Ford pushes off-roading boundaries with “badass” Bronco Raptor
“The most badass Bronco yet”? So says design chief Paul Wraith. There is no doubt the Bronco Raptor is a powerful addition to Ford’s off-road family. Car Design News looks at the new design details
Ford has taken two of its off-roaders, the Bronco and the Raptor, and fused them together to form its most capable car to date – the Bronco Raptor.
“As the most badass Bronco yet, the Bronco Raptor design is extreme,” said Paul Wraith, Bronco design chief. “It’s muscular, while maintaining an underlying simplicity with performance-focused details added only for outstanding high-speed capability.”
Looking at the Bronco Raptor, it is clear that many elements have been transferred from its older siblings, but there are a few additions that make the model unique. Among the more obvious are the enlarged fender flares, reinforced rock rails, and sculpted hood vent. Ford says that the Bronco Raptor is 9.8 inches wider than a standard Bronco, adding to its muscular stance.
Other optional extras include trapezoid graphics on the rear bodysides and hood. There is also the Ford Performance-exclusive ‘Code Orange’ paint job, as well as the nine other shades that are available on the standard Bronco.
Various trim options on the inside give the Bronco Raptor an injection of colour and character. Splashes of ‘Code Orange’ give life to the rotary dial, air vents, door netting, steering wheel stitching, start/stop button, Bronco logo, seats and seatbelts. Elsewhere, carbon-fibre accents feature on the grab handles, steering wheel bezel and gear shifter wear. New laser-perforated ‘Black Onyx Neo’ suede seats are an upgrade, as is vinyl-wrapped IP topper and leather-wrapped seat bolsters. The steering wheel is thicker and has magnesium paddle shifters, as well as the black Raptor logo at its centre.
Drivers can use the new ‘Performance View’ on the 12-inch digital cluster display – a Bronco Raptor-exclusive. This simply enlarges the tachometer and gear readings, but also enables gauge customisation.
Delving under the skin, Ford’s engineering team has fine-tuned the chassis and suspension. The upper body also has reinforced B-pillar cross bars and C-pillars to improve rigidity. But the headline news is under the hood – an enhanced twin-turbo 3.0-litre EcoBoost engine delivers over 400bhp, making the Bronco Raptor the most powerful, street-legal Bronco ever.
Although road-legal, it draws heavily on inspiration from the extreme off-road racing competition called Ultra4 Racing Series – the organisers of which also head up the King of the Hammers race.