The 2022 Ford Bronco Raptor lives up to the hype:
Even from the opposite side of a dry lake, there's no mistaking the Bronco Raptor's girth. The axles are not only stronger but as wide as Devil's Gulch. The insanely large fender flares are grotesque out of necessity to facilitate the 73.2- and 73.6-inch front and rear track widths—over six inches wider than a Sasquatch. If only Ford had incorporated some of the design elements from the Bronco DR race buggy, with its integrated fenders, we'd be keener on its curb appeal.
Our drive took us to Johnson Valley in Southern California's sweltering desert, home of the brutal King of Hammers off-road race and the location where Ford did most of the Bronco Raptor development. This playground of dry lake beds and rutted two-tracks is prime real estate for exploiting the twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6's 418 horsepower and 440 lb-ft of twist. For proper high-speed desert pounding, use the G.O.A.T. dial in the center console to summon Baja mode in the new 12.
But King of the Hammers isn't all high-speed work, which is why it's so challenging—rock-crawling and wide-open ripping are opposing disciplines with distinct demands. The winding trails leading to the peaks surrounding Johnson Valley are littered with boulders, where most of the YouTube-worthy epic fails happen. But with the big 37s and jacked-up suspension, the Bronco Raptor has 13.1 inches of ground clearance, 1.6 inches more than a Sasquatch.
But there's more to the Raptor than just off-road talents—getting to that choice trail will likely require traversing some pavement. Our on-road drive consisted of serpentine roads that bisect the Santa Rosa Mountains, a scenic yet comical location for hustling an 85.7-inch-wide brick that weighs an estimated 5800 pounds. But on the road, the Bronco Raptor is a perfectly livable machine.
So yes, the ultimate Bronco is predictably hyperbolic. Except under the hood, where that 3.0-liter V-6 feels like the only place where Ford pulled a punch—what, the F-150 Raptor's 3.5-liter wouldn’t fit? But just as the Wildtrak wasn't the final word on Bronco performance, we suspect that the Raptor might not be either. With the
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