Ford Ranger Raptor does not come to the United States

The Raptor version of the Ford Ranger mid-size pickup truck is not intended for the United States.

The information was revealed at Autoblog by Hermann Salenbauch, director of Ford Performance's range of vehicles, in an interview published Thursday.

According to Salenbauch, the Ranger Raptor is based on the global version of the Ranger pickup that differs from the North American model and that the cost of complying with local regulations makes the project unsustainable.

When contacted by Driving Authority, a Ford spokesman confirmed Salenbauch's remarks recalling these two reasons.

Ford F-150 Raptor 2019

We remind you that Ranger Raptor has been developed for markets where the F-150, and therefore the F-150 Raptor, are neither sold nor popular. Ford even designed it with a four-cylinder diesel engine, ideal for all-terrain vehicles, but slow when it's back on the road. With 210 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque, the engine accelerates the Ranger Raptor from 0 to 62 mph in a 10.5-second minivan.

In February, Jamal Hameedi, chief engineer at Ford Performance, said the Ranger Raptor would be a hit in the US, but only if it was equipped with a gasoline engine.

Shortly after his comments, examples of the Ranger Raptor were sighted near the Ford headquarters in Detroit. Things really got heated in August when patent drawings showing a Raptor Ranger sporting some elements found only on the North American Rangers surfaced.

It now seems that the Ranger Raptor is not tied to the United States, although plans sometimes have the opportunity to change.