Ever since the introduction of the Raptor R, many journalists and YouTubers focus nearly all their Raptor attention on that king of all pickups. Let’s be honest, the 720 horsepower supercharged super truck has the powertrain that we would all select if money were no object or over-the-top extremism drove our click rate.
That same honesty, however, suggests that paying $140k for a truck ($115k plus the $25k dealer markup that is still quite common) and then actually using it for ‘truck stuff‘ like hauling a bed full of mulch is something that will only be pursued by people who are looking to generate more Google ad revenue. For the rest of us, the EcoBoost Raptor is far more likely to end up in our garages to be used as a truck rather than just a trophy.
In my area EcoBoost Raptors are now being offered with $6k discounts below MSRP. I attribute that to the slowing of truck sales in general as much as the existence of RAM’s new 540 hp RHO.
For 2024, Ford narrowed the option packages available for the base Raptor, but a key one stands above all others: The $11k 37” Performance Package. As the name implies, the package upgrades the Raptor’s already massive 35” tall tires to 37” monsters. Not so obvious are the upgrades from the standard Fox Live Valve shocks, which actively adjust dampening in compression, to new dual live valve units that add the same in the rebound direction. Rounding out the 37” performance package are front Recaro branded seats and woven carbon fiber interior accent trim, modular front bumper, and beadlock capable wheels.
If the Raptor R gets 80% of the F150 Raptor’s press coverage, the Raptor 37 gets almost all of what is left. Meanwhile, the 35” tire variant, the ONLY way you could get a Raptor from Ford for the first 10 years, is hardly mentioned. Ironically, sales volumes are almost inversely proportional to the hype of these three options (Raptor R, Raptor 37, Raptor 35). That begs the question: Is bigger always better?
To form my own opinion on this, I test drove a Raptor 37 and a Raptor 35 back-to-back. These are my impressions of both.
DRIVING IMPRESSIONS:
The 37” Raptor may only be one inch taller than the 35” version, but it feels even more so from the driver’s seat. Because of its size, the road presence of this truck can be felt from behind the wheel. Speaking of the driver’s seat: The Recaros are comfortable, having some deep (for a truck) but soft bolstering. They would certainly remain comfortable even on longer trips, even for larger framed folks like me. They feel more ’comfy recliner’ than ‘sports car’. By comparison, the standard Raptor seats disappear. You simply don’t notice them. They are comfortable. Driving a truck with the standard seats didn’t make me miss the Recaros. When I purchased my own personal GT500, I would not have gotten one without the Recaro seats, but when it comes to Raptor, missing this option would not be a deal breaker.
Raptor’s come with standard 17” wheels. That means the 37” tires have 10” of sidewall between the wheel and the road while the 35’s have 9”. You wouldn’t think 1” would make a huge difference, but it does (Insert “That’s what she said” joke here)! I can safely say that if I were to drive these trucks in a blind test, even day’s apart from each other, I could easily identify which one was fitted with the bigger BF Goodrich KO2’s. I drove the big tire truck first, and was generally impressed with how it handled on-road driving. The ride was as comfortable as a La-Z-Boy, which I expected, but it was also controlled enough in Sport mode that it didn’t seem to wallow around too much. Steering wasn’t sports car sharp, or even sporty SUV sharp, but it wasn’t the 1970’s land barge I expected. The steering ratio was slower than I like, but better than other trucks I’ve driven. Steering weight was also lighter than I prefer, but firm enough to provide some sense that you’re actually controlling a 6000 pound vehicle. I did notice significant body roll on longer, sweeping turns. The Fox shocks can slow this, but not eliminate it during sustained cornering. Overall, I was comfortable with the on-road driving dynamics, but they were too soft for me to get any thrills from driving this truck on the road, even in Sport mode. If I had to describe the 37” Raptor’s on-road ride and handling, I would call it “controlled isolation.”
The smaller tired Raptor, by comparison, felt measureably more connected to the road. Ride was slightly firmer, but the trade off was a significantly better feel. This increased sharpness was apparent immediately. Steering weight and ratio were similar to the 37” truck, but the Raptor 35 was more sure footed mid corner. Smaller steering corrections produced a measurable reaction in the truck’s direction that was more subdued in the 37” Raptor. Rather than feeling like a mini monster truck that has been given enough control to be predictable on the street, the 35” Raptor felt like it could be, dare I say it, fun to drive even when you aren’t making a top speed straight line run through the desert. Even body roll in longer corners seemed noticeably less in the smaller tire truck. This made the on-road driving experience of the 35” Raptor far more in tune with my personal tastes. In my opinion, the dual live valve Fox shocks that come with the 37” tires aren’t enough to compensate for the 1” taller sidewall when it comes to on-road handling.
Since both of these trucks were brand new, I didn’t subject either to hard acceleration runs, so I cannot comment much on the difference the larger tires may have on that dynamic. The Raptor 35 did feel lighter and a little more torquey in the mid range, but without knowing what grade of fuel was in either truck, it would be unfair to draw a conclusion from that.
Speaking to the other differences between the 35” and 37” Raptors, the authentic carbon fiber interior appliqués are nice, but honestly, decades of carbon-looking AutoZone accessories have taken their toll on the weave look even if it is real carbon fiber. I actually find the texture and pattern used on the base 2024 Raptor interior more aesthetically pleasing.
As for the modular bumper on the 37 Performance package, I like it. The modular concept is versatile and the raised side sections allow better approach angles to the front tires. The bead lock capable wheels do look a little better than the base wheels, but honestly I’m not a fan of either one. I don’t usually replace OEM wheels on my vehicles, but in this case, I would probably swap out either one of these with something else in a gunmetal gray.
CONCLUSION:
If I could convince Ford to make one change in the Raptor lineup, it would be to offer the 5.0 Coyote as an option on the base 35” tire version. The V8 sound, and the ability to add a Ford Performance / Whipple Supercharger would allow us to build a Raptor R experience for far less money. It would even have a smaller impact on Ford’s CAFE and emissions scores than a Raptor R. But until Ford see’s fit to offer that option, I’d opt for current base 35” tire EcoBoost Raptor. It’s more direct, more responsive, and more fun-to-drive than the Raptor 37 on the road. There’s a reason why only Ford has attached 37” tires to their super trucks. Bigger isn’t always better. The 35” tire is better 90% of the time. It’s also easier to stomach dropping a load of firewood into the bed of a base Raptor than a Raptor R, and the $60k difference in today’s market prices would buy an Explorer ST, Mustang, or a trailer and two side-by-sides.
That same honesty, however, suggests that paying $140k for a truck ($115k plus the $25k dealer markup that is still quite common) and then actually using it for ‘truck stuff‘ like hauling a bed full of mulch is something that will only be pursued by people who are looking to generate more Google ad revenue. For the rest of us, the EcoBoost Raptor is far more likely to end up in our garages to be used as a truck rather than just a trophy.
In my area EcoBoost Raptors are now being offered with $6k discounts below MSRP. I attribute that to the slowing of truck sales in general as much as the existence of RAM’s new 540 hp RHO.
For 2024, Ford narrowed the option packages available for the base Raptor, but a key one stands above all others: The $11k 37” Performance Package. As the name implies, the package upgrades the Raptor’s already massive 35” tall tires to 37” monsters. Not so obvious are the upgrades from the standard Fox Live Valve shocks, which actively adjust dampening in compression, to new dual live valve units that add the same in the rebound direction. Rounding out the 37” performance package are front Recaro branded seats and woven carbon fiber interior accent trim, modular front bumper, and beadlock capable wheels.
If the Raptor R gets 80% of the F150 Raptor’s press coverage, the Raptor 37 gets almost all of what is left. Meanwhile, the 35” tire variant, the ONLY way you could get a Raptor from Ford for the first 10 years, is hardly mentioned. Ironically, sales volumes are almost inversely proportional to the hype of these three options (Raptor R, Raptor 37, Raptor 35). That begs the question: Is bigger always better?
To form my own opinion on this, I test drove a Raptor 37 and a Raptor 35 back-to-back. These are my impressions of both.
DRIVING IMPRESSIONS:
The 37” Raptor may only be one inch taller than the 35” version, but it feels even more so from the driver’s seat. Because of its size, the road presence of this truck can be felt from behind the wheel. Speaking of the driver’s seat: The Recaros are comfortable, having some deep (for a truck) but soft bolstering. They would certainly remain comfortable even on longer trips, even for larger framed folks like me. They feel more ’comfy recliner’ than ‘sports car’. By comparison, the standard Raptor seats disappear. You simply don’t notice them. They are comfortable. Driving a truck with the standard seats didn’t make me miss the Recaros. When I purchased my own personal GT500, I would not have gotten one without the Recaro seats, but when it comes to Raptor, missing this option would not be a deal breaker.
Raptor’s come with standard 17” wheels. That means the 37” tires have 10” of sidewall between the wheel and the road while the 35’s have 9”. You wouldn’t think 1” would make a huge difference, but it does (Insert “That’s what she said” joke here)! I can safely say that if I were to drive these trucks in a blind test, even day’s apart from each other, I could easily identify which one was fitted with the bigger BF Goodrich KO2’s. I drove the big tire truck first, and was generally impressed with how it handled on-road driving. The ride was as comfortable as a La-Z-Boy, which I expected, but it was also controlled enough in Sport mode that it didn’t seem to wallow around too much. Steering wasn’t sports car sharp, or even sporty SUV sharp, but it wasn’t the 1970’s land barge I expected. The steering ratio was slower than I like, but better than other trucks I’ve driven. Steering weight was also lighter than I prefer, but firm enough to provide some sense that you’re actually controlling a 6000 pound vehicle. I did notice significant body roll on longer, sweeping turns. The Fox shocks can slow this, but not eliminate it during sustained cornering. Overall, I was comfortable with the on-road driving dynamics, but they were too soft for me to get any thrills from driving this truck on the road, even in Sport mode. If I had to describe the 37” Raptor’s on-road ride and handling, I would call it “controlled isolation.”
The smaller tired Raptor, by comparison, felt measureably more connected to the road. Ride was slightly firmer, but the trade off was a significantly better feel. This increased sharpness was apparent immediately. Steering weight and ratio were similar to the 37” truck, but the Raptor 35 was more sure footed mid corner. Smaller steering corrections produced a measurable reaction in the truck’s direction that was more subdued in the 37” Raptor. Rather than feeling like a mini monster truck that has been given enough control to be predictable on the street, the 35” Raptor felt like it could be, dare I say it, fun to drive even when you aren’t making a top speed straight line run through the desert. Even body roll in longer corners seemed noticeably less in the smaller tire truck. This made the on-road driving experience of the 35” Raptor far more in tune with my personal tastes. In my opinion, the dual live valve Fox shocks that come with the 37” tires aren’t enough to compensate for the 1” taller sidewall when it comes to on-road handling.
Since both of these trucks were brand new, I didn’t subject either to hard acceleration runs, so I cannot comment much on the difference the larger tires may have on that dynamic. The Raptor 35 did feel lighter and a little more torquey in the mid range, but without knowing what grade of fuel was in either truck, it would be unfair to draw a conclusion from that.
Speaking to the other differences between the 35” and 37” Raptors, the authentic carbon fiber interior appliqués are nice, but honestly, decades of carbon-looking AutoZone accessories have taken their toll on the weave look even if it is real carbon fiber. I actually find the texture and pattern used on the base 2024 Raptor interior more aesthetically pleasing.
As for the modular bumper on the 37 Performance package, I like it. The modular concept is versatile and the raised side sections allow better approach angles to the front tires. The bead lock capable wheels do look a little better than the base wheels, but honestly I’m not a fan of either one. I don’t usually replace OEM wheels on my vehicles, but in this case, I would probably swap out either one of these with something else in a gunmetal gray.
CONCLUSION:
If I could convince Ford to make one change in the Raptor lineup, it would be to offer the 5.0 Coyote as an option on the base 35” tire version. The V8 sound, and the ability to add a Ford Performance / Whipple Supercharger would allow us to build a Raptor R experience for far less money. It would even have a smaller impact on Ford’s CAFE and emissions scores than a Raptor R. But until Ford see’s fit to offer that option, I’d opt for current base 35” tire EcoBoost Raptor. It’s more direct, more responsive, and more fun-to-drive than the Raptor 37 on the road. There’s a reason why only Ford has attached 37” tires to their super trucks. Bigger isn’t always better. The 35” tire is better 90% of the time. It’s also easier to stomach dropping a load of firewood into the bed of a base Raptor than a Raptor R, and the $60k difference in today’s market prices would buy an Explorer ST, Mustang, or a trailer and two side-by-sides.
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