Ford Motor Company today announced that the hugely popular Ford Ranger pickup truck will be available in an off-road performance variant for the first time.

Arriving in New Zealand and across Asia Pacific in 2018, the purpose-built, desert-racing inspired pickup truck joins the Ford Performance family, carrying the name ‘Ford Ranger Raptor’.

Designed and engineered to deliver an adrenaline pumping experience, Ford Ranger Raptor sports a head-turning exterior look that exudes toughness as well as a level of capability and off-road performance never before seen in the mid-size pickup truck segment.

Sharing the same nomenclature as the F-150 Raptor, the world’s most extreme production truck, Ford Ranger Raptor will create a class of its own among off-road performance vehicles.

“We are very excited to bring Asia Pacific’s toughest and smartest pickup truck to a whole new level,” said Trevor Worthington, vice president, product development, Ford Asia Pacific. “Ford Ranger Raptor will offer Ranger fans a fantastic opportunity to own an authentic off-road performance version of their favorite truck for the first time.”

Building on the success of the class-leading Ford Ranger, the best-selling pickup truck in a number of markets across Asia Pacific, Ford Ranger Raptor brings the thrilling off-road performance capabilities of the ‘Raptor’ to the Ranger for the first time ever. With its bold appearance and extreme, off-road performance features, Ford Ranger Raptor represents a new and distinctive breed of truck.

“Combining the Raptor’s advanced off-road capabilities with the versatility of the Ranger is a significant accomplishment for Ford’s world-class engineering and design teams,” said Jamal Hameedi, chief engineer, Ford Performance.

Ford Ranger Raptor joins F-150 Raptor to advance the globally renowned Ford Performance DNA, complementing the on-road high performance lineup of Ford GT, Ford Mustang Shelby, Focus RS and Focus ST.