Ford Designer Discusses the Fascinating Evolution of the F-150 Raptor
Ford combined the best attributes of the first- and second-gen F-150 Raptor to make the third-gen even better.
The forthcoming launch of the 2021 F-150 Raptor marks the truck’s third generation and 11th model year, which is a true testament to its enduring appeal. And while the basic formula of the F-150 Raptor hasn’t changed much over those years, its design most certainly has. Really, only one thing has remained constant – the Raptors of all three generations have a wide stance and Baja racer looks.
The second-gen F-150 Raptor featured a much more aggressive design than the first-gen, however, with more muscular lines and a chiseled appearance. It didn’t offer as much in terms of visual width, however, mostly thanks to its shortened grille and body-color fascia. So for the third generation, Ford drew inspiration from both of the truck’s predecessors to create a best-of-both-worlds design, as Ford trucks chief designer Ehab Kaoud explained to Torque News recently.
“We took key design learnings from previous F-150 Raptor trucks and created our best off-road racer yet,” Kaoud said. “Not only have we maximized width and sculpted the sheet metal so it looks indestructible, but F-150 Raptor now appears lighter and more nimble, looking as if it could fly across open desert.”
“The design of the front grille, if you noticed, we opted to go coast-to-coast grille on the new Raptor. This gives the vehicle a much wider perception. The skid plate is also much wider than the predecessor. All of these are elements that equate to the desert racing proposition.”
Thus, the 2021 Raptor aims to impress, visually speaking, with a wide, aggressive stance and a chiseled face, just like a legit Baja racer. That latter piece is important, as Kaoud notes, because Baja trucks and rock crawlers look very different. “Looking at racers flying through Baja, you would see that these trucks are light on their wheels. Based on this we sculpted the body side to give that impression. The sculpted undercuts that brings at the front of each wheel lip fading as they come truck rearward. These features give the connotation of speed, making the truck look dynamic and visually lighter.”
Unlike a lot of other vehicles out there in the world today, all of the Raptor’s design features are functional as well. That includes the new air vents in the hood and fenders, as well as the truck’s basic proportions like ride height and overall width. “That is something we are very proud of as a Ford Truck Design Team,” Kaoud said. “That is, form following function.”
While it’s easy to look at a truck like the 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor and simply accept the fact that it looks like a Raptor, there’s obviously a lot more thought that goes into the design process. And getting a little “backstage” look into the mind of one of its designers demonstrates just how far Ford will go to perfect that design, a process that is truly continuous and never-ending.
Photos: Ford
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