Ford Ranger 2022 review: Raptor X GVM load test

If you’ve clicked this review you know what’s up when it comes to Raptor design. It’s bold. It’s bonkers. It’s brand-heavy. It’s also broadly mimicked by those who have, ahem, lesser versions of the Ranger yet try to make their own utes appear wide and muscled like this one.

The Raptor design is bold and brand-heavy. (Image: Matt Campbell)

I can see the appeal, because it is commanding in terms of its presence, and the Raptor X’s added X-factor elements do help it stand out even more.

The lane-hogging hulkish frame of the Ranger Raptor X comes courtesy of it being considerably wider than the standard model (2028mm vs 1977mm), but it’s also a bit shorter nose to tail (5398mm vs 5446mm), and taller too (1873mm unladen vs 1848mm), while of course riding on a 3220mm wheelbase.

You might find those extended bars in the tub can get in the way if you’re using it for hard work, but thankfully there’s a spray-in tub liner that makes sure you won’t damage the paint when you’re throwing stuff in the tub - just take note that some items may mark that finish, as I found when I hauled some tree branches to the tip. The tub dimensions are as follows: 1549mm long at the floor of the box; 1560mm wide and 1139mm between the wheel arches (too small for an Aussie pallet); 1330mm wide at the tray opening; 561mm deep.

If you plan to go off road, here are the measurements you need to know: approach angle - 32.5 deg; breakover/rampover - 24 deg; departure - 24 deg (standard tow bar!); wading depth - 800mm; running / ground clearance - 283mm. Other things to consider are the side-steps, which are large and can get in the way of easy ingress and egress, and may be the most replaced items of all if you plan to head off pavement.

The tub dimension is too small for an Aussie pallet. (Image: Matt Campbell)

But if you’re more likely to be throwing stuff in the tub than throwing the ute in the mud, you should note the load-in height for the tub is 964mm - some 124mm higher off the ground than a Wildtrak. 

We did load some weight into the back, and the resulting sag at the back axle was dramatic. With approximately 600kg of sand and rock in bags in the tub, the suspension dipped by some 15cm at the rear - about 50 per cent worse than the FX4 Max we had on test recently, which dipped by 9.5cm at the rear axle, and that’s an interesting finding considering both have those Fox Shocks, but only the Raptor X gets the multi-link rear-end and coil-spring suspension.

The payload capacity for the Raptor X is 714kg. So with me, about 600kg of landscape supplies, and a few odds and ends, we were bang on the limit of the capabilities for this ute. And you can see it in the images - the thing was doing the Praying Mantis pose. 

In case you’re wondering, the gross vehicle mass (GVM) or gross vehicle weight (GVW) is 3090kg and the kerb weight is 2376kg. And if you’re considering towing, read my review, but also keep in mind the gross combination mass (GCM) is 5350kg and the towing capacity is 750kg unbraked and 2500kg braked (1000kg less than the rest of the Ranger line-up).

Looking for something other than the 2.0-litre four-cylinder Bi-turbo diesel engine and 10-speed automatic transmission? Too bad, champ - that’s the only option in the Raptor X.

That’s no bad thing, though, because despite not having paddleshifters, there is a control knob for selectable four-wheel drive (2H, 4H and 4L low range).

Oh, and the engine has 157kW of power (at 3750rpm) and 500Nm of torque (from 1750-2000rpm) - beefy outputs for a small capacity four-cylinder engine. 

There is a control knob for selectable four-wheel drive. (Image: Matt Campbell)

There’s an electronic locking rear diff standard, too.

If you’re looking at the fuel consumption sticker on the windscreen of a Raptor X wondering what that all means, it’s the official combined cycle fuel consumption figure - 8.2 litres per 100 kilometres.

In our testing we saw a real-world at the pump return of 12.2L/100km, and that included a mix of driving with and without a load.

Emissions meet Euro 5 standards - 212g/km CO2 - and there’s a diesel particulate filter (DPF) fitted. You don’t need Adblue after treatment in Aussie-spec Raptor X models.

Fuel tank capacity is 80 litres and fuel saving start-stop technology is standard, but there is no long range fuel tank available. Scratch that “Simpson Desert in one tank” idea, then.

We once again made our way to Lower Mountains Landscape Supplies to make use of their facilities and sandbag collection to load up the tub. In this Ranger Raptor X though, we didn’t need to heave as many bags in as most utes we’ve tested. Instead, we stuck to about 600kg of sandbags (and a couple of bags of rock, too).

The load-in height was an issue for the first, er, four or five bags, but it was amazing how much the rear suspension sagged and how quickly it did so. With all the bags in, it felt like I was almost throwing them at my knee height, with about 15cm of sag at the rear axle - compared to the FX4 Max with Fox Shocks and leaf springs rather than coils at the rear, which dropped 9.2cm with 800kg in the back.

We loaded about 600kg of sandbags into the tub. (Image: Matt Campbell)

It was evident that the praying mantis-style stance is not how you’d want to be running your ute at all times, and indeed it was surprising to note the tail of the ute had slumped so low that the towbar touched down on the driveway as we exited the landscaping place. So much for that departure angle!

Amazingly though, the suspension coped with the mass admirably. The rear end barely felt speedhumps and potholes in the road surface, and it felt confident and controlled at higher speeds - it was just at lower speeds that the weight was noticeable, especially in driveways and such.

The nose of the ute was pointing up more than you might think it should, though there was not much of that ‘light at the nose’ feel you used to get in loaded-up utes of decades past. It was still easy to steer and light in its action.

The engine and transmission? You guessed it - still really good. Plenty of grunt, and thankfully without too much to think about when it came to getting away from a standstill - when unladen it was more noticeably laggy, whereas with weight it was a bit more measured in its progress from a standstill - no doubt also because of more measured throttle application. 

With all the bags in there was about 15cm of sag at the rear axle. (Image: Matt Campbell)

Again, the thing with the 10-speed auto is that you have so many gears, but that has the advantage of never feeling like the engine is out of puff. The gearbox finds the cog it needs and holds it as long as it needs to.

Braking performance was good with the weight on board, with the Raptor X’s four-wheel disc brakes allowing a more engaging feel and better response than the Rangers with drum rear brakes we’ve tested loaded.

Ford’s five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty plan applies here, which is short of what you get from Isuzu (six years/150,000km) and Mitsubishi (up to 10 years/200,000km). 

You can get up to seven years roadside assist if you service with Ford. Lifetime capped price servicing applies to all Ford Ranger models, and the first four services are just $299 per visit. Maintenance intervals sit every 12 months/15,000km.

Read our Ford Ranger problems page for more info on concerns, issues, recalls, problems or common complaints.