The 2014 Dakar Rally is on and although it does not actually take place in Dakar anymore, it is still the absolute ultimate off road race in the world. Ford has built and is currently racing a pair of super cool trucks at the event this year which neatly sum up the company’s “One Ford” global brand strategy. The highly modified trucks use the body panels from the Ranger, which is sold everywhere else in the world BUT the USA and the engine from the mighty Ford Raptor which of course is primarily sold here in the USA. Of course the trucks have tube chassis and suspension systems on the level of anything you’d find in a Baja truck or other type of open off road racing machine.
The race started yesterday and the second stage of the contest is going on today. We’re interested to see how the Ford team fares with the factory engine plugged into the truck. It is a 6.2L unit making more than 400hp and that sucker is going to be put through every layer of hell possible through the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile. Sure, it isn’t the original African adventure but dare we say this route is at least as difficult and maybe even more so? It is basically devoid of the terrorists that were causing all the trouble with the other route, which makes it infinitely better in our book.
We’re going to be keeping you updated a couple times a week with news and information from Dakar as we get it. American Robby Gordon is running down there and if you remember right, he was essentially leading the class he was in a year or two ago and then got embroiled in a weird rules dispute and was disqualified. He’s back and out for blood so we’re going to keep tabs on Gordon and his guys along with the Ford team. We’ve also got our eyes peeled on the support truck race. You know, the giant diesels from Kamaz, MAN, and other companies. We love those big bastards.
The below video was shot a couple days before the race started at Ford of Argentina and it shows the Ranger/Raptor hauling ASS around a test course. The big 6.2L Boss V8 sounds flipping awesome as the driver power slides the truck around a corner and then hammers down a straight, snicking through the gears.
I wonder if it folds like a napkin in the middle as a stock Raptor when jumped? Those “folding” videos are great.
Tired of all the Raptor hate from GM/Dodge fanboys. Let’s see your company of choice produce something (PRODUCTION, looking at you Ram Runner) that can compete with the Raptor on that level and hold up to the drunken redneck levels of abuse that it takes to tweak a boxed steel frame. I’m sure the dumba$$ at the Rednecks With Paychecks event that stuffed his Raptor into the ground blamed Ford as well.
The content at the Follow Ford at Dakar link said these trucks are powered by 5.0L V8’s and not the 6.2L