Daily Driver + Sports Car --> Raptor

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

swoop1156

FRF Addict
Joined
Dec 14, 2010
Posts
3,823
Reaction score
786
Location
USA
Who has transitioned from owning just a sports car or a two car set up (daily driver + sports car/fun weekend car) to a Raptor?

Presently, I daily drive a 2018 F150 Platinum and also have a 2020 Mustang GT Premium as a "fun" car that I drive on the weekends. I've owned the Mustang for 1.5 years now and feel like I've had my fun with it, so I'm entertaining the idea of selling it as it just sits in the garage 5 days a week. That being said, I'd describe myself as a car enthusiast that gets a lot of enjoyment out of owning fun/special vehicles, which was the impetus for buying the Mustang, and I feel that my Platinum on its own would not fill that void if I sold the Mustang.

As such, I've been thinking about trading in both cars for one car that is a "do-all, go anywhere” vehicle that also scratches that “sporty/special” itch simultaneously. Hence my interest in a Gen 3 Raptor. I’ve found the Raptor (in its price range) to be the most compelling and alluring to me in this regard.

So, for those of you that have made a similar transition in the past, do you have any regrets? Miss the speed and agility of a sports car? Do you feel the Raptor is sporty enough? I know sports cars aren't directly comparable to a truck, and that this ultimately comes down to my personal preferences and needs, but I'd enjoy hearing others stories and experiences on the matter.
I didn't read the whole thread but I did see that you sold the Mustang. I am always so on the fence selling my 2022 Mach 1, but I always like to have something to look at. I drove it today for the first time in weeks, because the Raptor is everything I want and need and its plenty fast enough, even though I want an "R", of course.

My wife drives a Mach-E GT and can just make basically anything look silly up to highway speeds, so I mean if we needed to go fast in a short distance literally undetected, the puke box is the choice. The Raptor is my daily and also our chosen-on-purpose roadtrip vehicle. It's big on the inside, swallows cargo in the bed, has the 2.4kW for running things, got the 37PP for ground clearance driving up and down the mountains where we live (sometimes you need to make an improvised path), and its just the best of all worlds. Then there's the Mach 1. Bright red paint, open sidepipes, 4" from the ground, and just like, "WTF are we doing with this car?" we ask ourselves semi-often.

I have a soft spot for Mustangs, and specifically Mach 1's in particular, in the red/black combo that we have. Everything is all paid for, so it's not costing us anything but insurance premiums, but really, I drove it today to just bomb around, and I (only once) said I wish I was in the truck. I kinda feel like it in our family of vehicles is like my sister's ex-boyfriend in High School. Bob, wherever you are, I hope you're doing well, but man he was dumb as a box of rocks but dang he was, in the words of RobertFrank615 on YouTube, "Jacked, Tan, and Juicy as F". Just tell him to sit there and look pretty and not open his mouth, and he would, and excelled at it. But as soon as he started trying to be relevant to anything...

I don't think the Mach 1 will stay around forever, but keeping an eye on BaT auctions for the Machs, it's definitely not time to sell mine. It doesn't bother me, we have the space, it just, I dunno, if it was gone, would I miss it? Maybe, yeah actually probably, but what does having 1,963 miles on it say? That means I've put on 4.6 miles per day since ownership. I've had the Raptor less time and am knocking on 12,000 miles. Hell, we got my wife's Mach-E just a few months ago and we have nearly 3,000 on it!

We have a Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid on order, so the Mach-E will be gone and that will be her daily driver, as well as the road-tripper unless we're going to Canada in the winter, then probably the Raptor. Who knows. Never thought I'd ever be in a position to choose a vehicle like these.

Cheers!

1702760989857.png
 
OP
OP
H

Hagdio72

Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2023
Posts
23
Reaction score
32
Location
North Carolina
I didn't read the whole thread but I did see that you sold the Mustang. I am always so on the fence selling my 2022 Mach 1, but I always like to have something to look at. I drove it today for the first time in weeks, because the Raptor is everything I want and need and its plenty fast enough, even though I want an "R", of course.

My wife drives a Mach-E GT and can just make basically anything look silly up to highway speeds, so I mean if we needed to go fast in a short distance literally undetected, the puke box is the choice. The Raptor is my daily and also our chosen-on-purpose roadtrip vehicle. It's big on the inside, swallows cargo in the bed, has the 2.4kW for running things, got the 37PP for ground clearance driving up and down the mountains where we live (sometimes you need to make an improvised path), and its just the best of all worlds. Then there's the Mach 1. Bright red paint, open sidepipes, 4" from the ground, and just like, "WTF are we doing with this car?" we ask ourselves semi-often.

I have a soft spot for Mustangs, and specifically Mach 1's in particular, in the red/black combo that we have. Everything is all paid for, so it's not costing us anything but insurance premiums, but really, I drove it today to just bomb around, and I (only once) said I wish I was in the truck. I kinda feel like it in our family of vehicles is like my sister's ex-boyfriend in High School. Bob, wherever you are, I hope you're doing well, but man he was dumb as a box of rocks but dang he was, in the words of RobertFrank615 on YouTube, "Jacked, Tan, and Juicy as F". Just tell him to sit there and look pretty and not open his mouth, and he would, and excelled at it. But as soon as he started trying to be relevant to anything...

I don't think the Mach 1 will stay around forever, but keeping an eye on BaT auctions for the Machs, it's definitely not time to sell mine. It doesn't bother me, we have the space, it just, I dunno, if it was gone, would I miss it? Maybe, yeah actually probably, but what does having 1,963 miles on it say? That means I've put on 4.6 miles per day since ownership. I've had the Raptor less time and am knocking on 12,000 miles. Hell, we got my wife's Mach-E just a few months ago and we have nearly 3,000 on it!

We have a Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid on order, so the Mach-E will be gone and that will be her daily driver, as well as the road-tripper unless we're going to Canada in the winter, then probably the Raptor. Who knows. Never thought I'd ever be in a position to choose a vehicle like these.

Cheers!

View attachment 436953
I appreciate the response! It's thought provoking for sure. Really nice fleet you have there!

Yes, I sold the mustang back in August. I feel like I got out at the right time just before S650s started hitting dealer lots and the used car market started to soften a bit. Some days I do miss it, but I realize that if I did still have it, it would spend 5 days a week in my garage. Towards the end of my ownership, when I drove it I felt like I would get my fix of "sports car" out of my system after just 25 minutes or so of driving (even after not driving it for a week) and then I'd feel indifferent about it shortly thereafter. Those 25 minutes were always joyous though LOL, but couldn't justify keeping it for that.

I'll be keeping an eye on 2024 Raptors this year. I heard the first ones are hitting the production line today. Per the last Fed meeting, interest rates may come down over the course of 2024 and there also might some deals to be had as I believe the car market is still softening. We'll see, purely speculative at this point, but patience could pay off in this regard.

On the other shoulder, the finance/OCD side of my brain is telling me to just keep my 2018 Platinum with 60k miles that will be paid off in about 18 months (then I'll be debt free outside of my mortgage), but life is short! Granted I just turned 28, so I have time lol.
 

swoop1156

FRF Addict
Joined
Dec 14, 2010
Posts
3,823
Reaction score
786
Location
USA
Granted I just turned 28, so I have time lol.
We all think we have time, ya know? I mean, sure, most of us do but I've been surrounded by a lot of death in my short 41 years on this planet, and without getting stupid and in trouble with finances - I never wait for things any more until the "right time", as there never really is ever a right time better than right now. That's my outlook on things and everyone has different lives and perspectives.

Get the Raptor if that's what you want and your situation can support it. Just my take.
 
OP
OP
H

Hagdio72

Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2023
Posts
23
Reaction score
32
Location
North Carolina
We all think we have time, ya know? I mean, sure, most of us do but I've been surrounded by a lot of death in my short 41 years on this planet, and without getting stupid and in trouble with finances - I never wait for things any more until the "right time", as there never really is ever a right time better than right now. That's my outlook on things and everyone has different lives and perspectives.

Get the Raptor if that's what you want and your situation can support it. Just my take.
Agreed, I share similar views. I think the chances of me pulling the trigger on a Raptor are pretty high, just need to wait for what I feel is the right time!
 

Pnwrider

Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2018
Posts
32
Reaction score
34
Location
Pnw
I just made that jump by trading my '21 GMC AT4 and '21 WRX STI for a '23 Raptor. Zero regrets so far. I might look for a small cheap commuter for when I have to run into the city, but that's a next year problem. My wife won't let me spend any more money this year (although tint and Line-x are both happening next week).
 

LayinWatts69

FRF Supporting Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Sep 20, 2023
Posts
224
Reaction score
557
Location
Las Cruces, NM
We all think we have time, ya know? I mean, sure, most of us do but I've been surrounded by a lot of death in my short 41 years on this planet, and without getting stupid and in trouble with finances - I never wait for things any more until the "right time", as there never really is ever a right time better than right now. That's my outlook on things and everyone has different lives and perspectives.

Get the Raptor if that's what you want and your situation can support it. Just my take.
****, this hit home for me. I couldn’t agree with this more.

I watched my dad lose his fight with cancer when he was 44 (I was 11 at the time). Life had really started falling into place for my parents at that time and he never really got to enjoy what he and my mom spent their entire adult lives building.

That instilled a “live for today” mentality through my teens and early 20’s that allowed me to take huge risks career-wise, have really cool experiences, and accumulate some pretty cool shit.

Now I’m 33 and am able to have cool shit while still setting myself up well for the future.

Guess I’m just trying to say: do what makes you happy, you never know when the ride is over.
 
OP
OP
H

Hagdio72

Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2023
Posts
23
Reaction score
32
Location
North Carolina
I just made that jump by trading my '21 GMC AT4 and '21 WRX STI for a '23 Raptor. Zero regrets so far. I might look for a small cheap commuter for when I have to run into the city, but that's a next year problem. My wife won't let me spend any more money this year (although tint and Line-x are both happening next week).
Thanks for sharing! This resembles the exact situation I'm in. Good to hear you're not regretting the decision and are enjoying the truck!
 

mobob

Active Member
Joined
Dec 4, 2013
Posts
63
Reaction score
50
I made the jump from the 14 Gen1 and a nice 15 Mustang GT 50yr to a Gen 3 37 last year. I do miss the Mustang, but not the cleaning of it. Cleaning 37s seems to be about an even trade though and takes almost as long. I did like keeping some of the miles off the Gen 1 with the Mustang as a daily, they add up quick on just one. Wife wants a mid size truck and I drive her around 90% of the time, so we are going to try a Ranger Raptor as the second whenever Ford feels like building it.

As Layin said, do what makes you happy. I smile a lot driving mine and it’s still the most fun I have had wasting my money.
 
Top