Ford Ranger Raptor for Europe

The Australian designed and engineered Ford Ranger Raptor will go on sale across Europe from mid-2019 with identical specs to the version released in Asia Pacific markets including Australia last month.

That means the European Ford Ranger Raptor will be powered by a 157kW/500Nm Bi-Turbo 2.0-litre four-cylinder EcoBlue ‘Panther’ diesel engine matched to a 10-speed automatic transmission as standard.

The same powertrain will be optionally available in premium versions of both the upgraded 2019 Ford Ranger line-up due in September and the facelifted 2019 Ford Everest range being launched this week.

The Asia Pacific Ford Ranger Raptor is produced in Thailand but, like mainstream versions of the Ranger, which has been Europe’s top-selling pick-up since 2015, European versions of the Raptor will be produced in South Africa, where it will also be sold.

The Ford Ranger is also produced in Argentina and, although there’s no word yet on a Raptor version for South America, it’s likely to be built there too since – like the Ranger itself – the Raptor is a global model expected to be sold in more than 200 countries.

However, like the North American version, which will be based on the US-spec Ranger to be built in Michigan from early 2019, South America’s Ford Ranger Raptor may instead come with petrol power.

The most likely engine to power the Raptor in the Americas is a 2.7-litre biturbo-petrol V6, or a more powerful version of the 2.3-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder fitted to all other 2019 Rangers in the US.

The European Ford Ranger Raptor appeared in camouflage at the Goodwood Festival of Speed last month before becoming the first vehicle to be launched at the Gamescom trade fair, which opened in Cologne, Germany overnight.

At the same event, Ford and Microsoft announced the Raptor will feature in the new Forza Horizon 4 video racing game, “giving even more performance driving fans the opportunity to experience the pick-up’s unprecedented capabilities”.

European pricing for the second global Ford Performance model to be produced after the outgoing Ford Focus RS is yet to be revealed.

With more than 1000 Australian orders already received since its $74,990 plus ORCs pricetag was announced in April, ahead of first deliveries in October, the Ford Ranger Raptor is sold out until well into next year.

First launched in 2011, Ford’s Australian-developed T6 Ranger was Australia’s top-selling 4x4 ute last year and the nation’s second most popular new vehicle outright behind the Toyota HiLux.

Forming the basis of the North America’s first Ranger in eight years and the born-again Ford Bronco SUV in 2020, the Victorian-engineered T6 Ranger followed several generations of Mazda Bravo-based Courier and Ranger models since 1971.

“Forget everything you think you know about pick-ups,” said Leo Roeks, Ford Performance Director, Europe.

“Our new Ranger Raptor is a different breed — a thoroughbred desert racer and extreme lifestyle off-roader that can toil with the best of them in the harshest of working conditions.

“The new Ranger Raptor delivers all the tools a thrill-seeker could ask for. Like a motocross bike, snowmobile and an ATV in one — it’s the ultimate adventure pick-up.”