Ford is no stranger to the world of off-road performance. The Blue Oval essentially ignited the segment with the F-150 Raptor in 2009, and has since rolled out quite a number of Raptor, Tremor, and Bronco-branded wheelers. But CEO Jim Farley doesn’t seem like he’s ready to put a halt to development of vehicles with Fox Shocks quite yet–and he recently gave us our best hint yet at a potential plan for an off-road supercar wearing the company's now-famous saurian branding.
The idea of a Raptor-branded sports car isn’t new. Automotive media and fans alike have been clamoring about the potential for a Mustang Raptor for years, particularly after the success of Lamborghini’s Huracán Sterrato and Porsche’s 911 Dakar. During a recent appearance on Bloomberg’s Hot Pursuit podcast, the executive made it immensely clear that we aren’t alone in thinking FoMoCo has a possible winner on its hands there.
“There is no Porsche [of] off-road,” said Farley. “And I’m shocked that people don’t think about that. And I’m interested in that. The on-road performance hierarchy is very simple to see, and the very top is over served, in my opinion. No one's ever done an off-road supercar.”
When pushed about the recent machinery from Sant'Agata Bolognese, Farley was quick to dismiss the car’s genuine off-road potential. “You take the Lamborghini and let’s see how long it would last on the Baja 500 course,” said Farley.
“I’m talking like a Dakar type of concept,” Farley added. “Like a supercar. One thousand horsepower, partially electric, totally digitally enabled. You bring your phone, you get the Max Verstappen setting—everything is adjustable. The suspension travel, the damping, the ride height, and it's fully capable of doing a full-on race. And it's not a pickup truck. I think that is the right way for Ford to innovate the supercar business.”
The executive did confirm that he is still thinking on the concept, but didn’t deny some Group B influence. Farley also recognizes the strength behind the Raptor brand, and the associations it has for customers. He even compared Ford’s dominance in the off-road space to that of Porsche.
“This is my idea,” said Farley. “I’m talking to the team about it. Yeah, I am the CEO, and I tend to know about the changing market... but I bet you in total revenue for enthusiast products, Ford outsells Porsche right now if you look at our Raptors and our Broncos and Tremors."
While we’re still going to have to wait for something a bit more concrete, it seems clear that some sort of project is underway in Dearborn. Farley hasn’t been afraid to lean into his enthusiast background in recent years, and it's brought us some truly great products. Given the recent experience with the Mustang GTD, the team is likely feeling pretty confident. That said, a true off-road supercar is a real departure from both the sports car and 4x4 programs.
“We can always do another fancy supercar,” said Farley. “But I think I’m challenging my team to think a little differently.”
Here’s hoping the next Raptor is a genuine supercar.... and bonus points if it looks like a race-prepped RS200.
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