Manoli Katakis 
The first-generation Ford F-150 Raptor pioneered a new segment of performance truck a whole decade ago. No longer was it about the so-called muscle truck like the GMC Syclone or Dodge Ram SRT-10. Instead, it was more about having a powerful truck that could send it through the sand dunes and the trails further than any other truck before it. Fast forward 10 years, and we’ve got a flourishing off-road American truck scene. From the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 to the upcoming Ram Rebel TRX to the Ford Super Duty Tremor, there seems to be a fun truck for just about any lifestyle. But the Raptor is still seen as the benchmark, and the icon. And Ford is about to respond to the market in kind with an all-new model.
The 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor was absent from the all-new truck’s debut this past June. At first, it appeared as if we’d have to wait a little while for the next installment of Ford’s funnest 4×4. But Ford assured the world that a 2021 Raptor is coming, and F-150 Gen14 was able to publish a breakthrough video of the new truck in action on public roads.
Primarily, the beginning of the video hints at one thing major: that EcoBoost V6 sound is gone. At least, the way it used to sound is gone. While the driver made sure to not give away too much by flooring it away from the paparazzi, the internet is debating whether or not there’s actually a V8 engine under the hood. At least, the exhaust note is lower than the 2020 Raptor.
This was a sore point for the (outgoing) second-generation Ford F-150 Raptor. It had the looks, the attitude, the power, the capabilities and the clout… but it didn’t have the eight-cylinder soundtrack that gung-ho truck enthusiasts demand. But the 2021 F-150 Raptor is playing a new song, and it sounds a lot like the the tune that helped make it so famous in the first place. We can’t wait for this thing to break cover.
