Hows it Handling?

[Macman]

I have had the Raptor full of all my buddies for an 8 hour trip, and they were comfortable in the back even with 3 people they had tons of room.

 

[SvtDon]

For me it is extremely awesome on trips. Lots of room and lux package is sweet. We used to have an expedition and loved it but this runs much better down road than that truck.

For the road, only thing I personally have ridden in that was smoother have been a 460 LS Lexus and a CTS Caddie.

Agreed with the CTS. My wife drives that now. Smooth on road and pretty quick. Love having a short crew to. Tons of room in back.

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[Witchy]

my 2011 and my 2013 handle me bombing down 495 doin 85 to work everyday and ive done a few 3 hr trips all highway doin 85 and it did fine... gas milage went down like 4mpg but thats stll almost 11mpg and i got where i was goin fast. the trucks great in the corners aswell. can rip off an offramp doin 65-70 with no tire squeal.

kickes ass in the snow didnt use 4wd once this winter.

where in new england are u. im in MA

As well as Mt Washington right lol


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---------- Post added at 09:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:03 PM ----------

Raptor handles all of that with no problem....

And back road running lol


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[tracyropem]

It's a sports car and off road beast

 

[Labraptor]

Truck rides very well on road. We have taken quite a few long road trips and love it. Corners and rides much better than most vehicles on the road. Running at the speeds you mentioned are normal for this truck. First highway trip we were running with other Raptors and well let's just say it handles very well near speed limiter. Can't really tell you are near the limit on the highway. Especially on lonely SD highways at night.

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[MagicMtnDan]

I'm shopping for a '13 or '14 Raptor. Currently, I own a '05 f250 screw w/ 6.0 diesel, avg 12-13 mpg's. & about 6k miles/year.

All the reviews say is how awesome an off roader the raptor is. I need to know how does it do in real world conditions, bad weather, heavy traffic, interstate & "stop & go" type. I live in New England log most of my miles driving 6.5 hours North back & forth during the winter (sled season). Fuel economy is not a concern, as long as diesel costs more than gas. I regularly cruise @ 75-80 MPH, can the Raptor handle that for prolonged rides?

The Raptor will out-perform your F250 oil burner in every way except perhaps these:

1. Towing capacity
2. Hauling capacity
3. Torque

 

[trucknorris]

So, granted not a '13 or '14 but i just got my '12 a couple of days ago and considering there is no mechanical difference within those model years(as I understand it) I hope my opinion sheds some light.

In order to give you my driving background, I have owned In order:

1973 F150 Custom : Remained Stock
1989 Olds Cutlass Suptreme : Remained Stock
2004 Pontiac Firebird - Firehawk : Remainied Stock
1989 Pontiac Firebird - Trans Am : Remained Stock
2000 Acura Integra - Full TEIN SS suspension, Fnt/Rr Anti Sway, Chipped, Stage 2 cams, AEM V2 Cold Air Intake, Skunk 2 Cat back exhaust.
2000 Honda Prelude SH : Full TEIN SS suspension, Fnt/Rr Anti Sway, Chipped, Stage 2 cams, Skunk 2 Cam gears, AEM V2 Cold Air Intake, Skunk 2 delte cat exhaust, Skunk 2 h/f fuel rail, Nology hotwire spark plug wires, polished intake manifold and more! (of the cars and truck listed this was my favorite. I had lots of plans for this one)

2006 SAAB 9.3 : Remainied Stock
2006 Ford Fusion : Remained Stock
2006 Toyota Tacoma SR5 : Skyjacker 2.5" suspension lift

and last but certainly not least

2010 Harley Davidson VRSC/DX (Night Rod Specail) : Stage 2 cams, Screaming Eagle Chip Mapped to Stage 2 N/A, destroyer H/F Injectors, 58mm throttle body, Vance and Hines ProComp Full Exhaust.


My comparison is against all on paved roads, except the Harley (to refrain from an apples to oranges comparrison).

The '12 Raptor has the most forgiving suspension when considering potholes and irregular paving. With traditional speed bumps the raptor seems to have a large amount of "bounce" to it and the more recently common cousin speed humps are now noticed thanks to the length of the truck, the other vehicles front wheels were still on the hump when the rears hit making it less appearant.

The stearing : is the tightest stearing i have ever had the pleasure of owning, I have had the pleasure of driving a 2009 BMW M3 and the feedback from the wheels to the stearing wheel is most similar to the M3. It gives you a sort of confidence that is extremely gratifying.

when doing med-med high speed 90 degree turns (as if you are trying to beat the yellow light on right hand turns there is a lot of body roll same with left hand turns though not as obvious due to there being more travel in a left hand turn (US right side of road driving, i would imagine it is the opposite in Europe)

Braking - It feels like it "stops on a dime" but i have noticed that is simply because a the amount of forward "lurch" but the ammount of travel after application of the brakes is actually, much to my dismay about 5'-10' longer than my Tacoma. Luckily i figured this out on a not so busy road!

Acceleration - OOH THE POWER! with the 6.2L there is a glorious roar to the engine and i cant wait to put on the Krooks Header back dual exhaust system to amplify it even more! This beast of an engine is not without its downside though.... there is a large amount of lag between flooring it and the G's pushing you through to the back of your seat and the whiplash assoiciated with it. I do not for a second believe that this is due to the engine itself (how could it be) but due to the mapping of the stock computer. If it were a mechanical accelerator assemble it would be much different, Or if the mapping on the comp was different i think the lag would dissapear as well.

Now... to more directly answere the OP’s questions, how does it so in real world conditions? As long as you give yourself the time to know your ride! With heavy traffic the raptor stops and goes just fine, but you will have to resist the urge to over accelerate. Just as much, you will have to remind yourself that it is a whole lot of truck to stop so give yourself the room (I'm sure your used to through driving the 250 now). I lived in Groton CT for 10 years (USN Submariner) and though I have never driven this specific truck there, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it would do 10x better than any other I have owned. Many of the other members have reported their MPGs in the thread dedicated to it and shortly I will do the same. To save you the effort of a click I drive 50/50 city freeway and this is my daily driver now, I am averaging 12.6mpg’s. The raptor will handle “prolonged rides better than you!” though it is also the most comfortable and “lavish” I have ever had which will certainly make it easier.

I hope this helps you and that i have not gone into too many random tangents!

 

[East Bay Operator]

Weve taken a few trips to the mountains and its very comfortable. It handles much better than my '12 Tundra on 35s.

 

[RAPTORSV]

It handles great around town, Tom above is correct get the AC seats, they are well worth the price of the package. Don't be afraid of the S Crew, the extra room is well worth it. It handles every bit as well as the S Cab and looks better too. Only down side it's kind of wide for a lot of parking spots and its not economical on gas, but with the 35 gallon tank you won't need to fill up that often.

On the freeway it very smooth and stable, great view and plenty of power. Also gas mileage is surprisingly good 15 to 16 mpg easily.

 

[MIAMIRAPTA]

Drove 22 hours straight through from South Florida to Northern MI with 4 people in the truck. Economy isn't great (about 13.5 mpg at 80ish), but the comfort you get in exchange is worth it.