Faithful Ford truckers often fall into a dichotomy. Lightning enthusiasts crave quick rigs to gain cred at the track. Bronco fans miss muddy rockcrawlers meant for trails. Ford’s Special Vehicle Team could’ve easily built a truck for either purpose, but as guardians of automotive culture, it’s not their duty to take a safe route. SVT rethought “speed truck” ethic entirely. Instead of engineering a tire-shredder, SVT focused on sustaining high speed off-road in a way that no stock vehicle has before. The 2010 Ford SVT F-150 Raptor tackles both asphalt and desert sands so masterfully that it is instantly deserving of supercar status. The Raptor’s victories in design, safety, navitainment and ergonomics mean that it isn’t just a great truck — it’s a great vehicle. Children will mount posters of this desert bandit on their walls. In an era of lowest-common-denominator commodity cars, that’s indicative praise indeed.
If you weren’t able to follow my Tweets from the introduction, this video preview of the 5.4-liter V8-equipped model should tide you over until this winter, when Ford will begin shipping faster Raptors equipped with a new 6.2-liter V8. You can expect a full review from Speed:Sport:Life then.
James Draughn
being a diehard svt man, i was on the fence for the longest time on this truck. i wanted to see the rebirth of the lightning and still question the baja following and the ability of ford to properly market this vehicle as well as that following paying the adm dealers will saddle it with.
with that complaint out of the way, this truck seems to be … Read Moremore like the fr500 mustang that provided the market with a wealth of aftermarket parts. forcing the competition to create better components is always a good thing and i can not wait to see how the 6.2 engine performs and what the true motor heads will do with it in other applications.
As a competitive mountain biker I like the shock a ton. I can't begin to explain how much credibility that gave this project when I first heard the name Fox.
I have no use whatsoever for this truck. I still want one.
The Ford Raptor is a well respected approach by Ford to enter the off-road market with a turn key vehicle with the best of aftermarket products already installed and ready to roll. We were very impressed with the Foutz Motorsports team as they went on to conquer the Baja 1000 in their class 8 Raptor in the BCII "Born in Baja" movie. Hope to see the Ford Raptor at the Off-Road Expo in Pomona on October 9-11, 2009.
Wish we could be there, ORE — in fact, we might be! You never know!
Super cool truck! This is exactly what die-hard off roaders want. I know Ford will sell a ton of these trucks.
I see a ton of lifted trucks on nobby tires running all over socal. So I bet this will be a big seller for ford!
I just purchased a 2010 raptor (black) and my first ford. I am very impressed by the way it handles and the looks and feel of the truck. I take it off road at my jobsites everyday and it hasnt failed me yet. I cant wait to ship it to Peru and give it the ultimate desert test…..
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SVt is a good pickup choice. Comfortable ride, interior is quiet, different body styles, crash test scores, and spacious cabin are the main points.