The 2019 Ford F-150 Raptor Is Updated and as High-Flying and Dirt-Ready As Ever!

Annihilating sandy washes with four-wheel powerslides, launching sideways off eroded gullies, and sailing effortlessly over whoops is what Ford's F-150 Raptor was made to do. So it was surprising that Ford included only low-speed rough roads and even lower-speed rock crawling in our drive of the revised-for-2019 pickup. Nonetheless, the dusty trails around Salt Lake City did allow us to effectively sample the 2019 Raptor's other major revision-Trail Control-which is essentially low-speed cruise control that manages the truck's speed up- or downhill between 1 and 20 mph.

The Raptor's twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 is unchanged for 2019, producing 450 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque, so we expected no difference in performance from previous Raptors we've tested.

For 2019, all Raptors come with dynamic dampers, a technology Fox calls Live Valve. The Live Valve actuator controls the oil-flow rate through the base compression valve, which provides variable damping control during the compression stroke.

Of course, the F-150 Raptor remains eager to jump. Just don't overdo it-the truck has limits, after all.

Drivers without rock-crawling experience will save themselves a few rocker scrapes with this new feature. Activating Trail Control in Rock Crawl mode permits setting the speed in 0.5-mph increments, which provides precise control to place the 34-inch BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 tires.

On-road benefits exist, too. Roll-control functionality-which increases the outside dampers' resistance to compression during cornering-is present in Normal and Sport modes but is disabled in the off-road modes (Baja, Rock Crawl, Mud/Sand), where it would create understeer.

The rest of the Raptor's suspension hardware-its upper and lower front control arms and live rear axle-remain the same, retaining the 13.0 inches of front and 13.9 inches of rear travel it has been blessed with since its debut.

Trail Control, however, is a substantial improvement over the now dead hill-descent control, adding the ability to maintain a preset speed while climbing.

Certainly the 2019 Raptor remains wildly capable, at least at modest speeds, rounding off square-edged rocks and breezing over substantial hits that would send standard half-ton trucks home on a flatbed.

But in the environment in which we experienced the truck, none of this makes it obviously better than the passive-damper version it replaces. The Raptor is amply capable on slow-going rock trails, but they certainly aren't its forte.

Ford will ask for an additional $2180 for the 2019 Raptor, bringing the base price for a SuperCrew model to $57,335 (the smaller SuperCab starts at $54,350).