Tested! The Ford F-150 Raptor R Is the Daily Drivable Baja Blaster

If the Porsche 911 GT3 is the poster child for a fast track car you can easily drive every day, Ford’s F-150 Raptor is its dirt-covered analogue. With the current-generation Ford F-150 Raptor R, the best aspects of 15 years of Raptor pedigree have been combined into a single model, namely rapid-response Fox shocks and a snarling, big-power V-8. The R, after all, means this one’s supercharged.

After a hilariously fun First Drive in the latest version of the heroic Raptor R, we were ready to spend more time with the most raucous F-150 pickup you can buy. As it turns out, the Blue Oval was more than happy to lend us one so we could participate in the annual Raptor Rally off-road-athon and then put the truck through its paces on the pavement at our test track.

Test Track Revelations

Ford updated the F-150 Raptor R for 2024 with new Fox Dual Live Valve shocks, an additional 20 horsepower, and upgrades targeting off-road performance and comfort. The supercharged 5.2-liter V-8 engine now makes 720 hp and 640 lb-ft of torque, up from 700 when the Raptor R made its debut. The heightened output wasn’t noticeable to the seat of our pants—we already called the first version of the truck “bonkerballs”—but our latest efforts at the test track provided proof.

The 2025 Ford F-150 Raptor R launched hard, and the sensation of taking off in a vehicle that tipped our scales at 5,993 pounds was eye-widening. We beat our previous 0–60-mph time with a sprint of just 3.6 seconds, 0.1 tick quicker than our previous best . Importantly, our new time was also quicker than the most recent Ram 1500 TRX we tested, which needed 3.9 seconds to get the job done with its 702 hp and 650 lb-ft of torque.

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Once launched, the 2025 F-150 Raptor R kept pulling. It hauled through the quarter mile in 12.1 seconds at 112.1 mph. That time tied the 2023 F-150 Raptor R’s effort but beat its trap speed of 111.8 mph. Again, the latest Raptor R was far quicker than the now-dormant TRX. Ram’s truck posted a time of 12.5 seconds at 108.3 mph. When Ram thaws its hibernating performance truck, it’ll need to bring serious performance upgrades to the table to beat Ford’s rapid Raptor.

If only the F-150 Raptor R stopped as immediately as it accelerated. Off-road tires and the chunky curb weight were detrimental to our test truck’s 60–0-mph distance, as it came to a halt in 151 feet. (The 2023 model needed 137.) What’s more, the Raptor R dove, hopped, and bucked under forceful braking. The soft pedal made for more input guesswork than we would have liked, especially in rapidly decelerating freeway traffic.

The Raptor R’s suspension is phenomenal off-road, of course, but it was less than ideal for hot-lapping our figure-eight test track. Each lap was a different adventure thanks to the soft suspension, low-grip tires, and super-elevated ride height. Still, we managed to demolish the 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R’s lap time of 29.4 seconds with a time of just 27.6 seconds. A 2021 Ram 1500 TRX needed 28.4 seconds to get around our short circuit.

Driven in the real world, the 2025 Ford F-150 Raptor R is well behaved. The suspension’s compliance made for comfortable highway driving and nullified road imperfections on city streets. Subdued road and tire noise, especially for an off-road truck, made for surprising civility.

The steering is well weighted and perhaps improved from before. It was certainly easier to place the full-size pickup in its lane, even when driven at a clip on a curvy road, than we remembered. A 360-degree camera view was a godsend when it came time to squeezing the widened F-150 into parking spots. The only thing that stood in our way of streetable monster truck bliss was the Raptor R’s miserable fuel economy. We observed an average of 10 to 12 mpg throughout our time behind the wheel, which was close to the EPA’s rating of 10/15/12 mpg city/highway combined. Of course, if you care about gas consumption, this isn't the truck for you.

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Off-Road Domination

We weren’t thinking about gas prices when it came time to take the 2025 Ford F-150 Raptor R off-road. This truck’s job is to gobble up lumpy, dirty surfaces at high speeds, and on trails outside of Lake Havasu, Arizona, its dual-valve shocks had no trouble accommodating the varied terrain. Bounding over rocks and ruts in the Baja drive mode, the F-150 Raptor R is the off-road machine of our dreams. This profile also opens the road-illegal exhaust setting, which uncorks the Raptor R’s true sonic potential.

The Fox-supplied suspension uses one spool valve to control jounce compression and a second spool valve to handle rebound, a new setup as of the 2024 model year update. Our trek leader suggested we keep up the pace if we wanted a smoother ride, as that allows the body to “float” while the suspension handles the hard work below.

Solidifying the Raptor R’s Baja-ready chops was its ability to jump, and more important, land. At the Raptor Rally, Ford set us up with a dirt-packed ramp so we could get aerial. Launching from a standstill in Baja mode, we kept the throttle pinned until the moment the front tires left the ground. The Raptor R sailed through the air, suspension entirely unladen. The nose dipped ever so slightly as we came down with a bang, launching water bottles out of the cupholders and into the air. After this harsh but deft landing, our Raptor R shrugged off the impact, ready for more.

We also faced some obstacles that required slower off-roading skills. For that, we turned the Raptor R’s drive mode dial to Rock Crawl, which deployed the rear locker, engaged 4Lo, and modified the rest of the truck’s tuning for precise boulder traversal. For even more control, we enabled Trail One Pedal Drive, although after years of driving EVs in one-pedal mode, operating a V-8 truck with just the accelerator felt awkward. Still, we got across some gnarly terrain while only kissing a single stone with the underbody armor.

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A Really Well-Equipped Raptor

For all of the 2025 Ford F-150 Raptor R’s performance and everyday refinement, it comes at a high cost: $114,545, as tested. And yet there’s some value given the strong list of standard equipment; a 12.0-inch central touchscreen with phone projection, a configurable 12.0-inch digital instrument cluster, a head-up display, and an awesome 14-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system were among the high-tech niceties we used the most. We would have liked some more premium materials to help differentiate the cabin from more run-of-the-mill F-150 models, but Raptor-specific touches such as carbon-fiber trim and suede upholstery adequately communicate the truck’s performance intentions.

The 2025 Ford F-150 Raptor R demonstrated that Ford has continued to evolve its off-road truck formula with gradual refinements, and it’s made the most hardcore F-150 even more so. As we wait for a true competitor to emerge, silent electric trucks like the Hummer EV and Rivian R1T don’t come close to the high drama of the F-150 Raptor R and its roaring V-8 engine. The Blue Oval stands alone with the most badass off-road truck money can buy.