When the all-new, third-generation 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor was revealed last year, it did so with updated styling, a brand new suspension setup, and a 37-inch tire option, bringing a host of improvements to the second-generation model. However, there was one glaring oversight – the twin-turbo Ford 3.5L V6 EcoBoost H.O. powerplant present in the third-gen Raptor carried over with the same exact output as the second-gen model, though Ford made it clear at the time that the V8-powered 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R would eventually make up for that disappointing news. And that begs the question – will the 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R make the regular Raptor irrelevant when it launches?
Way back in June of 2019, Ford Authority was the first to report that the Ford F-150 Raptor would once again be available with a V8 engine, which we now know will come in the form of the supercharged Ford 5.2L V8 Predator that’s also used in the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500. With at least 750 horsepower on tap and a fortified 10-speed automatic transmission behind it, the Raptor R should outperform the regular Raptor on essentially every level.
Ultimately, however, whether or not the 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R can make the regular Raptor irrelevant boils down to a couple of different factors – price and availability. The regular Raptor retails for around $72,000 (minus markups), though we don’t yet know the price of the Raptor R. If the V8 version features an MSRP of somewhere around $80,000, it will undoubtedly be hard to justify passing on it to go with the EcoBoost version, though it’s also unclear how many Raptor Rs Ford will use able to produce.
Given the fact that the regular Raptor is currently difficult to find and purchase at MSRP, the same should hold true for the Raptor R, which figures to be both rarer and more sought-after when it launches. This could actually have a positive effect on the EcoBoost-powered Raptor, however – it may cause buyers to shun it in favor of the R, which could mean greater availability and fewer markups, the same impact that the launch of the S550 Mustang Shelby GT500 had on the GT350.
In that case, if we’re talking about spending $70k on a Raptor or perhaps $100k or so on a marked-up Raptor R, one could make the case that the former is the superior value. This is especially true since the Raptor R won’t look much different than the regular Raptor, though it will certainly sound different. Regardless, we’re curious to hear what our readers think about this hot topic, so be sure and vote in the poll below!
We’ll have more on the 2023 F-150 Raptor R 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 ongoing Ford news coverage.
Comments
Given the Predator’s abysmal fuel economy in the GT500, the Raptor R will be staggeringly expensive to operate, something buyers will soon discover before creating a glut of very low-mile used examples.
Swapping a supercharged Coyote into base Raptor sounds smarter and smarter.
people spending that kind of money don’t care about fuel economy
4 door off road trucks are ridiculous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The R wiii most likely be at least 50k over msrp making it a diffrrent market.
Ford’s #1 loyal, devoted disciple here-
The current Ecoturd engine in the standard Raptor is a complete and total limp-wristed, emasculated, poofmeister’s embarrassment! For MANY potential Raptor buyers such as myself, that gutless engine is an absolute, flat-out ‘deal-breaker’….Having owned both a 2012 and legendary ‘end of an era’ 2014 equipped 6.2L big block V8 Raptor, I can say with certainty not only would I NEVER have bought ANY Raptor with a shameful, criminal, fart-can exhaust V-6, but that new Predator supercharged V8 is literally THE only Raptor to choose from! Let’s be crystal clear gentlemen, there is NO other ‘choice’!!!!! Trucks MUST have a V8, they are MEN’S cars……Just like you DON’T sashay down the street wearing a pink thong bikini and twirling an umbrella, you sure as hell don’t put a God-damn, cursed V6 of ANY kind in an off road 4X4 supertruck! There is NO ‘other’ option as far as I am concerned…..period!
The new Raptor R is being built specifically to answer back to Dodge’s massive, crushing blow via its mauling Ram 1500 TRX beast! FINALLY, Ford will be releasing a legitimate counterpunch to getting humiliated for 5 miserable years by Dodge’s flagship supertruck! Our days of getting punked and tea-bagged by Dodge ‘should’ be over…Keeping my fingers crossed that Ford doesn’t offer an unworthy and inexcusable ‘detuned’ version of the Predator with only 725 or so horsepower versus the usual 760hp the Predator comes with in the GT500! Heck, I’d support Ford UPPING the horsepower and torque levels beyond the 760hp/625tq found in the stock GT500 engine! To gain back it’s place atop the truck hierarchy, Ford must, without question, BURY that record-setting Dodge Ram 1500 TRX!
The gauntlet has been laid down by Dodge…….
That unquestionably lame Ecoturd V6 powered Raptor was a disgusting stain on the vaunted reputation of Ford trucks, sullying and besmirching us diehard Blue Oval soldiers in the process since its release in the 2017 model Raptor…..it’s high time Ford reclaims the mantle of BEST off road truck on the planet by releasing a Raptor R so convincingly beyond the Ram TRX in every category and metric that Dodge is forced to do nothing but bow it’s head in fealty to the new re-crowned King of off road trucks- THE Raptor ‘R’!!!
P.S. All Dodge has to do with its Ram TRX 1500 is either swap a smaller pulley on the factory blower like they do to glean 797hp on the Redeye Hellcat OR, God-forbid, remove the factory blower entirely, and replace it with the factory blower from the Dodge Demon Hellcat motor and then we’ve got a serious problem on our hands…..gentlemen, let the supertruck wars begin………again!!!!!
Eieieieieieieieiei!!!!!!
5.0L should have been standard, 3.5L HO optional. Then supercharge v8 or even maybe even have 7.3L optional!
It is impossible to make a legend irrelevant without at least a decade of time.
My 2018 Raptor is a great drive. Somewhat hart to park with a large turning radius. As far as horsepower the limit of acceleration are tires. Adding more and more horsepower may make the driver feel more manly if what you what you need is to impress others with a loud roar that annoys others. For me it is the perfect truck.