Ford F-150 Raptor 2017: Is it worth more than 4 billion VND?

Spending more than 4 billion VND to become the first person to own the Ford F-150 Raptor 2017 in Vietnam, Ngo Ky Phong - the owner of this high-performance large pickup truck gave his assessment after a period of ownership.

Ford F-150 Raptor 2017 costs more than 4 billion VND in Vietnam

The 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor is one of the most popular pickup trucks on the market. This model was introduced by Ford in 2015, but it was not until late 2016 that the American car company began to announce the price and take orders for the F150 Raptor.

The 2017 F-150 Raptor stands out from other pickup trucks on the market thanks to its powerful design, muscular front end, high front bumper, wheel covers, and large Ford lettering on the rear trunk lid. The vehicle has many valuable off-road equipment such as Fox sports suspension, 2 exhaust pipes at the rear, 17-inch black alloy wheels and specialized BFGoodrich All-Terrain KO2 tires.

Powering the 2017 F-150 Raptor is a 3.5-liter turbocharged EcoBoost V6 engine, producing a maximum capacity of 450 horsepower and a maximum torque of 692 Nm, a completely new 10-speed automatic transmission and a 4-wheel drive system. Due to the large capacity, the average fuel consumption of the F-150 Raptor according to Ford is quite high, at 17.7 liters/100 km.

A special feature in the operation of the F-150 Raptor 2017 is the Terrain Management System with 6 driving modes such as: Normal, Street, Baja or Rock, Mud/Sand or Weather (weather such as rain, snow and ice) to help the vehicle operate on many difficult roads.

In the US, the 2017 Ford F150 Raptor SuperCrew is priced from $53,140. However, a fully equipped F150 Raptor will cost nearly $70,000. To bring this high-performance pickup truck to Vietnam, car enthusiasts must spend no less than 4 billion VND.

In Vietnam, in the past 2 years, pickup truck players have continuously brought home large pickup trucks such as Toyota Tundra 1794 Edition or TRD Pro, Ford F-150 versions such as Lariat, Platinum, Limited,.... According to estimates, in Vietnam there are currently about 30 Ford F150s and about 12 Toyota Tundras, 3/4 of these vehicles "reside" in Ho Chi Minh City.

In early 2017, car enthusiasts in Vietnam were excited by the news of the high-performance full-size pickup truck Ford F-150 Raptor 2017. By mid-April 2017, the first F-150 Raptor 2017 in Vietnam arrived at Cat Lai port, Ho Chi Minh City, delighting car enthusiasts.

The owner of the 2017 F-150 Raptor, Mr. Ngo Ky Phong - a very young car enthusiast of the 9X generation said: "At the end of 2016, Phong was hesitant to choose one of two large pickup trucks, the Toyota Tundra or the Ford F150 Platinum or Limited version. After consulting the price and comparing it with the F150 Raptor version introduced in the US market, which was not much different, plus some previous car enthusiasts advised him to buy the 2017 F-150 Raptor because it has more features, a stronger engine and a more rugged design, Phong decided to choose the F150 Raptor because of its design, which has few minus points, as well as Ford's leading off-road technology, because he himself comes from a pickup truck and off-road driving background."

“The process of choosing a car was quite difficult, because the car had just started appearing at Ford dealerships in the US in January 2017 with limited quantity, so finding a car to buy in the US was a bit difficult. At first, Phong intended to choose white but then switched to blue because this is also the typical paint color of the F-150 Raptor. The car was loaded onto a ship by sea and arrived in Vietnam after nearly 2 months. When he received information that the car had arrived at the port, Phong insisted on getting the car within 2 days, causing the import unit to rush to take care of the procedures.”

Regarding the car registration process, Phong said: “Because it was the first car in Vietnam, the procedure for getting a white license plate was quite difficult. I received the car home on April 12, but it wasn’t until July 15 that the vehicle inspection was completed to be able to drive on the road. It took nearly 2 months of waiting to complete the vehicle procedures. Currently, after 6 months of bringing the car home and 3 months of driving on the road, Phong’s F-150 Raptor has traveled 6,500 km.”

Phong is satisfied with the amount of money spent on the Ford F-150 Raptor, which is more than 4 billion VND. The value of the Raptor is very practical. The car is spacious, smooth, powerful, and can be suitable for almost all roads across Vietnam or off-road on sand without much thought. Just fill up the gas and go on the road at any time. Phong feels quite satisfied with the amount of money spent on the amenities on the F-150 Raptor.

Satisfied with the amount of money spent on the F-150 Raptor large pickup truck, the owner encountered many difficulties when using the vehicle.

Phong said the initial difficulty was that the car was quite large, the largest of all the cars Phong had ever owned, so when moving in crowded places, he was a bit lacking in confidence. After holding the steering wheel for the first 100 km, Phong gradually got used to it. The car has many driving modes, so when choosing Normal, it can easily move in the city without the car jerking too much or having difficulty controlling the car's 450 horsepower.

In general, Phong is also hesitant to drive the F-150 Raptor during rush hours in Ho Chi Minh City, but it is not too difficult to move around the city. Except for finding a parking space due to the large appearance of the F-150 Raptor, most of the time it cannot enter the parking garages of high-rise buildings and commercial centers in Ho Chi Minh City due to the vehicle's excessive height.

According to TNO