Ford Ranger Raptor finishes Baja 1000, heads home under its own power

Earlier this month, Ford announced they will be competing at this year's Baja 1000 endurance with a relatively stock Ranger Raptor.

Built to compete in the stock class of the race, the performance pickup truck gets a 3-inch lift kit, a bull bar, wider wheel arches, and beefy BF Goodrich tires. It also gets spare tires plus a jack in the back and a full roll cage to ensure the occupants are safe in case of a rollover.

After the dust settled, the low carbon biofuel-powered Ranger Raptor was able to complete and finish the race in the stock midsize class where it was the only competitor. Normally after races, the race vehicle used is transported via a carrier. But since the Raptor is relatively stock, didn't experience any major incidents, completed the race in good condition, and is street legal, the automaker decided to actually show off the vehicle on public roads as it headed home to HQ at Riverside, California.

You read right, the same Ranger Raptor that just finished a grueling endurance race was able to drive home under its own power with no issues whatsoever. The Ranger Raptor's ability to go home after finishing the 1,000-mile endurance race is a tribute to the F-150 Raptor that competed during the 2017 Baja 1000.

For Brian Novak, Off-Road Motorsports Supervisor at Ford Performance, this feat demonstrated the brand's global team working with a really good global truck in the form of the Ranger.

“Ford Performance Australia put their heart and soul into this project with Kelly Racing to start us off. When we took it over on the North American side with Lovell Racing and Huseman Engineering, it all came together seamlessly. There’s just so many people that came together to do this, and I couldn’t be prouder,” said Novak.

Novak added that both the racing team's and Shell's efforts did not result in a compromise in performance. Not only were they able to finish the race but the stock Ford powertrain was also able to impress with the low carbon bio-fuel.

"This effort showed that there’s no compromise in performance. We’re here, finishing the Baja 1000 and winning our class, all on a biofuel. It’s so impressive that this was all done on a stock Ford Performance powertrain, too. It’s been exciting to work with Shell on this project,” added Novak.