road use.

02:45 They look enormous when positioned under this car.

02:48 They really do help it float over sand

02:50 and give it a lot of traction when

02:51 you're powering out of corners.

02:53 Speaking of power, this truck is powered

02:55 by the same 5.4 liter, single overhead cam, three valve V8

02:59 found in the F-150.

03:01 Makes about 320 horsepower and 390 pound feet of torque.

03:06 Pretty good.

03:06 Pretty good out here.

03:08 I think it could use a little more oomph.

03:10 And the SVT guys know that.

03:11 So they're coming out with a 6.2 liter V8 in the winter

03:15 and should help get this thing going real quick.

03:18 Estimated power for that engine is about 400 horsepower

03:20 and 400 pound feet of torque.

03:22 [MUSIC PLAYING]

03:25 [ENGINE REVVING]

03:51 So by now you might be thinking, well,

03:52 this is really no different than what a guy on the street

03:56 can do with his own F-150.

03:58 He spends a couple thousand bucks,

04:00 throws some big tires on it, some coil overs.

04:03 But the real key here is that Ford engineers programmed

04:06 in some very aggressive electronics.

04:07 And that's a realm where the aftermarket really can't touch.

04:12 They spent considerable effort programming

04:14 aggressive sport mode.

04:17 So you can throw this thing sideways

04:18 and yet be in still full control.

04:21 The car will actually help you fire the brakes

04:23 and bring you back under control should

04:25 you get a little too sideways.

04:26 They also put in a hill descent control mode, which

04:29 uses the stock ABS system, the actuators.

04:33 And it'll fire the brakes as you do a steep decline

04:37 down a rocky slope.

04:38 We tried that out here in Anzaburgo.

04:40 Worked brilliantly.

04:41 Very, very impressive when you get the car so tilted over

04:44 you can't see any sky.

04:47 Again, complete confidence.

04:48 You can put both feet on the ground,

04:49 don't have to touch the gas or the brake.

04:51 This thing will just creep down using

04:53 these advanced electronics.

04:54 So again, really nice package out here.

04:57 Does amazing.

04:57 A lot of grip.

04:59 But really impressive is the way the tires, the suspension,

05:03 the widened track all work together

05:05 and make this thing so easy to handle, so easy

05:07 to flick around here.

05:08 And really puts a smile on your face

05:10 when you're doing some serious off-roading.

05:13 [ENGINE REVVING]

05:16 [MUSIC PLAYING]

05:20 [ENGINE REVVING]

05:48 So as you can see, the Raptor really

05:50 does perform very well out here in the desert.

05:53 It's purpose built for off-roading.

05:54 But in truth, it handles really well on the street too.

05:57 So if you like this package, like the way it looks,

05:59 like the way it performs, you can buy one right now

06:01 at your Ford dealership for $38,995.

06:04 [MUSIC PLAYING]

06:07 [ENGINE REVVING]

06:11 [MUSIC PLAYING]

06:14 [MUSIC PLAYING]

06:18 [MUSIC PLAYING]

06:22 (upbeat music)

06:24 (whooshing)

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