The all-new next-generation Ford Ranger Raptor was just revealed a few weeks ago, ushering in a brand new era for the high-performance off-road pickup that will finally be sold in the U.S. with an MSRP of $52,500 – as Ford Authority exclusively reported – after its predecessor was not. The next-gen Ranger and Ranger Raptor will launch in Australia long before that, however, albeit in limited quantities. And while the new Ford Ranger Raptor will continue to represent the mid-size pickup’s ultimate off-road variant, it may also be offered with a street performance tire option, according to Drive.
When asked if Ford might offer a street performance tire on the Ford Ranger Raptor as an alternative to the truck’s standard BFGoodrich K02 rubber, Ali Jammoul, global vehicle program director of Ford Performance, said “I love that feedback, because I’ve not thought about it to be honest with you. And so I love what you’re saying. Are we going to look at it? For sure. This will optimize the vehicle (and the) customer experience on-road. We know a lot of our customers love the comfort of Fox suspension in daily driving, (so) a road tire might be the next step in that. We need to take a look at it (for Ranger Raptor).”
Even more interestingly, Jammoul also seemed quite receptive to the possibility of a Ford Ranger Raptor RS, when it was presented to him. “I love that idea. We’ll go back and we’ll look at it, for sure. (Such a vehicle with road tires) does really complement the DNA and the brand that we set up for Raptor.”
In spite of Jammoul’s enthusiasm around this particular topic, Ford Performance chief engineer Carl Widmann threw a little cold water on the idea by acknowledging that a road tire package “could also be of interest to German customers,” but also pointed out that it would add complexity to production lines and require a significant investment to develop a road tire suitable for the Ranger Raptor. Since no such thing currently exists, it could take upwards of 2-3 years to make one, in fact.
Regardless, the idea is certainly enticing, especially since the next-gen Ranger Raptor figures to offer plenty of performance via its 3.0L EcoBoost V6 powerplant, which will crank out 392 horsepower and 430 pound-feet of torque. Then there’s the matter of whether or not a road tire package would be only offered in Australia or if it would also make it to other parts of the world. Either way, it’s certainly an idea worth looking into, much like the possibility of cramming a V8 in the high-performance off-roader.
We’ll have more on the Ranger Raptor soon, so be sure to subscribe to Ford Authority for the latest Ford Ranger news, Ford Ranger Raptor news, and continuous Ford news coverage.
Comments
First of all, the standard BFG KO2s are an excellent all-around tire and work very well on the highway. Not sure why anyone would want a high performance street only type tire on a truck like this anyway. The suspension is designed for off-road use, not auto-crossing. While it doesn’t appear that any manufacturer currently offers that specific type of tire in size 285/70R17 there are plenty of other choices already ranging from highway friendly all-season designs to aggressive mud-terrain type off-road tires. A quick search on tirerack.com turned up almost sixty choices of tires in size 285/70R17 but none of those would be considered high performance street only tires. I suppose you could go with something like a 285/40R17 but I doubt you will find anything close to a 33″ diameter tire unless you switch to a much larger diameter wheel. Then again, if all you wanted was a great handling street truck you would probably need to lower the ride height and center of gravity anyway and then a smaller diameter tire would make much more sense. I guess at that point you might as well change the name to Adrenalin too because it would certainly no longer be a Raptor.
Better idea: Allow the 2.7L as an option in the non-raptor rangers and let us put performance street tires on that.
I agree with the above comments. I have H/T tires on my 21’ Tremor, and that gets the job done in terms of bridging the gap between the aggressive suspension build and more road friendly economy and handling. I have no issues swapping back to the factory A/T’s when I am ready to hit the trail or when the weather takes a turn.