Yep, everyone’s right, should put in sport mode. I was doing my regular run to a job but always in “normal mode”, but had a sudden desire to get out of the traffic jamb saw a way to make a move and didn’t think about “modes” and just punched it. Next time I’ll think before react. But that 1 sec acceleration delay woke me up, thought truck died for a moment but then when it did respond it was like a “bat outa hell” fast even in normal mode. Love this truck
There are a few Raptor quirks.
As others have indicated normal (really eco) mode has a throttle map that is significantly under “one to one” throttle press as related to actual throttle output. Sport is way better but it doesn’t really behave well until you have mud and sand or similar off road mode.
When the 2017 was first press intro’d and driven, there were only a few comments about this, and I think it was because the F/P staff covered it before hand and I think did a good job playing this lazy programming down. I remember a comment about the modes that “if you floor it in normal mode, you get full power just like any other mode”. Left out of that was that unless you floor it, your shifting won’t be like a true ‘normal’ mode and the throttle map is designed solely for economy. The lazy shifting in normal mode is my one real ‘complaint’ about the truck.
Electronic nannies on the Raptor are like Chitown voters - they are in early and often. If there is a HINT of wheel spin or spin plus off center drive (like a drift) power is cut QUICK and it lasts for a good long time. Raptor Assault will show you this when you navigate the gravel course in ’normal’. To be fair, they do kind of need to. The stock KO2’s are excellent all purpose tires but despite their size, they will break loose all too easy on pavement.
I’ve found a few oddities with the shift program.
- in normal mode: take off, make abrupt stop, take off again hard. I had a pedestrian jump in front of us way way outside the x-walk, then though better of it. I was mid intersection and needed to clear quickly so I jumped back on it. Nothing I think it may be the sudden stop and electronic nannies, but I didn’t pay attention to the dash.
- sometimes when the truck is warm I have to stop and wait for the truck to downshift from 3rd to 1st. If I take off before this happens, it’s dog slow, then immediately downshifts to 2nd. Maybe these 2 things are related.
Even so 4a, traction control and stability control be damned, you can still get respectably sideways before Ford cuts the fun.