On and off the road, Jurassic Bronco puts a smile on your face.
It takes equal parts courage and skill to keep the throttle mashed even when you're not quite sure what terrain lies ahead. Driving the 2023 Ford Bronco Raptor at about 60 mph while driving through the brush desert near Palm Springs, California, it suddenly dawned on me that it would swallow up the average crossover. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that "courage" is actually a very small part of it. What you need, in all reality, can best be described as "confidence." After just two days of driving the new Ford Bronco Raptor, I had developed enough confidence in the vehicle's capabilities that I was sure I could keep the throttle mashed, no matter the terrain.
And yes, I kept the throttle really mashed, up hill and dale and brush and bump. Needless to say, both the Bronco Raptor and I were safe, minus a solid layer of dust that coated everything from the car to my helmet to my jeans. With apologies to JM Barry, "Take the second exit right and go straight onto 'Tul Baja'."
Let's get this straight right off the bat. Unless you're a regular King of the Hammers competitor, the Ford Bronco Raptor is more capable than you as a driver. Proof positive I was actually running this thing on the ground that made up parts of the last KOTH race at Mains Dry Lake in Johnson Valley. Our route consisted of several miles of high-speed action over sand and rock, as well as slow and deliberate climbs, and descents over boulders larger than the Bronco itself.
And considering how terrifying the Bronco Raptor is, that's saying something. Besides the obvious aggressive bits, including the Raptor-specific grille, fascia, front and rear light signatures, and fully functional vents in the hood and front fenders, it's almost comically wide. Track width is 8.6 inches wider than the standard Bronco, and overall width is slightly higher. Everything about the Bronco Raptor is stiffer than lesser models, from the fully boxed frame to new shock towers and several reinforcements to the B- and C-pillar reinforcement bars. Ford says the Raptor's underpinnings are 50 percent stiffer than the Bronco platform.
The two main components that transform the Bronco into the Raptor are its suspension setup and powertrain. The former offers 13 inches at the front and 14 inches at the back. Pushing this forward are Fox-branded 3.1 internal bypass semi-active dampers, with the rear benefiting from remote reservoirs. Sensors, including a set that monitors how much travel is left, allow the dampers to adjust hundreds of times per second to meet the vehicle's ground requirements. The same axles that Ford designed for its Bronco DR race truck are used in the Raptor: the front is built around Dana 44 Advantech and the rear is built around a heavy-duty Dana 50 Advantech drive unit. Combined with 37-inch Goodrich K02 all-terrain tires on 17-inch bead-lockable wheels, they allow the Excel Bronco Raptor to offer at least 13.1 inches of ground clearance.
on the power train. The 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged Eco Boost V6 has been tuned to deliver 418 horsepower and 440 pound-feet of torque. It's not exactly the same power plant used in other Ford and Lincoln vehicles, although it's certainly related. Its unique induction and intercooler systems are designed to handle hot and dusty environments, which came in handy in the 110-degree dry lake beds we plowed into. A 10-speed automatic transmission with a 67.7:1 crawl ratio sends ponies to all four wheels via a transfer case and locking front and rear differentials. That front locker was absolutely critical to conquering rock climbing maneuvers. Also appreciated were the removable side steps with just a handful of bolts, leaving the full rock rails to protect the Bronco Raptor's rockers from rock-sized damage.
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