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Does Ford have a new Ranger top-dog with the incoming Super Duty? Or will the Raptor still be the brand's apex ute?
Ford’s upcoming Ranger Super Duty will be the most capable variant in its line-up when assessed on towing and payload, but where does that leave the performance-honed Raptor?
For reference, the Super Duty has been confirmed with a 4500kg braked towing capacity, 4500kg Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM), and an 8000kg Gross Combination Mass (GCM).
Compare that to the Ranger Raptor, which has a 2500kg braked towing capacity figure, a 3130kg GVM, and 5370kg GCM.
However, the Raptor has not been designed to be the most capable Ranger in terms of load lugging, instead opting for pure performance thanks to its 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 with 292kW/583Nm and off-road tailored suspension designed to blast the ute down unsealed roads.
Ford is yet to confirm the powertrain for the Super Duty, but it is expected to be fitted with an upgraded version of the 3.0-litre turbo-diesel V6, which currently produces 184kW/600Nm.
When asked if the Super Duty will sit above the Raptor in the Ranger hierarchy, a Ford Australia spokesperson told Drive the model line is designed to cater to a broad customer base.
“We don't view our vehicle line-up as a hierarchy, but rather as a holistic line-up of vehicles where we provide the right product for whatever our customer's need or use case is,” they said.
“The needs of a Ranger Raptor customer are different to those of a Ranger Wildtrak customer, and both of them will be different to the needs of a Ranger Super Duty customer.”
As a reference point, the Ranger Raptor currently wears a sticker price of $90,440 before on-road costs, but where the Super Duty will land is anyone’s guess as the vehicle isn’t due to be launched until 2026.
Assuming Ford uses a $68,840 4x4 mid-tier dual-cab XLT ute as a basis, the Super Duty could comfortably add $20,000 to the sticker price and still be positioned under the Raptor.
With GVM upgrades for the existing Ranger priced up to $10,000, taking the model’s figure to 3850kg, it still falls short of what the Super Duty will offer.
Additionally, the Super Duty will also come with a full Ford-backed warranty of five years and unlimited kilometres, while servicing can be completed at any factory outlet.
As a Ford Australia spokesperson put it, both models target two different buyers, with Super Duty more workhorse-oriented compared to the Raptor’s fun and theatre.
“Extensive customer feedback from heavy-duty fleet customers revealed a gap in the market for a vehicle that met their needs without compromise,” they said.
“The Ranger Super Duty directly addresses this demand, offering exceptional capabilities straight from the factory.”
Tung Nguyen has been in the automotive journalism industry for over a decade, cutting his teeth at various publications before finding himself at Drive in 2024. With experience in news, feature, review, and advice writing, as well as video presentation skills, Tung is a do-it-all content creator. Tung’s love of cars first started as a child watching Transformers on Saturday mornings, as well as countless hours on PlayStation’s Gran Turismo, meaning his dream car is a Nissan GT-R, with a Liberty Walk widebody kit, of course.
