2021 Ford F-150 Raptor Design Sketches Show Off Its Aviation Inspiration

No one ever accused the first two generations of the Ford F-150 Raptor of being soft in the appearances department. In fact, it’s safe to say that the rugged off-road pickup has been one of the most aggressively styled vehicles on earth since it debuted over a decade ago. But the all-new, third-generation 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor design takes things to an entirely new level.

These 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor design sketches give us a clear look at how the new pickup came to be. Penned by Ford creative exterior designer Tom Liu, the sketches depict a truck that retains all of the qualities that made its predecessor a hit, yet expounds upon them in a new and fresh way.

A rugged, aggressive exterior advances the signature design of the previous-gen F-150 Raptor, with a distinctive front end that emphasizes the truck’s generous width with a machine-tough look featuring a power dome hood, a blacked-out front grille, and headlights that stretch from fender to fender.

The hood also has a new heat extractor and functional side vents at the top trailing edge of the fender, all inspired by the intakes of the F-22 Raptor fighter jet. Aggressive front fenders emulate the windswept look of dust billowing off the top of the tires at high speed. The same concept extends to the rear, with blacked-out taillights and an available tailgate appliqué creating visual fender-to-fender width.

The end result is a truck that looks like it could take flight – and in some capacity, it can, as we’ve already seen. But as it turns out, that effect was just part of the design process for a truck that was already one of the most aggressively-styled vehicles on the market, and now retains that title thanks to some clever updates.

We’ll have more on the 2021 F-150 Raptor soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford F-Series news, Ford F-150 news, Ford F-150 Raptor news, and continuous Ford news coverage.