Could Ford Be Planning a Bronco Raptor?
It’s a longshot, but it’s not out of the question.
Looking for something to get excited about that probably won’t happen? You’ve come to the right place. An Australian outlet just spoke with Ford Performance Head Engineer Jamal Hameedi, who dropped some very tantalizing hints about the future of Ford Performance SUVs.
“There’s no reason [we wouldn’t do an Everest Raptor],” said Hameedi. The Ford Everest is a mid-size body-on-frame SUV based on the global Ford Ranger which, of course, we don’t get in the U.S...yet. A new Michigan-built Ford Ranger will be available in the U.S. starting in early 2019 for the first time since 2012. What’s even more exciting is the fact that the Ford Bronco SUV will come to the States as a 2020 model.
There’s been speculation that the new Bronco will have a lot in common with the Everest since they’ll both be Ranger-based SUVs, but we know very little official info about the new Bronco at this time. However, if Ford Performance is thinking about giving the Everest the Raptor treatment and with the new Ranger Raptor being recently unveiled, we can’t help but wonder what the possibilities could be for an all-new Bronco Raptor.
Unfortunately, it isn’t quite as simple as just welding a cap onto a Ranger Raptor. “The first F-150 Raptor was way beyond our wildest dreams in terms of success, and that success spawned a Ranger Raptor,” said Hameedi. “So to do an SUV is a little more difficult because you have to figure out how to deal with the rear suspension. In the form of a bodyside outer it’s not just a box outer [and that] poses a unique challenge in how you package that.”
The Australian outlet also spoke with Ford Australia Product Communications Manager Damion Smy who noted the rapidly increasing popularity of SUVs over traditional cars. "Long term it would make sense if you look at the fact that passenger vehicles were overtaken by SUVs this [2017] year. There’s definitely a case for more performance oriented or at least more sports styled SUVs in the future," said Smy. "I don’t think that's a crazy question, I think it makes sense."
So it is a longshot and it’s definitely more fantasy than reality at this point, but there is a slight possibility a Ford Bronco Raptor could be in the future. If there is, we couldn’t care less how many doors it has. We did hear a report last summer saying a 325-horsepower EcoBoost V6 would be available in the new Bronco, perhaps that was our first hint. We should probably at least wait until the Ranger Raptor is confirmed for the U.S. to start getting our hopes up.
