Ford's first high-performance off-road Ranger Raptor ute is now officially in production.
Ford Motor Company has celebrated the start of production for the first-ever Ranger Raptor performance ute at its Ford Thailand Manufacturing (FTM).
While design and engineering work for the Ranger Raptor was Australian-led at the Asia-Pacific Product Development Centre in Broadmeadows, Victoria, the Ranger Raptor will be built alongside the standard Ranger at FTM for sale and export across the Asia Pacific region.
The Ranger Raptor – Ford's first high-speed off-road performance ute built in Asia Pacific – was revealed to the public during the 2018 Bangkok Motor Show in March where Ford began taking customer orders.
Ford New Zealand then organised a pre-production model to be flown down in time for Fieldays last month where the highly anticipated ute was seen by Kiwis for the first time, and customer models are expected to land in Q4, 2018, priced from $84,990.
Read more: Watch a new Ford Raptor get thrashed in the South Island
Ford say the new Ranger Raptor will set a new benchmark in 'high-speed, off-road pickup capability.'
“The Ranger Raptor is truly the ultimate Ranger. With its bold appearance and extreme, off-road performance features, the Ranger Raptor represents a new and distinctive breed of truck for the region,” said Yukontorn ‘Vickie’ Wisadkosin, president, Ford ASEAN.
The Ranger Raptor is equipped with an all-new 2.0-litre Bi-Turbo diesel engine that is mated to a 10-Speed transmission to deliver peak power of 157kW of and 500Nm of torque from 1750rpm.
Built with increased ride height and a wider track, the Ranger Raptor includes standard front and rear FOX shock absorbers for off-road enthusiasts to tackle extreme rough terrain.
An innovative all-new Watt’s linkage rear suspension with coil-over rear springs also enable greater rear axle lateral stability when travelling at high speeds.
Ranger Raptor will feature Ford's latest Terrain Management System (TMS) that offers six modes that, including the highly anticipated Baja Mode dedicated to off-road performance.
Ranger Raptor also comes with unique underbody protection with a 'bash plate' made from 2.3mm thick high-strength steel the meets Ford Performance requirements.
The Ranger Rapto will be available in five bold color: Conquer Grey, Lightning Blue, Race Red, Shadow Black and Frozen White.
Ford Performance chief engineer, Jamal Hameedi, said the name ‘Raptor’ is inherited from the Ford F-150 Raptor.
“Just like the F-150 Raptor, the Ranger Raptor builds upon the core capability of the range of vehicles it comes from and carries the unmistakable Ford Performance DNA appearance,” he said.
“It is amazing to enable this level of performance and create a vehicle that can provide off-road enthusiasts such an adrenaline rush. It really is like a motocross bike, snowmobile and an ATV rolled up into a pickup truck."
