Raptor R vs TRX Drag Race

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.

Badgertits

FRF Addict
Joined
Jan 24, 2019
Posts
2,809
Reaction score
2,446
Location
Ma
Guarantee the R has a ton of torque management down low. Just like the gen 2 my 02 lightning and 06 srt10 had. My guess for the transmission to survive long term. My srt10 would not give you full 500 hp until higher gears. Lightning cut boost every gear shift. That's more than likely why it was faster on the roll race plus little less weight and 10 speed.
A version of that tranny has been in stuff like the ZL1 Camaro I’m sure it’s fine in that regard, or they wouldn’t have even had 2wd as an option if the tranny/axles/diffs/driveshafts couldn’t handle it.

I doubt the TRX is actually faster off-road in rougher conditions, just don’t see how smaller bilsteins underneath a heavier truck are going to handle abuse the same as larger “better” fox shocks on a lighter one
 

Frogger22

“Not all who wander are lost” Tolkien
Joined
Feb 27, 2014
Posts
1,801
Reaction score
2,909
Location
Rocky Mountain High
Both can be true. The majority of Raptor customers don't want a $110,000 truck, and almost everyone I know with a Gen 2 enjoys it as a DD and road trip truck where the fuel economy and range make a lot of sense. Same for me when hunting or working in remote locations, having 600+ miles per tank is amazing for a truck with the capabilities. Not everyone wants to drag race from stop light to stop light. Big super charged V8 is awesome, but going the way of the dodo because of government regulations AND because of market demand.
I agree with all of that and I’d also say I don’t think the R is honestly worth $110k. The Gen1 was $60k and that was great price for a great truck. Now they stick all this tech and crap into them and it makes it insanely priced. A ####ing Ford F-150 didn’t go from $60 to $110 in 7 years…**** on that. If I was a decision maker at ford I’d make a base V8 Raptor with all the crap pulled from it and keep it around $70k. All it needs: V8 / good shocks / 35’s / wiper fluid and let it rip!

But I’m just pointing out Ford took an absolute beating when they announced the Gen2 having a V6 only and it was obviously because their hands are being tied. I’d imagine if it were really a free market Ford would of offered a V8 and a V6 and let the free market do what she do.
 

melvimbe

FRF Addict
Joined
Jul 22, 2019
Posts
4,878
Reaction score
6,436
Location
Houston, TX
I agree with all of that and I’d also say I don’t think the R is honestly worth $110k. The Gen1 was $60k and that was great price for a great truck. Now they stick all this tech and crap into them and it makes it insanely priced. A ####ing Ford F-150 didn’t go from $60 to $110 in 7 years…**** on that. If I was a decision maker at ford I’d make a base V8 Raptor with all the crap pulled from it and keep it around $70k. All it needs: V8 / good shocks / 35’s / wiper fluid and let it rip!

Inflation and supply chain issues had nothing to do with rising prices? It was all the added tech?


But I’m just pointing out Ford took an absolute beating when they announced the Gen2 having a V6 only and it was obviously because their hands are being tied. I’d imagine if it were really a free market Ford would of offered a V8 and a V6 and let the free market do what she do.

V8 vs V6TT options would have been interesting.
 

Badgertits

FRF Addict
Joined
Jan 24, 2019
Posts
2,809
Reaction score
2,446
Location
Ma
Soooo….in a nutshell just get a 3.5HO gen3 w/ the 37”s & throw a tune on it & you’ll be about equal to a TRX & an R in acceleration while getting better MPG

Got it

Everyone keeps forgetting the TFL vid that’s been out for quite a while where a tuned gen2 on heavy ass 37” MTs nearly matches the 0-60 & 1/4 mile
W/ the TRX

Throw a tune on a gen3 w/ the superior rear suspension & give it lighter OEM 37”s & my guess it would either be neck & neck against a TRX/R or potentially edging them out…..

Sure you could also tune either the TRX or the R, but my guess is you’d be kissing the rest of the drivetrain/axles etc goodbye in the process.
TRX is already “protecting” the drivetrain by eliminating 2wd functionality.

It’s not just how much power a vehicle makes & how much it weighs & gearing alone that determines how fast it’ll be, where & when it makes the power over the curve & in each gear is a big part too, and the 3.5HO mated to this 10 speed makes gobs of hp/Tq down low & esp in mid range which is why it may accelerate better (tuned) than what the numbers alone indicate, the 3.5 lacks some top end grunt stock but that’s improved w/ a tune.

Sounds like the R is tuned for better acceleration @ higher rpm/speeds
 

BigBlue20

Full Access Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2021
Posts
139
Reaction score
161
Location
Florida
Even side by side, as in this video there are a lot of variables that go into a drag race.

Just find it hard to believe that so many folks put so much attention on 0-60 or ¼ run when it comes to judging how good an "off-road" truck is supposed to be.
Hey Billy MC, you get it! The whole SRT and TRX experience is simply to bolt a big powerful engine into an otherwise non-exclusive chassis and then brag about how fast the vehicle is in a straight line. No one ever talks about responsive handling , in either the on road or off road versions. All of the talk is about straight line performance.

That’s not now, nor has it ever been Fords goal with the Raptor. All 3 generations, and now the “R” were designed to be a balanced, purpose built vehicle to do many things, but especially high speed off-roading well. And the Raptor has done this well, and much better than its competitors. Stellantis only cares about a small portion of the overall performance characteristics that the Raptor was designed to excel at.

If all that matters for those of you that hang your hats on 0-60 or 1/4 mile results, you’d be better off to buy a standard, non remarkable truck, and put a big, thirsty and heavy motor in it; equip and tune it for straight line dashes, and call it good. Oh, wait, Stellantis has already done that!
 

Sage

FRF Addict
Joined
Apr 30, 2012
Posts
1,830
Reaction score
5,055
Location
WA, dry side
Wait 10 minutes..

Just like your phone, wait 10 minutes and there will be something faster, better, neater, more tech, cooler. Virtually none of it will actually be used by 99%. Occasionally a little tech improvement is nice. If you jump a few models you can see it.

It's all about getting you to part with your money.
 

Dudebrodude

Full Access Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2021
Posts
353
Reaction score
416
Location
Orange County, CA
Soooo….in a nutshell just get a 3.5HO gen3 w/ the 37”s & throw a tune on it & you’ll be about equal to a TRX & an R in acceleration while getting better MPG

Got it

Everyone keeps forgetting the TFL vid that’s been out for quite a while where a tuned gen2 on heavy ass 37” MTs nearly matches the 0-60 & 1/4 mile
W/ the TRX

Throw a tune on a gen3 w/ the superior rear suspension & give it lighter OEM 37”s & my guess it would either be neck & neck against a TRX/R or potentially edging them out…..

Sure you could also tune either the TRX or the R, but my guess is you’d be kissing the rest of the drivetrain/axles etc goodbye in the process.
TRX is already “protecting” the drivetrain by eliminating 2wd functionality.

It’s not just how much power a vehicle makes & how much it weighs & gearing alone that determines how fast it’ll be, where & when it makes the power over the curve & in each gear is a big part too, and the 3.5HO mated to this 10 speed makes gobs of hp/Tq down low & esp in mid range which is why it may accelerate better (tuned) than what the numbers alone indicate, the 3.5 lacks some top end grunt stock but that’s improved w/ a tune.

Sounds like the R is tuned for better acceleration @ higher rpm/speeds
A tuned/built ecoboost will keep up with TRX or the R for sure. This argument has been going back and forth constantly and I think everyone chooses the argument that benefits them. TRX and R owners will say "But we don't need to modify ours and retain warranty" while ecoboost owners will say "I can save a bunch of money and just use a tune to keep up. Choose what is best for you and be happy with it or make a change.

I can say tuned/built TRX's have zero drivetrain issues. There are 10+ builds on the TRX forum with 900-1000hp with no drivetrain challenges even with some making it into the 9s in the 1/4 mile.
 

Dudebrodude

Full Access Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2021
Posts
353
Reaction score
416
Location
Orange County, CA
Hey Billy MC, you get it! The whole SRT and TRX experience is simply to bolt a big powerful engine into an otherwise non-exclusive chassis and then brag about how fast the vehicle is in a straight line. No one ever talks about responsive handling , in either the on road or off road versions. All of the talk is about straight line performance.

That’s not now, nor has it ever been Fords goal with the Raptor. All 3 generations, and now the “R” were designed to be a balanced, purpose built vehicle to do many things, but especially high speed off-roading well. And the Raptor has done this well, and much better than its competitors. Stellantis only cares about a small portion of the overall performance characteristics that the Raptor was designed to excel at.

If all that matters for those of you that hang your hats on 0-60 or 1/4 mile results, you’d be better off to buy a standard, non remarkable truck, and put a big, thirsty and heavy motor in it; equip and tune it for straight line dashes, and call it good. Oh, wait, Stellantis has already done that!
My TRX has around 1,000 miles offroad and can say it's plenty capable. It's not just a big motor. I do think that Ram/Bilstein fell short a bit on the shocks for that big motor though. You can get into speeds that outrun the shock's capabilities and I think the R is going to have a similar challenge. Ram should have released two TRX's. One with these shocks and a 500hp 6.4 Hemi and one with a bigger shock package with the hellcat motor. Either way, I think that the R and TRX would need more race focused Kings/Fox shocks to extract all the performance that these chassis are capable of.
 

Badgertits

FRF Addict
Joined
Jan 24, 2019
Posts
2,809
Reaction score
2,446
Location
Ma
My TRX has around 1,000 miles offroad and can say it's plenty capable. It's not just a big motor. I do think that Ram/Bilstein fell short a bit on the shocks for that big motor though. You can get into speeds that outrun the shock's capabilities and I think the R is going to have a similar challenge. Ram should have released two TRX's. One with these shocks and a 500hp 6.4 Hemi and one with a bigger shock package with the hellcat motor. Either way, I think that the R and TRX would need more race focused Kings/Fox shocks to extract all the performance that these chassis are capable of.
The fox shocks >>>> bilsteins In general when it comes to hardcore off-roading, they’ve got a stronger rep in that performance Space for a reason (& on other hand you probably won’t see fox shocks on a road racing vette either more likely bilsteins) also the Raptor(s) lighter & the fox shocks are physically bigger w/ more fluid volume so that alone will equate to holding up longer & performing better off-road @ high speed
 

Dudebrodude

Full Access Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2021
Posts
353
Reaction score
416
Location
Orange County, CA
The fox shocks >>>> bilsteins In general when it comes to hardcore off-roading, they’ve got a stronger rep in that performance Space for a reason (& on other hand you probably won’t see fox shocks on a road racing vette either more likely bilsteins) also the Raptor(s) lighter & the fox shocks are physically bigger w/ more fluid volume so that alone will equate to holding up longer & performing better off-road @ high speed
Oh I agree the Fox shocks are better on the Raptor. I was just saying the Bilsteins aren't as far behind as many people assume. The TRX and R have more than enough power to outrun either shock package and the guys that use their trucks to that level will likely be looking for an upgrade. I'll be ordering Kings pretty soon for mine.
 
Top