Ford Ranger Raptor Review: Better With A V6, Even If It's Strangled

I was one of many who looked at the press pack for the original Ford Ranger Raptor, ignored the pictures of it flying through the air and the talk of Baja-ready suspension and focused more on the engine. A 2.0-litre diesel? Really?

After all, this car’s bigger brother, the F-150 Raptor, made a name for itself with a big, snarling V8 under the bonnet. And although it had been downsized by the time of the Ranger Raptor , its powerful, Ford GT adjacent twin-turbo V6 was nothing to be sniffed at.

Fast forward to today, and the latest Raptor twin-turbo diesel has a new stablemate. If preferred you can have a 3.0-litre turbocharged V6. Sounds much more appropriate, until you learn that the version Europe gets is a bit half-baked thanks to emissions regulations - ‘ours’ makes 288bhp and 362lb ft of torque, compared to the 400bhp and 418lb ft in other markets.

This is a car that weighs the best part of 2.5 tonnes, and so, when you put your foot down, it makes a pleasant (if somewhat muted) noise, but it never really feels like a whole lot of acceleration is going on. It’s less lethargic than the old diesel, of course, but it’s not a night and day difference - it still needs a tenth shy of eight seconds to crack the 0-62mph sprint.

That said, peak torque being available from 2,000rpm means you don’t have to cane it to make good progress, which is a good thing, as this truck likes a drink even on a light throttle. The official combined MPG figure is just 20.5mpg, although we were able to better this. Slightly.

It’s hooked up to Ford’s 10-speed automatic transmission, which still takes some getting used to all these years on from its release. It still seems like a hell of a lot of cogs, but the shifts are fast and smooth, and the paddle shifters are - as was the case with the old Raptor - better than what you get in a lot of supercars.

What is different this time, though, is the paddles aren’t just a standout item in an otherwise dreary cabin - it’s a properly plush space in there, not just for a pick-up, but in general. Not everyone is going to be a fan of the massive portrait touchscreen infotainment system, but it is slick and reasonably easy to navigate.

In terms of road manners, this new Ranger Raptor is a big step up from the old one. Yes, you get some of the usual pick-up truck shakes associated with a ladder chassis, but it rides well for the most part, is quiet and refined at speed - despite a bit of noise from those chunky BF Goodrich tyres - and it can even corner without generating comedic levels of understeer.  

Of course, a lot of suspension travel and a lot of bulk does mean there’s quite a bit of weight transfer, be that from side to side or pitching/diving under acceleration and braking. But weirdly, that makes the Raptor a surprisingly fun car to drive on a twisty road. Go in too fast and you’ll get a load of understeer, but keep the entry speed more sensible and be a bit greedy with the throttle on the exit, and you will get a nice bit of slip - after all, we’re in a vehicle that’s rear-drive as standard, on not-so-Tarmac friendly tyres and with not much weight over the back.

It’d be missing the point to not venture away from the asphalt, of course, and when the going gets mucky, the new Raptor is just as impressive as the old one. Ford has 2.5-inch thick Fox Live Valve suspension with three ways of adjustability, along with a strengthened ladder frame and new aluminium control arms. As per the last Ranger, there’s a Baja mode tailored for bouncing over rough terrain at high speeds.

It’s not, then, the same as something like a Land Rover Defender, where off-roading is done at a more considered pace. In the Raptor, you can gun it and not really worry too much. Well, up to a point - while technically green lanes are under the national speed limit, it’s not exactly advisable to try and hit 60mph on them. 

Although we did what we could to test the Raptor’s rough terrain chops, it just feels like you’re scratching the surface. Whatever we did, it just lapped it up with its beefy suspension, and asked for more, something we couldn’t provide. And that was the problem with the old one - where do you make the most of it if you don’t have a mate with a quarry?

This doesn’t seem to have put buyers off the old one, nor does the fact that all those chassis mods make the car a lot heavier, once again eating into its gross weight and thus reducing the payload below the 1,000kg threshold for commercial vehicles. So you still can’t register it as a commercial vehicle and avoid paying 20 per cent VAT on it.

Regardless, you seem to see plenty of previous-gen Raptors about, and I’m already seeing plenty of new ones. Ford still lists it on its configurator minus VAT, giving a figure of £50,800 that you need to slap over £10,000 on. Yep, it’s not cheap, and switching to the diesel only saves £3,000 or so.

Amusingly, the diesel only gets an official combined MPG figure of just 0.1mpg better than the V6 petrol, but in reality, and especially on longer cruises, I suspect the difference will grow.

The V6 does feel a more appropriate option for the car, even if it’s a bit of a strangled one. It adds an extra sense of silliness to what was already one of the silliest vehicles money could buy, and you can’t help but want one. Even if you don’t have access to an empty quarry.