full-race geoff
Active Member
Long time lurker, first time poster - this thread will document my journey as I build my Gen2 Raptor. "Gen 2.5" is the designation for combining the 2021+ Gen3 evolutionary improvements with the simpler 17-20 Gen2 platform. I'll be cherry picking the Gen3 parts-bins and using high quality aftermarket upgrades that prioritize reliability, with performance a close second.
I'm breaking this thread into Background, Turbos, Engine, Chassis, Suspension and Driveline and I will do my best to keep you updated as each segment progresses (slowly). I hope this helps and/or inspires ya'll with your own build! Please post up with any questions
Background:
I'm a mechanical engineer, my team began working with Ford and their EcoBoost engine development team in 2009. Personally speaking, these trucks changed my life in many ways and I am forever grateful for the opportunity Ford brought to us. My love affair with desert trucks started in 1999 when I moved to ASU for Engineering School. I joined the race-dezert.com forum, ordered the VHS tapes "dezert-people 1/2/3/4" and hung out at the old Geiser Bros. I started my company as a turbocharger fabrication shop, bought a toyota pickup, a howe steering box and some sway-a-way's and went at it. Over the years I built a few more toyotas until Jan 2009 - The day everything changed. BorgWarner and Ford said they wanted our help on prototyping a high performance turbo system for 3.5L EcoBoost development engines
Testing was successful and everyone was happy. Ford gave us a green light and the first EcoBoost F150 we built was in 2011 for SEMA 2012 where we introduced to the world the idea of a Front-Mount Intercooler and Upgraded turbos for the 3.5L V6 EcoBoost. I will defend it to my grave that we were the first to put an intercooler in the grille of an F150 ecoboost (6+ years before anyone else!!)
This truck's theme was kind of a precursor to the modern day Tremor: a stock width FX4 with 3.5L ecoboost and twin EFR turbochargers to get the 3.5L to a true 'High-Output' 500+ HP performance level. Fox 2.5" remote resi shocks and icon upper arms leveled the front. Ford awarded us a "Project Excellence" award for the build. also in June 2012 they told me the raptor would probably eventually get this engine so I registered for this forum
<fun fact: the photo below was taken early 2012 and the blue car in the background is an R34 GT-R>
The next few years my team and I worked on 2.3L EcoBoost and did the turbos for "The Fun-Haver" F150 from RTR/Vaughn Gittin Jr/Kibbetech but Ill skip over those and go straight to 2017 - the debut of the Gen2 3.5L and 10R80. Deberti got the 2017 Raptor contract so we helped him with the Front Mount Intercooler and Turbos and then got to work on our truck
Ford awarded us a 2018 contract, to build a 6.5' bed SCAB Fraptor for the Ford SEMA and Toronto Auto shows. The truck was the lightest weight cab spec for a 145" wheelbase + 3.5L HO and would be displayed next to a cab off chassis on it's side. The truck started as a 3.5L FX4, it received the first pair of Garrett Powermax turbos and then we swapped to the 2017+ Raptor Suspension and Axles and was tuned by MPT over the years (fun fact: F150 3.5L and 21-23 Gen3 raptor share the same Compression Ratio and can actually make a little more power than Gen2 Raptor). We wrapped it orange, and then Ford requested it to be highly visible at SEMA coordinating with their display so a blue wrap was temporarily added on top of the orange (semi-gaudy, I know)
We developed the Formline turbo manifolds and kits with this vehicle, it's been a ton of fun. Took it on some off road runs and beat up on some Tundras and Chevys, took it to a few shows like Dirt Expo AZ, offroad expo, a few others.
MPT flew out to AZ and we used the orange truck for a back to back test to validate the formline manifolds VS oem.
At this point the truck was running great, fairly simple setup, super reliable and in excellent condition with low miles. But I wanted to go all-in on a truck - without any contractual obligations - and I have two young boys, so I needed a crew cab. I figured that now was the right time to pause development on this beast and I started searching for my new project truck to build.
My requirements were simple: No sunroof + Avalanche Grey. It turns out non-sunroof is much more difficult to find than I anticipated. It seemed like 99% of gen2 raptors have a sunroof (and I hate sunroofs as much as I hate leaf springs)... Of course basing a used vehicle purchase off of roof type and paint color has some inherent risks associated with that strategy so I was mentally OK with whatever the worst case scenario might be... Eventually I found what I was looking for and decided on this Avalanche grey non-sunroof 802A raptor to build as my new project
I'm breaking this thread into Background, Turbos, Engine, Chassis, Suspension and Driveline and I will do my best to keep you updated as each segment progresses (slowly). I hope this helps and/or inspires ya'll with your own build! Please post up with any questions
Background:
I'm a mechanical engineer, my team began working with Ford and their EcoBoost engine development team in 2009. Personally speaking, these trucks changed my life in many ways and I am forever grateful for the opportunity Ford brought to us. My love affair with desert trucks started in 1999 when I moved to ASU for Engineering School. I joined the race-dezert.com forum, ordered the VHS tapes "dezert-people 1/2/3/4" and hung out at the old Geiser Bros. I started my company as a turbocharger fabrication shop, bought a toyota pickup, a howe steering box and some sway-a-way's and went at it. Over the years I built a few more toyotas until Jan 2009 - The day everything changed. BorgWarner and Ford said they wanted our help on prototyping a high performance turbo system for 3.5L EcoBoost development engines
Testing was successful and everyone was happy. Ford gave us a green light and the first EcoBoost F150 we built was in 2011 for SEMA 2012 where we introduced to the world the idea of a Front-Mount Intercooler and Upgraded turbos for the 3.5L V6 EcoBoost. I will defend it to my grave that we were the first to put an intercooler in the grille of an F150 ecoboost (6+ years before anyone else!!)
This truck's theme was kind of a precursor to the modern day Tremor: a stock width FX4 with 3.5L ecoboost and twin EFR turbochargers to get the 3.5L to a true 'High-Output' 500+ HP performance level. Fox 2.5" remote resi shocks and icon upper arms leveled the front. Ford awarded us a "Project Excellence" award for the build. also in June 2012 they told me the raptor would probably eventually get this engine so I registered for this forum
<fun fact: the photo below was taken early 2012 and the blue car in the background is an R34 GT-R>
The next few years my team and I worked on 2.3L EcoBoost and did the turbos for "The Fun-Haver" F150 from RTR/Vaughn Gittin Jr/Kibbetech but Ill skip over those and go straight to 2017 - the debut of the Gen2 3.5L and 10R80. Deberti got the 2017 Raptor contract so we helped him with the Front Mount Intercooler and Turbos and then got to work on our truck
Ford awarded us a 2018 contract, to build a 6.5' bed SCAB Fraptor for the Ford SEMA and Toronto Auto shows. The truck was the lightest weight cab spec for a 145" wheelbase + 3.5L HO and would be displayed next to a cab off chassis on it's side. The truck started as a 3.5L FX4, it received the first pair of Garrett Powermax turbos and then we swapped to the 2017+ Raptor Suspension and Axles and was tuned by MPT over the years (fun fact: F150 3.5L and 21-23 Gen3 raptor share the same Compression Ratio and can actually make a little more power than Gen2 Raptor). We wrapped it orange, and then Ford requested it to be highly visible at SEMA coordinating with their display so a blue wrap was temporarily added on top of the orange (semi-gaudy, I know)
We developed the Formline turbo manifolds and kits with this vehicle, it's been a ton of fun. Took it on some off road runs and beat up on some Tundras and Chevys, took it to a few shows like Dirt Expo AZ, offroad expo, a few others.
MPT flew out to AZ and we used the orange truck for a back to back test to validate the formline manifolds VS oem.
At this point the truck was running great, fairly simple setup, super reliable and in excellent condition with low miles. But I wanted to go all-in on a truck - without any contractual obligations - and I have two young boys, so I needed a crew cab. I figured that now was the right time to pause development on this beast and I started searching for my new project truck to build.
My requirements were simple: No sunroof + Avalanche Grey. It turns out non-sunroof is much more difficult to find than I anticipated. It seemed like 99% of gen2 raptors have a sunroof (and I hate sunroofs as much as I hate leaf springs)... Of course basing a used vehicle purchase off of roof type and paint color has some inherent risks associated with that strategy so I was mentally OK with whatever the worst case scenario might be... Eventually I found what I was looking for and decided on this Avalanche grey non-sunroof 802A raptor to build as my new project
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