Ford F-150 Raptor Vs. Land Rover Defender V8: Offroad Kings

The Land Rover Defender V8 sits at the top of the Defender food chain and gets special features such as Dynamic Mode added to the standard Terrain Response 2 system, a set of 22-inch alloy wheels, and of course a 5.0-liter V8 engine producing a serious 518 horsepower and 461 lb-ft of torque. Power is sent to all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. This big piece of British steel can sprint to 60 mph in a claimed 4.9 seconds and will top out at 149 mph.

The Ford F-150 Raptor on the other hand is powered by a 3.5-liter turbocharged EcoBoost V6 producing 450 hp at 5,850 rpm and 510 lb-ft of torque from 3,000 rpm. So less power, but more torque. Power is sent to all four wheels via a slick ten-speed automatic transmission. The Raptor will dart to 60 mph somewhere in the low 5-second range, and top out at 118 mph.

With a weight difference of around 40 pounds in favor of the Ford, there’s not much weight advantage either way, and the race should boil down to raw power, and eventually aerodynamics.

The first run is from a dig and sees both cars get a good launch. The two heavyweights stick together through the first two gears, but once the Defender’s transmission finally wakes up, the big Brit sails away from the Raptor, and takes the win by two car lengths. The next race is a roll race from 30 mph. Once again the Defender’s transmission lags behind, but the raw power of that V8 pulls it ahead of the Ford. From a 50 mph roll it’s even worse, and the Ford drops out of sight rather quickly. It will be interesting to see what the upcoming Defender SVR does against the F-150 Raptor R.