Ford Ranger Raptor long-term test: report 5
In theory it's a lean, mean working machine, but we're living with the ultimate version of Ford's Ranger pick-up truck to see if it lives up to the hype...
The car Ford Ranger Raptor 2.0 EcoBlue 210 4WD auto | Run by Max Edleston, senior photographer
Why it’s here To provide grin-inducing entertainment and practicality in equal measure
Needs to be Unstoppable on-road or off-it, reasonably sensible to run, and practical enough to be used as a working vehicle
Mileage 13,583 List price £57,064 Target Price £46,470 Price as tested £59,824 Test economy 26.1mpg Official economy 26.6mpg
11 June 2024 – A field too far
The trouble with learning a new skill is that you want to keep getting better at it, which leads to boundaries being pushed and, in my case, pick-up trucks being partially submerged in mud.
Let me explain. Having been thoroughly impressed with the off-road performance of my Ford Ranger Raptor on hard ground, I’ve been keen to explore its abilities when the weather isn’t quite so decent. Enter the great British summer, and three weeks of almost non-stop rain which had plagued the Cheshire countryside. This backdrop gave me an opportunity to test the Ranger’s might against a mud-strewn field owned by a neighbour of my parents.
In fairness, everyone warned me not to proceed, especially at the wheel of a near two-and-a-half-tonne pick-up, but having trodden lightly along the edges of the field, I proudly declared that my Ranger Raptor would have no trouble getting to the other side. A few minutes later, with all four wheels buried up to their axles in soft mud and the road tyres fitted to them spinning aimlessly in the quagmire, I had to admit defeat and make a sheepish phone call asking for help.
The neighbour who owned the field arrived first in his classic Land Rover Defender, but while he was able to move me an inch or so back towards solid ground, that’s all he could manage without risking his Defender having the same fate. A second blush-inducing phone call later, and another neighbour arrived to rescue me – this time with a Ford tractor.
The Ford tractor then hitched a rope up to the back of my pick-up – the Raptor actually has two towing hooks at its rear, one on each side of its load bed – and like an older sibling helping its younger brother up after a fall, pulled my car free.
A rather humbling experience for me, and some ruined trousers to remind me not to run before I could walk in the world of off-roading. Fortunately, a few minutes with the power washer at my parents’ house had the Ranger Raptor looking as good as new.
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