Ford wasn’t worried about beating the Ram 1500 TRX on power. Here’s why.

For the first time since the original model bowed out of production in 2014, the Ford Raptor finally has a V8 engine. And not just any V8 engine. The 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R arrives with a 5.2-liter supercharged Predator V8 from the Shelby GT500 dishing out an even 700 horsepower and 640 lb-ft of torque. That’s a substantial increase over the base Raptor’s 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6, which puts out 450 hp and 510 lb-ft of torque. However, it’s a bit less than the 2022 Ram 1500 TRX delivers from its 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8.

For comparison, the TRX produces 702 hp and 650 lb-ft of torque. That’s a pretty negligible difference, but given the storied history of the Detroit horsepower wars, we are surprised Ford didn’t give the Raptor R a couple of more horses just to say it has one more than the TRX. So we asked Ford why Ford didn’t give it 703 hp just for bragging rights.

Ford

Ford spokesperson Mike Levine answered on Twitter, “Why? It’s 700 hp and hundreds of pounds lighter than a TRX. Let them brag about their +225 lbs/hp advantage.”

Officially, the Ram 1500 TRX weighs 6,439 pounds while the Raptor R tips the scales at 5,950 lbs (the V6-powered Raptor weighs 5,740 lbs). Ford has a whopping 489-pound advantage over Ram, meaning the Raptor R emerges with a superior power-to-weight ratio of 8.5 pounds per hp compared to nine pounds per hp in the TRX (lower numbers are better). With so much less weight to haul around, the Raptor R shouldn’t have much trouble defeating the TRX in various performance evaluations.

In practical terms, the Raptor R’s weight advantage is far more important than the Raptor R having slightly more horsepower. But it still seems like a missed opportunity in our eyes. Ford had two years to answer the call with a supercharged pickup truck and beat Ram in every category. Though the Raptor R will doubtless fulfill every task asked of it, some truck buyers will blindly stick with the TRX because it has “more power,” if only slightly. Is that a fair reason to buy a truck over another? Probably not. But remember, this is America where if you ain’t first, you’re last.

Ford