Can The New V8 Ford Raptor Compete With the 2021 Roush Ford F-150?
I’ve said it before, and I will say it many more times, the world of pickup trucks is a strange and fascinating one full of strange pairings and collaborations that may not make sense logically, but these things live in the heart, not the mind. The pairing I am referring to is the muscle/performance truck like the Ram TRX, Ford Raptor, and the now the new 2021 Roush Ford F-150. These high-powered pickups posting sports car-like 0-60 mph times might seem strange and useless, but people love them, and now Ford has two versions coming down the pipe.
The V8 Ford Raptor and the 2021 Roush Ford F-150 is going to be quite the matchup
Roush might ring certain bells in your head. The name might conjure images of volcanic plumes of white tire smoke, beefed-up Mustangs, and V8 screams. All of that would be accurate, but there is another side to the wild world of Roush tuning; pickup trucks. According to MotorTrend, Roush has been spicing up Ford trucks since 2013. In fact, of the 2021 lineup, only one of the three Roush offerings is a Mustang; the other two are pickups. The Ranger will get some love and the star of this show, the Super Duty, F-150.
As you likely know, dear reader, Ford has another popular tuned pickup truck, the Ford Raptor. Like the new Roush F-150, we expect a new, beefier verison of the Raptor, now sporting a V8 to rival the Ram TRX. These two new pickups being announced so close to one another, from the same maker, begs the question, “Which one is gonna be the cooler truck?”
What is the difference between the Roush F-150 and the V8 Raptor?
There is one major difference between these two muscle trucks. The Raptor is a factory truck that comes muscled out without any tweaking or modifying. On the other hand, the Roush truck must be built out of a donor four-wheel-drive XLT Sport or Lariat-trimmed SuperCrew 2021 F-150. Roush is the Ford tuning pro, so it’s not a matter of risk or anything like that, but it is extra steps and complications.
The F-150 will use the 5.0-liter V8. Knowing the Roush F-150 will most likely be amped up by a supercharger to give it some extra beef. The previous Roush trucks with the same motor and supercharger made 650 hp making that horsepower figure well within reason.
There are also major suspension upgrades thanks to the Fox suspension kit lifting the truck 2 inches. It wouldn’t be a Roush if it didn’t have a body kit and Roush splattered head to toe, both of which it does. There are also piles of available option packages that Roush will add to the hopped-up truck. There are upgradeable brakes, exhaust, interior design, and a Ford Raptor-like extreme off-road kit coming later.
How does that compare to the V8 Raptor?
The V8 Ford Raptor still has some big question marks, but the prevailing thought is that it will get the supercharged 5.2-liter V8 from the Mustang GT500. The idea is that Ford will slightly detune the engine from the Mustang to make something closer to 725 hp for the Raptor. The Raptor is also expected to sport serious suspension upgrades from any standard F-150.
Seeing as how the Raptor’s main goal seems to be taking on the Ram TRX, it will likely be more focused on dune jumping and desert running than ripping crazy quarter-mile times on the tarmac like the Roush trucks have been known to do in the past.
The point is, there are still many questions to be answered about both super trucks, but I can all but guarantee that the answers will be pretty damn exciting.
