Come On Down for a look at the SVT Raptor!

A coworker of mine mentioned that since childhood, he has held an aspiration to play Plinko on that long running staple of the game show world, The Price is Right.  Yet, the prospect of going on the show now that Bob Barker is no longer the host just doesn't seem quite as appealing as it once was.  Another coworker tried to recall a game she liked from the show, and couldn't come up with the name or words to describe it.  I blurted out “is it the lederhosen mountain climber yodeler guy game?” -sure enough, that was exactly the game she was thinking of.  It wasn't a difficult guess, because to be honest, Plinko and the lederhosen yodeler guy game were the only two games from the show that any of us could remember.  Not that it matters, really, because at this point, I can't even recall how we started talking about The Price Is Right in the first place, but I suspect it might have something to do with Bob Barker's 90th birthday return to the game show that was mentioned in a news blurb online.  A google search supplied the proper name for the lederhosen game -apparently, it’s "Cliffhangers".  Personally, I prefer “Lederhosen Mountain Climber Yodeler Guy Game”, but I suppose brevity has its merits, too.

Here's a whole bunch of guys in lederhosen riding on a parade float.  I dug this up from my photo dump just for you.  Enjoy!

It got me thinking of the little lederhosen guy climbing the mountain, and what might make his task a bit easier.  I figured, as long as I need to pick out a vehicle for today's post, I might as well help out our little yodeling friend while I'm at it.  He would need a rig capable of traversing steep slopes and rugged terrain.   As luck would have it, my personal photo library contains not just some shots of old guys in lederhose, it also contains a few examples of a vehicle that would get our little climber to the top of that hill to yodel his little heart out before Bob Barker or Drew Carey could even say “come on down!”.  Let’s give a warm “Yodelayheehoo” to the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor!

You might recall mention of Ford’s Special Vehicle Team (SVT) from previous posts, including the recent SportTrac Adrenalin post just the other day.  In 2010, the SVT took an F-150 and made it into the Raptor.  In other words, they created a truck that is capable of tackling off road tasks like for example, competing in the Baja 1000 desert race fresh off the showroom floor with no modifications.  It can handle sand dunes, jumps and hard landings, steep hills, mountains, rocks, and whatever, really.  The Raptor features Fox racing shocks with 11.2 inches of suspension travel in the front and 12.1 inches of travel in the rear.  It has a grille that was designed to look like a brick wall, and it probably feels like one, too, if you have the misfortune to get in the Raptor's way.  Its stance is 7” wider than its F-150 siblings, and it is outfitted with skid plates, all terrain tires, and 4 non-designated auxiliary switches for seamlessly adding extra goodies to the truck.  A front camera can be optioned to the works to aid with visibility over the hood while scaling steep inclines.

Originally, the Raptor came with a 5.4L V8 under its hood.  Now, it’s a 6.2L V8 with 411 HP and 434 lb-ft of torque.  That’s plenty of power to get our little yodeling friend up the mountain, I’d say.  Right about now, you might be wondering just how much does all this capability cost?  I’d tell you, but where’s the fun in that?  Let’s play a little game of The Price Is Right.  I’ll give you the pricing info on the Raptor’s F-150 siblings at their most basic, and you can try to guess where the Raptor fits in on the stepped price scale.  This way, you can’t just over or under bid the last guy’s bid by 1 dollar to take the win -I always thought that was a real jackass move on the Price Is Right -an effective strategy, but not really in the spirit of the game, you know?   Bid too high, and it’s a long fall off the cliff for your lederhosen wearing little yodeling self.  Bid too low, and you’ll never make it to the top of the mountain.  

Ready?  Hey you, reader… Come on down!  You are the next contestant on The Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price Is Right!

Concentrate now…

Ford F-150s:

XL -Starting MSRP of $24,070.  Featuring a 3.7L V6 with 302 HP and 278 lb-ft of torque.

STX -Starting MSRP of $26,345.  All the stuff the XL has, including the same engine, plus cloth bench seat info display and a CD player.

XLT -Starting MSRP of $29,460.  Featuring all the STX stuff plus power mirrors, windows, and fog lights

FX2 -Starting MSRP of $36,030.  Features a 5.0L V8 with 360 HP and 380 lb-ft of torque along with 18” rims and Sirius XM radio

Lariat -Starting MSRP of $36,680.  Same 5.0L V8 standard as the FX2 plus dual climate control, sync, and leather seats.

FX4 -Starting MSRP of $39,610.  Same 5.0L standard along with 4x4 and Sirius XM radio

King Ranch -Starting MSRP of $43,920.  Same 5.0L standard with all the goodies the Lariat has, plus 2 tone paint, Sony stereo and rear camera.

Platinum -Starting MSRP of $46,945.  Again with the 5.0 V8 standard picking up were the King ranch left off only without the 2 tone paint, plus 20” rims, power running boards, and rain sensing wipers.

Limited -Starting MSRP of $50,025.  Comes standard with a 3.5L EcoBoost V6 that’s good for 365 HP and 420 lb-ft of torque.  Has all the nice stuff that’s standard for the Platinum plus heated and cooled seats, too.

Where do you think the Raptor fits in on this scale?   I’ll give you some pretty pictures of Raptors to look at while you make your bid.

If you pegged the Raptor’s starting MSRP between the King Ranch at $43,920 and the Platinum at $46,945, then you nailed it.  The SVT Raptor has a starting MSRP of $44,035. Sadly, I have no fabulous prizes to award to our winners, but here’s yet another fabulous photo of an SVT Raptor that has been customized by Waldoch to make up for it.

Congrats.  You earned it!