This
review first appeared in the September 2017 edition of the Northern & Central
California Cruisin’ News published
out of Folsom, California – mg
This isn’t so much a truck as it is a statement. And that statement is: I’m the baddest thing on the road, so get out of my way when you see me coming.
My tester was the sizable 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
4X4 SuperCrew edition (pictured, photo by Charles Glover), with roomy seating in the back of the cabin and a
145-inch wheelbase.
Where to start? Well, it looks like a rolling battering ram
at first glance, riding on 17-inch forged aluminum wheels and an enormous
grille that looks like it could squash a Hummer. The saucy “Raptor” graphics on either side of
the truck simply enhance the powerful look.
Starting the 3.5-liter, turbocharged V-6 engine
produces a roar that brings the neighbors to their front windows to see who
brought a top-tier NASCAR stock car into the neighborhood.
On the fly, you feel every bit of the 450
horsepower and 510 foot-pounds of torque at your command. In fact, it’s a little frightening to feel how
quickly the Raptor can get up to 70 miles per hour from a virtual
standstill. Fortunately, the four-wheel
disc brakes are powerful enough to bring the beast under control quickly.
No one gets in the way of the Raptor. You sense that right away. I can’t tell you how many times I saw fellow
commuters consider a quick lane change across my bow, only to duck back into
their lanes when they sized up what was coming in their mirrors.
For all this muscle, I actually felt secure
and comfortable in the big brute fairly quickly. Kudos to Ford engineers who mastered the chassis/suspension
package in such a way as to make the Raptor drive “lighter” than it actually
is. My sense of security also was
bolstered by the vehicle’s five-star federal government safety ratings,
including a perfect five stars in the overall vehicle score.
Inside the tester, exceptional comfort and
four-star luxury could be found.
My ride included a twin-panel moonroof,
inflatable rear safety belts, a trailer backup-assist system, steering
wheel-mounted paddle shifters and a 360-degree camera.
Naturally, there’s a price to pay for all
this: $69,995 on the sticker’s bottom line on my tester. Yes, I agree.
WOW! And yet, given all that it
has, the Raptor’s price is pretty fair.
Here are some other numbers worth pondering:
only 15 miles per gallon in the city and 18 mpg on the highway. Consider that the Raptor is equipped with a
36-gallon fuel tank and … well, I’ll let you do the math on fuel stops.
OK, so you get the idea that this is not
necessarily the truck you want to get scratched up at a work site or doing the
heavy lifting on a farm or ranch. If you
want that truck, look elsewhere.
The Raptor is the kind of truck that
bespeaks performance and a two-fisted attitude.
Argue with me if you like, but I’m telling you to take that to the
bank. And if you doubt the look-at-me
appeal of this Raptor, just park it for a few minutes in a crowded lot. In my week with the pickup, that was an
invitation for a free show.
Numerous folks came up to me, asking: “Is
that the Raptor?” or “How fast does it go? Or even: “Can you take me for a
short ride, just around the block?”
If you crave that kind of attention, the
Raptor won’t disappoint you. Did I have
a fun week in this menacing machine?
Really, what do you think?
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