The Ford Raptor T+ is gearing up for the final events of the 2025 W2RC Rally-Raid Championship, a five-race series that kicked off in January with the Dakar rally, where it secured a podium finish on its debut.
The Dakar rally, the annual off-road endurance race held in Saudi Arabia, spans several thousand kilometers from Bisha to Shubaytah and takes place over 10 to 15 days. Organized by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), the event tests both the vehicle’s durability and the driver’s endurance under extreme conditions.
Adapting the Raptor for Dakar meant overhauling nearly everything, with only a handful of parts from the original production model left untouched. Testing for the extremes of the iconic event was a vital step in the evolution of the vehicle – the team was essentially developing a completely transformed machine. Matthew Wilson, team principal at Ford M-Sport, sits down to discuss the testing behind preparing the vehicle for Dakar.
Can you give us some background on the team and the car?
In partnership with Ford Performance, M-Sport was tasked with building a purpose-built Rally Raid vehicle to compete in Dakar 2025. Dakar was a natural choice for showcasing the power of its cars and how they can contend in some of the world’s most demanding terrains. So the Ford M-Sport Raptor T1+ was born to do just that.
M-Sport has produced winning cars and champions in the world of rally and track championships but had not yet competed in Dakar, so there were new things to learn. However, the engineering process and winning mentality can be adapted to any terrain and vehicle so we welcomed it as just that – a new challenge and a fantastic opportunity.
The Raptor combines a powerful naturally aspirated 5.0-liter Coyote V8, an advanced T1+ spaceframe chassis and Fox suspension to handle the toughest terrains. The driver team featured legends of the sport Carlos Sainz Sr, Nani Roma and Mattias Ekström, and introduced Mitch Guthrie Jr., who all brought extensive Dakar and motorsport experience.
When did the testing begin and what were the key milestones?
We initially put a Ford Ranger Raptor through its paces in Dakar to get a feel for the event in 2024 while developing the entry for the 2025 event. Testing began in 2024 and the key objectives were simple – cover as many kilometers as possible.
Dakar is an endurance event so first and foremost, the vehicle had to withstand hundreds of kilometers a day to a total race distance of over 7,000km, travelling at max speeds over all kinds of terrains, and both survive and excel while taking care of the driver and co-driver. The car was developed, using findings and feedback from our drivers, into the vehicle it is today.
What did you find during testing last year’s race Ranger Raptor, and how did you incorporate the findings into development?
Competing in Dakar 2024 with the Ranger was crucial for the whole project. As we knew the Raptor would be a completely different vehicle, it was more about learning the logistics and challenges of Dakar itself as opposed to the technical details of the vehicle.
Did anything unexpected crop up?
Nothing unexpected occurred during testing. We had issues that you would expect when you develop a vehicle from the ground up but nothing that we couldn’t rectify. The biggest challenge was the timescale during 2024. Fitting in all the testing to accumulate the mileage meant for a lot of tight turnarounds between tests.
What equipment/measurement/data analysis tools do you use?
The Raptor T1+ uses a Bosch Motorsport data logging and control system, which is crucial for analyzing any potential issues quickly.
What locations have you used?
The car was tested in three different locations. Greystoke Forest (UK) was used to get miles of testing on the clock close to the factory, including initial chassis and suspension testing, speed and handling. We also took the car to Morocco, which was crucial for testing in Dakar-like conditions and testing in high ambient temperatures to prove out cooling. As a final sign off before heading to Dakar, it was entered in Rallye du Maroc for real-world testing.
What tests have, and will, be taking place to prepare the car for its next events?
More miles, more terrain, learning from the drivers about setup, performance, driveability. All testing is done either at Greystoke Forest, the Test Track in Cumbria or on the tracks themselves throughout the W2RC. That’s the best testing ground and will best prepare the vehicle for next year.
Motorsport can be a fast-paced, often high-pressure, environment. Which elements are particularly challenging and how do you deal with this?
There are four. Time constraints is the first, because we needed rapid design, testing and iteration with limited windows before Dakar. It was also critical that we were able to balance performance and reliability, and logistics and repairs, considering the extreme conditions. Finally, a key challenge in the testing process was managing vast amounts of telemetry data to make quick, effective adjustments given the timescale we were working to. To overcome these, we relied on real-time problem-solving, extensive pre-race stress testing and an experienced team capable of quick adaptations.
How did you adapt the car for Dakar 2025?
Although the car is based on the road-going Bronco Raptor, the Raptor T1+ was developed from the ground up, specifically for Dakar’s extreme conditions, by engineering it for speed, durability, weight distribution and reliability.
Key adaptations included: the V8 powertrain was optimized for endurance, delivering torque without the complexity of a turbo setup; the spaceframe was engineered for strength while staying lightweight and maintaining a low center of gravity despite its ground clearance; aerodynamics were developed to maximize efficiency while acting within FIA limitations; and cooling systems were developed to manage extreme temperatures and prevent overheating in long desert stages both for the car and the drivers.
Only a few elements of the original production Raptor remained. However the Fox suspension, which was used on the T1+, is also used on the production vehicles, showing just how capable it is.
What were the key challenges in developing the Raptor T+?
We had [some] main challenges we needed to overcome. The first was durability – the car must withstand 14 days of relentless punishment over 7,000km. Weight optimization was another, because we needed to balance strength, agility and FIA weight regulations. Power management, to maximize speed while working within power restrictions and suspension tuning to ensure stability, control and ride comfort over extreme terrain, were also key.
On top of this, we had to account for race conditions like heat, dust and high-speed impacts pushing components to their limits. Finally, we had to ensure driver comfort – the drivers would be spending hours at maximum push so they needed to be able to perform at 100%.
We also needed a digital platform that could showcase the brilliance of the Raptor, highlight its technical prowess and connect with global audiences to capture the essence of high-performance engineering in a way that resonates with fans. We worked with digital experience specialist Ryze to bring this element of the vehicle to life.
What’s next in terms of testing?
Everything is focused on maximising performance and reliability, and being continually developed to continue on the 2025 W2RC Rally Raid Championship. [After Dakar] Two of the four Raptors moved on to compete in the full W2RC FIA World Rally Raid Championships.* The vehicle has just competed in the South African rally (the Safari Rally, May 18-24), we continue to look ahead for the next two races [the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid Portugal in September and the Rallye du Maroc in October].
*Four Ford Raptor T1+ vehicles competed in the W2RC Dakar Rally-Raid in January 2025. The driver line-up comprised Carlos Sainz Sr., Mattias Ekström, Mitch Guthrie Jr and Nani Roma. For the remainder of the championship, Ford has opted to continue with two cars, rotating drivers in twos for each race.