Expect to pay a bit more than that, though.
Ford has released prices for its range-topping Ranger Raptor performance ute in its debut market of Thailand, allowing us punters to get an idea of what we can expect to have to fork over for one of these any-terrain-goes performance monsters.
When it arrives towards year-end to cap off the 2019 Ranger lineup, the Raptor will command a sum of 1.699-million Thai baht, which is the equivalent of $70,729 in our money today. That represents a half-million baht premium over the Wildtrak 3.2-litre dual-cab auto, the previous flagship Ranger (and present flagship ahead of the Raptor’s arrival).
Our friends at Motoring ran the sums and calculated that the Ranger Raptor asks for a 41.7% price premium over the Wildtrak 3.2-litre 4x4 dual-cab in the Thai market (which goes for $59,590 back home). On that logic the new Raptor ought to set us back about $85,000 when it arrives here, working out to about $25k more than the present range-topping Ranger, and level-pegging with the Mercedes-Benz X350d V6.
While the German will sport a six-cylinder mill, the Ford Ranger Raptor makes use of a seriously-tuned 2.0-litre four-cylinder ‘Panther’ oiler mill, which utilises no less than 2 turbochargers to result in a power output of 157kW/500Nm, higher than the larger 3.2-litre 5-cylinder Duratorq mill. Power goes to all-four wheels via a 10-speed automatic transmission, which can be manipulated by paddles behind the wheel (imagine shuffling through all those cogs during spirited driving).
The Ranger Raptor packs a myriad of styling updates to mark it out against less aggressive models, like blacked-out elements like the grille, front-bumper, wheel-arch extensions, and rear bumper. There are also black 17-inch alloys, hiding upgraded brakes and Fox Racing Shocks.
And to ensure swift progress over any surface, the Ranger Raptor is equipped with a Terrain Management System that offers 6 selectable modes, including Normal, Sport, Grass/Gravel/Snow, Mud/Sand, Rock, and Baja.
The cabin of the performance Ranger hasn’t been spared either, receiving variant-specific goodies like an 8.0-inch SYNC3 infotainment screen, a variety of advanced driver assistance systems, and semi-bucket seats replete with ‘Raptor’ embroidered badges.
With the Ford Ranger ranking as the second most popular vehicle in Australia, it’s more a matter of ‘when’ rather than ‘if’ insofar as the Ranger Raptor is concerned. But stay tuned to CarShowroom for more updates as they come.
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