The F-150 Raptor R Needed A New Hood To Become The Most Powerful ICE Pickup Ever

Breathe in.

When the Ford F-150 Raptor R arrived in 2023 it had a 700 hp supercharged 5.2-liter V8 that was just three horses shy of claiming the title of Most Powerful Internal Combustion Engine Pickup from the Ram 1500 TRX.

That has been rectified for 2024 with a power bump to 720 hp, which seems odd, but there’s a reason those extra ponies were late to the party.

Ford Performance Chief Engineer Karl Widmann told American Cars And Racing that there was a particular body part that needed to be updated to enable a more powerful engine.

FORD CONFIRMS THE ‘PREDATOR’ V8 WON’T DIE SOON

“It was a quick program in ’23, so we didn’t have the time to change the hood inner that we wanted to,” he said.

“The hood innner’s been modified to open up area for the air inlet to grab more air and the 5.2 supercharger just wants air like you wouldn’t believe. So it gave it the chance to breathe a little bit more and got us 20 horsepower.”

A new engine calibration was loaded in to take advantage of the change, which Widmann said also helped smooth out the torque curve that maxes out at 640 hp.

But will anyone even notice 20 hp on top of 700 hp?

“Yea, probably not, but more is always better,” Widman said said.

“You know you have enough power when you hit the accelerator and black out.”

SUBSCRIBE TO AMERICAN CARS AND RACING ON YOUTUBE