Ford Everest Raptor ‘Miami’: Sweet Dream

If it feels like you’re driving something a contractor would drive to a building site, it’s probably not something you should consider a performance vehicle, unless that contractor is into HSV Maloos.

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So we decided off-roading deserves something petrolheads can really sink their teeth into, not just something that looks more expensive than the other 4x4s and utes on the tracks of a weekend.

Enter the Ford Everest. In its new form, it runs on ‘Raptor’ power, utilising the 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel four which was Ranger Raptor-only until the Everest came along.

But our friends at 4X4 Australia say it’s not likely there’ll be any more similarities. “There are no such plans for a Baja-inspired wagon,” a Ford rep told 4X4 Australia. We have our own idea.

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The first step is appeasing the power-hungry rev-head in all of us by bringing Ford’s mighty Miami supercharged V8 engine into the equation.

The Miami, in our Everest Raptor, doesn’t have to match the 345kW and 575Nm outputs it had in the Falcon XR8 Sprint, but why shouldn’t it? If it’s going to be a performance vehicle, the engine should be pumping out as much power as the chassis can handle. Ford’s new-ish 10-speed auto is a fine thing, so we’d be happy to see that put to use.

Next, we’d look to the suspension. This is a 4X4/SUV after all, and if there’s one reason to buy something so high off the ground, it’s to drive over things. We’d want to see the same suspension found in the Ranger Raptor, which Ford says can handle rough terrain at high speeds.

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*pictured Ford Ranger Raptor

Fox internal-bypass shocks, which were custom-fitted to the Raptor, are essentially off-road racing suspension, and the Raptor-specific Watts link should keep the Everest’s rear tied down.

On top of that, Ford’s Terrain Management System, which is present in the Ranger, should get a look in here, including the Baja mode that is the off-roading version of ‘sports plus’.

At the 2.5-tonne mark, we’d also want to see some meaty brakes on our Everest Raptor, as well as the widened track from the Raptor.

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*pictured Ford Ranger Raptor

As for the price, if people are willing to pay about $75,000 for a diesel Ranger Raptor, it seems like the sky is the limit. That’s also about the price of the top-spec Ford Everest Titanium, so we’d say a premium of about $10,000 – maybe even $15,000 – would be fair given that’s the gap between Ranger Wildtrak and Ranger Raptor.

So, would you pay $85K for our (very unlikely) creation? What would you have done differently?

Let us know in the comments!