The 2024 Ford F-150 Raptor R (Finally) Packs More Power Than the Ram 1500 TRX

As the TRX departs Ram’s lineup, rival Ford gives it a 21-gun salute … by giving the Raptor even more power.

f 150 raptor r pickup driving through sand Ford

Ford originally debuted the Raptor R back in 2022, revealing a pickup truck packing a supercharged 5.2-liter V8 from the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 that pumped out a monstrous 700 horsepower and 640 lb-ft of torque. That said, it surprised us at the launch that Ford didn’t find an extra three ponies somewhere in oprder to supplant the 702 hp Ram 1500 TRX as America’s most gratuitously powerful pickup. But Ford — quite fairly — pointed to the Raptor R being 400 pounds lighter as the most important attribute.

Well, apparently the power number did matter. At the 2024 F-150 reveal, Ford hinted that a Raptor R powertrain announcement was forthcoming. Now, with just a week and a half left in 2023, the brand has confirmed that the 2024 F-150 Raptor R will pack 720 horsepower — 20 more than the initial model — giving it the edge over Ram’s king of the tyrant pickups.

Ford did not go into too much detail on how the extra power was achieved

The brand noted that it was the product of “reduced air inlet losses coupled with an optimized calibration.” Ford also says the changes give the truck a wider torque curve, although the max output of 640 lb-ft goes unchanged.

There’s no word yet on how the shift affects fuel economy. That said, under the previous calibration, the F-150 Raptor R earned just 10 mpg in city driving, and we don’t see this update making much of a dent in either direction there.

2023 ford f150 raptor r
Fun? Yes. Fuel-efficient? Nope.
Will Sabel Courtney

The Blue Oval is still technically getting one over on Ram

The 1500 TRX is getting one limited production run for the 2024 model year before Ram ditches the Hemi V8 entirely and starts manufacturing conventional and decidedly unconventional electric pickups. General Motors has declined to throw down a gauntlet in this battle; the Chevy Silverado ZR2 sticks with the standard, naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8 that comes in well under Ram and Ford’s off-road sport trucks in terms of power. So it’s likely the F-150 Raptor R will now go down as America’s most powerful combustion production pickup ever built. (At least, assuming you’re judging that based on horsepower; it seems likely that the heavy duty pickup truck category’s diesel torque wars will continue on for some time.)

trucks
The F-150 Raptor (in regular non-R spec) at left, the Ram 1500 TRX at right.
Will Sabel Courtney

Will the extra power make a difference to F-150 Raptor R buyers?

Beyond noting to friends that it has more power? Probably not. The F-150 Raptor R is incredibly fun, but our enduring impression from driving it is how difficult it is to even properly deploy all that power — whether you’re on-road, off-road or just peacocking around town trying to make a lot of noise.

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