In 1993’s Jurassic Park, the fictional island of Isla Nublar was the backdrop for the cloning of long-extinct dinosaurs. Well, there’s a new Raptor in town, and it would likely give those theropods a run for their money.
This time, it’s from Vegas.
Shelby American has officially unveiled the ‘Baja 700’ Raptor, a 700-plus-horsepower beast based off the 2011-2014 Ford SVT version.
Given its racing-inspired moniker, the Raptor’s Rogue Racing “competition” suspension and all-terrain rubber will come as no surprise. One look at the beefy underbody and you’ll see that this truck is meant to go fast over any terrain, which will surely come in handy when you’re taking shortcuts to make the gas station.
The truck’s mud-flinging power comes from a 6.2-liter V8 and 2.9-liter Whipple supercharger, which make a respectable 411 hp in the stock Ford Raptor. Under Shelby American’s tutelage, output was first boosted to 575 hp, then the insane 700-plus-hp we have with the Baja version. Larger throttle bodies and injectors, a bigger heat exchanger, and a thunderous Borla exhaust system get credit for the increase.
“The Shelby Raptor became a star the moment we launched it at the New York Auto Show in 2012,” said Joe Conway, CEO of Shelby American. “Carroll had a love for trucks and brought his high performance, ‘Texas style’ to the drawing board when he envisioned the Shelby Raptor. This special edition Shelby Baja 700 builds on that vision, as it was created to conquer any terrain.”
Limited to only 50 units, the special edition Raptor costs just $45,000, but you have to supply the base truck yourself.
The Shelby American Baja 700 Raptor is available to order now.
