WHY STILL RULES
The ute market is huge in New Zealand, but Ford’s Raptor still has few true rivals
Double cab utes are so very popular in New Zealand and there are so very many to choose from, that a lot of it comes down to personal brand preference (pickup people are a passionate bunch for sure), or the fine detail in performance and specification.
That makes sense, because the basics are so similar. Utes are pretty much all ladder-chassis machines with diesel engines and part-time 4WD systems; yes, we know there are a couple of fulltime AWDers, but let’s not get bogged down in that.
Point is, choosing between them is going to come down to sheer emotion or a carefully thought-out pick list of equipment. Or price.
From a showroom-ready adventure/lifestyle point of view, I can’t see any argument against the Ford Ranger Raptor being top of the heap. There’s really nothing else that comes close.
It’s a really special machine. It’s been engineered to be the ultimate yump-tastic plaything, but the surprise-and-delight bit is that all the Fox suspension and chunky footwear also makes it a brilliant on-road Ranger.
It doesn’t hurt that it has Ford’s energetic 2.0-litre biturbo-diesel engine and 10-speed automatic, but it can’t simply rest on that: you can have the same powertrain in a Wildtrak, a number of special editions (so very many) and even the mid-range XLT from this year.
The smooth, eager performance is one thing, but the smooth ride and predictable handling you get from the dune-hopping chassis setup is what makes the Raptor great. It’s soft, but still beautifully controlled.
It’s no Mustang in the turns but the chassis compliance and predictability of the handling make the Raptor a real pleasure to drive on the open road. At least in the dry; I’ll admit you have to be more cautious when the going gets slippery.
You can get some of the way to the Raptor chassis with the Ranger FX4 Max, but it’s still not quite the same thing.
In a market where so many seem obsessed with loading accessories on to double-cab utes, the Raptor doesn’t really need any. It looks markedly different to any other Ranger because it has bespoke frontal styling (including guards and grille). It’s 25mm taller, which may not be seen as a good thing, but you get double that back in an extra 50mm of wading ability.
Raptor has real status in the Ranger world and it’s a credible machine to wear the Ford Performance brand.
It’s not perfect. Although it has autonomous braking now (it didn’t originally), you still don’t get adaptive cruise control. There’s an extra 168mm width compared with a normal Ranger, which can be an issue in parking, and of course the Raptor famously cannot carry or tow as much as other Rangers, thanks to that trick suspension: payload just 758kg and tow rating 2500kg.
But it’s not supposed to be a work truck. How much do a couple of mountain bikes weigh anyway?