2021 Ford F-150 Raptor order guide confirms 3.5L EcoBoost V6 as base engine
TRX-fighting V8 will be an option, it appears, plus we get more Tremor details
Official Ford order guides have leaked for the 2021 F-150 Raptor and Tremor packages, confirming that the high-output 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 will return as the base engine in Ford’s range-topping off-road pickup. The guide images, leaked to F150Gen14.com’s forum, also give us a top-down glimpse of what Ford has in store for the F-150’s two off-road-heavy packages.
“But wait,” you might be thinking. “Didn’t you guys just post video of a V8-powered Raptor mule? Indeed, we did. In fact, here it is, in all of its rumbling glory:
These leaked details confirm two things: Most important, they tell us that the rumors of a two-engine strategy for the Raptor were true. Secondly, this is our first solid confirmation that the High Output variant of the 3.5L EcoBoost V6 is returning, having been absent from the initial slate of F-150 models (which obviously excluded the Raptor).
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2021 GMC Sierra 1500 AT4 Driveway Test | How to use the GMC MultiPro Tailgate
Useful utility or marketing gimmick?
The GMC MultiPro Tailgate is a six-way tailgate that was introduced on the current-generation GMC Sierra 1500 back in 2018. Three years later, not a whole lot has changed, and while the tailgate offers quite a bit more utility than a normal tailgate, the frustrations we had when first testing it are still there. There’s a specific order the tailgate has to be opened for certain uses to work, and it can be a bit awkward to use at times when trying to close multiple steps and tailgates on a variety of different hinges. Is it useful utility, a marketing gimmick to sell more trucks or a mixture of both? Take a look at the video above and let us know what you think in the comments below.
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Ram 1500 TRX too tame for you? Hennessey cranks its Hemi V8 to 1,012 horsepower
TRX Mammoth 1000 promises speed that would beat a Viper
Ram captured the top spot on the horsepower podium when it released the Hellcat-powered 1500 TRX in 2020. The truck’s 702-horsepower output places it comfortably ahead of the Ford F-150 Raptor, at least for now, but American tuner Hennessey saw plenty of room for improvement. It added over 300 horses to the TRX’s cavalry.
Hennessey is a master in V8-ology, so it was only a matter of time before it injected more power into the TRX. It announced two models named Mammoth 900 and Mammoth 1000, respectively, and each number vaguely corresponds to the V8’s new output. The 900’s 6.2-liter produces 912 horsepower and 873 pound-feet of torque, increases of 210 and 223, respectively, compared to the standard TRX. Hennessey achieved these figures by upgrading the supercharger pulleys and making relatively basic changes to the intake and exhaust systems.
Stepping up to the 1000 unlocks 1,012 horsepower and 969 pound-feet of torque, numbers that give the 6,300-plus-pound truck the uncanny ability to reach 60 mph from a stop in 3.2 seconds. It flies through the quarter mile in 11.4 seconds at 120 mph. Building a pickup with supercar-like acceleration required installing a bigger, 2.65-liter supercharger, adding high-flow fuel injectors, and recalibrating the ECU. Intake and exhaust modifications are on the menu, too. Surprisingly, it doesn’t sound like Hennessey made significant internal changes to the engine or to the transmission, which suggests the standard components can handle a massive amount of power.
Context is useful here. Released in 2013, the fifth and final generation of the Dodge-turned-SRT-turned-Dodge again Viper took 3.3 seconds to sprint from zero to 60 mph, and it logged an 11.5-second quarter-mile time.