Ford’s announcement that it’s killing off its traditional sedans and focusing more on trucks, SUVs and crossovers was a bit of a shock earlier this year. However, if you look at the situation as ‘glass half-full’ that bodes well for a possible US-bound Ranger Raptor. The desert race-ready bigger brother F-150 Raptor is insanely popular here in the states, but as of now, even though the base Ranger is bound for our shores, the upgraded Raptor isn’t.
The Ranger Raptor seen in the video above is currently on sale in Australia, powered by a turbo diesel inline-four engine. Whether we’ll see the diesel power in the States is unlikely, but if Ford is pouring more energy into its truck lineup, and if it wants to build on the popularity of the Raptor name, building an American-market Ranger Raptor is a no-brainer. The fervor building over the upcoming Bronco should be a clear sign to the Blue Oval that Americans want a vehicle that not only looks good but can go anywhere they want. The Ranger Raptor fits that bill all too well.
In the video, you can see the test drivers flogging the mid-sized pickup truck around the wilds of South Island, New Zealand. Now, I don’t want to take away from the grandeur of New Zealand’s untamed wilderness, but that video could have easily been filmed in Colorado, eastern Oregon or Wyoming. As of now, the Ford Ranger Raptor might not be built in the US, but it’s glaringly obvious that it’s built for the US. If Ford really is putting more weight behind its truck lineup, I would definitely put money on a US Ranger Raptor announcement in the coming months.
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