I went through the umpteen stages of grief reading this thread. I had a deposit on a 2023 Raptor and the truck finally arrived and is on its way to me from the dealer right now as we speak. I had agonized over a F-150 or F-250 Tremor vs a Raptor and ultimately went with the Raptor because I thought it had the Torsen in front like the Tremors and even more features. A Torsen front diff was was a must-have option for me on either the Tremor or Raptor. My previous F-150 never left me stuck in all manner of ice and snow even though it didn't have a front limited slip, but I wanted the best traction options possible for my new truck.
After going through this thread and then checking a few places, I think it has indeed been deleted from the Raptor with Ecoboost when they dropped it for the Raptor R in 2023. However, after getting to the end of this thread and then searching around, I think this was intentional after finally coming to grips with it.
It's mentioned in the video here that they no longer believe it is needed for the Gen3 Raptor:
Why were specific design decisions made with this brand-new Ford Raptor R? We chat with the truck's chief engineer to find out.
tfltruck.com
Again here:
Calling all Raptor fans—this is it.
www.motortrend.com
And here:
The Raptor didn't really need an additional 250 horsepower, but we're glad the truck got it.
www.caranddriver.com
"
Given the well-watered state of the dunes, indulging our juvenile urge to throw sand required running in rear-drive mode. Which is how we discovered that, in addition to the electronic locker, there's a brake-based limited-slip function for the open rear differential. The brake-based system works when one side or the other experiences a flare in wheel speed, and the brake on that side gives a squeeze to send power back to the other side. This system is operating in the background even when the AdvanceTrac stability-control system is completely disabled. So if, say, you want to roost some dunes in two-wheel drive, where the rear locker can't be engaged, the rear brakes will be getting a workout."
After I calmed down, I realize the truck is probably going to drive just fine in snow and sand. The Land Rover line is renown for having incredible traction in all conditions and you pay a premium for a Rover just to get their electronic traction controls instead of driving a Jeep with locking front diffs. I never missed having a locking or limited slip front diff in a Rover because I knew it had the fancy computer that was designed for an open front diff. Seems that Ford is now saying they have a similar system on the Raptor.
