Ford rolled off the last Ranger off its assembly line in the U.S. almost seven years ago. However, Ford decided to bring the nameplate back to the States for the 2019 model year and get its share back from the Toyota Tacoma and Chevrolet Colorado. The company also teased a Ranger Raptor that won’t be sold in the U.S., but some Sherlock Holmes’ descendants have found that the Raptor is actually coming to our shores - just not in its current generation.

The Good News Is We Will Get The Latest Iteration

Initially, Ford had said that the current-gen Ranger Raptor was not designed for the North American market. So, it was speculated that the Raptor variant might be based on the next-gen model and according to social media profiles of the Ford engineers, it seems to be right.

How Was It Deciphered?

A few details about the upcoming Ranger had been shared on the internet. Basis this, Road & Track did a little stalking on the LinkedIn profiles of engineers working on Ford projects and found multiple mentions of a ‘P703’ chassis code. This is the same chassis code that is believed to be for the next-generation Ford Ranger, which is still three years away. Using this lead, the publication sneaked a little more and located other LinkedIn profiles that indicated a Raptor version of the P703 project is under development and is U.S.-bound! When Ford was asked for confirmation of the same, it stated that they “don’t comment on speculation about future products” and that they “have no announcements to make about a Ranger Raptor for North American customers.”

A Bronco Raptor Is A Possibility

The Chassis Engineer, who has been working on a Ranger Raptor with the P703 code, has also worked on the current version of the Ranger for North America, which is known as the P375N, as well as the current version of the Ranger Raptor for other parts of the world. The frames for both, the next generation Ranger and the Bronco are being launched by the same team at Modatek. Interestingly, this is the same team that handles the Bronco as well. So, can we see a Bronco Raptor in the near future?

Final Thoughts

The next-gen Ranger is set to be revealed in 2022, so the Raptor will be unveiled a little after that. It is also speculated that the Ranger Raptor would be powered by a gasoline EcoBoost engine instead of a diesel like the current Raptor. Apart from this, no other details are known still. I’m sure the U.S. market is waiting for the Ranger Raptor to get here, because the only alternative to it, the F-150 Raptor, is priced at $55,000, and it is not something that everyone can afford. Share your thoughts on this exciting news in the comments section below.

Further Reading

Read our speculative review on the 2019 Ford Ranger.

Read our full review on the 2019 Ford Ranger Raptor.