BEST TEST 2: Beyond bakkie or sportscar, Raptor reigns supreme
Auto tested more than 90 cars in 2025. As is tradition, we now re-publish our favourite tests of the year as our six Best Tests over the first weeks of December. We will then present three Auto Special Awards in the Best EV, Best Bakkie and Performance car of the year 2025. And then we announce the overall Best Test 2025 on 19 December. So come back for your daily Auto entertainment!
AUTO BEST TESTS 2025 #2: FORD RANGER RAPTOR
BEST TEST 2: Beyond bakkie or sportscar, Raptor's supreme
The latest step on our road testing trip through the Ford Ranger line-up, the Raptor is unique. People often ask, if I have so much money, what’s the best new car I can buy? Right now, we’d not hesitate to tell you that you simply cannot spend a better R1.3-million than on a Raptor. Clearly I’m not off my rocker. Just look how many of them are on the road already.
The R1.3 bar niche is a pretty busy neck of the woods right now, mind you. You can get an Audi RS3, RSQ3, or an S5, a BMW M340i or a midrange X3, an AMG A 35, or a Merc GLC, or even a Porsche Macan for that. And a whole lot more sexy metal too. But this mad Ford bakkie takes the cake, and here’s why…
This second-generation Raptor built to dominate the desert, master the mountains, and rule the rest. It’s the ultimate performance Ranger. We’d go as far as to say that it’s the ultimate performance bakkie. It blends raw power with high tech and class to deliver the most advanced Ranger yet. It screams it from the moment you set eyes on it. Especially without that that cheap plastic restaurant tablecloth pasted all over the back.
There’s no disguising that Raptor intent
Raptor’s presence is unmistakable. Baja-like 17-inch forged alloys in BF Goodrich all-terrain tyres still have all the space to manoeuvre under those flared arches. C-clamp DRL Matrix LED headlights are cool, as is the bold Ford script across the grille. Add functional vent aero, tough cast aluminium side steps and a bastard of a towbar tucked high for best departure angles. But what happened to that handy step into the bak?.
Comfortable and supportive sports and more Raptor get-up, dare we say, improves Ranger’s fully digital cabin. Much of it is familiar. The high resolution 12.4-inch digital gauges have their own special Raptor theme. As does the AV connective Carplay and Auto 12-inch Ford SYNC4 infotainment touchscreen. It brings wireless smartphone connectivity and a delightful Bang & Olufsen sound system too.
Ford Performance has done a great job on the Raptor’s cabin. Not only does it look the part, but those seats are cool to sit in. Yes we have our reservations on some controls too far removed from reality. And some may say a portrait screen is not for them. But Raptor makes up for it with comprehensive controls on the multifunction wheel and elsewhere, to keep it all balanced.
A 292 kW 583 Nm 3-litre biturbo V6
Enough of the semantics. Ford’s 292 kW 583 Nm biturbo 3-litre EcoBoost V6 boasts a few other claims to fame. Not least that that it powered the GT supercars to victory in Ford’s Le Mans GT3 comeback a few years back. So this 75 percent stronger and stiffer compacted graphite-iron cylinder block V6 really is race bred.
The biturbo has anti-lag. Like rally cars use faux ignition to pop, bang and spin the turbo up, Ford’s subtly more reliable patented throttle bypass system ensures boost on demand. It keeps the turbos spinning for three seconds after you lift, for instant response when you floor it again. When its active exhaust amplifies engine noise in four stages from standard Quiet to Baja. But Normal is good enough.
The V6 is mated to a 10-speed gearbox. The Mustang derived automatic may keep the chat forums fired up, but its great on and off the road. Generally invisible, you mut keep an eye on the tacho to know that it’s eternally swapping cogs. Unlike the rest of the Rangers, Raptor’s electronically controlled on-demand two-speed transfer four-wheel drive runs full time.
Gentle giant Raptor pretends to be economical
Add seven driving modes up to extreme Baja and Raptor will accelerate effortlessly on any surface, which its extreme suspension will also soon conquer. Optimised valve tuned lightweight aluminium Fox 2.5-inch live valve dampers, forged front control arms up front, and a refined Watt’s link rear end quite take Raptor next level with astounding balance between comfort, control, stability, and traction, both on, and off the road.
Raptor’s extreme underbody protection starts with a double size, 2.3 mm thick high-strength steel front bash plate. It has double recovery hooks front and rear, while guards extend along the belly to protect all those gubbins from even the most extreme of use. Exceptional road ability and body control enable it to deal with the most severe bumps, ruts, and corrugations, flat out off-road. In other words, Raptor delivers maximum control and performance, no matter what your driving environment.
A composed, gentle giant, drive Raptor it nice and it even pretends to be economical. But push it and it becomes a glutton in an instant. But man, does it run, the quickest ladder chassis bakkie we have ever tested at 5.6 seconds to 100 km/h,
Is Raptor twice the fun of a supercar?
The difference between the Ranger Raptor and all its rivals, however, is how incredibly this bakkie covers even the most extreme terrain with astounding aplomb. There’s no other vehicle out there to compare this trait to. Only a dirtbike, or a rally-raid racier. Aim it where you want it to go, plant it and Raptor will float over it at absurd ease.
Drive onto the tarmac, rotate a bezel, finger button or two and it transforms into a sportscar to keep even the most spirited driver rapt across a paved mountain pass. Huge fun, all the way. Is there any real reason for such gargantuan ability in an everyday road car? Surely not! Never mind, Raptor’s an absolute glutton on fuel.
An unique off-road supercar in its own right, believe us when we tell you that the Ford Ranger Raptor is the best R1.3 million you can spend on any new car right now. And twice as much fun as the next. Bravo, Ford! – Michele Lupini
Images & testing: Giordano Lupini
AUTO BEST TEST #2 2025
ROAD TESTED: Ford Ranger Raptor
Engine: 292 kW 583 Nm biturbo 3-litre V6
Drive: 10-speed automatic 4x4
Load Capacity: 650 kg
Braked Trailer: 2,500 kg
TESTED:
0-60 km/h: 2.56 sec
0-100 km/h: 5.67 sec
0-120 km/h: 7.78 sec
0-160 km/h: 14.15 sec
400m: 14.3 sec @ 160 km/h
80-120 km/h: 3.83 sec
120-160 km/h: 6.37 sec
CLAIMED:
VMax: 180 km/h
Fuel: 11.5 l/100 km
CO2: 262 g/km
Range: 700 km
Warranty/Service: 4y 120K/up to 8y 165K km
LIST PRICE: R1.27M
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