Ford’s off-road supercar to break free from ‘over-served’ mould
Ford CEO Jim Farley has added fuel to the fire of speculation about his brand launching an off-road focused supercar.
The world’s first true ‘off-road supercar’ appears to be getting closer, with Ford CEO Jim Farley providing the latest hints of the project.
Speaking to the UK’s Top Gear magazine, Farley said there is an opportunity in the market for a supercar which doesn’t fit the existing mould, reiterating the brand’s plans to have a rally-focus – not a racing version of the defunct Focus – for its upcoming models.
“We’re really excited about Dakar and Pikes Peak, we feel like what’s exciting about Ford in Europe is really our rally direction," Farley said.
“We want to democratise a rally car. We want everyone to be able to buy a car from Ford, and it's affordable, and it's rally. That to me is a huge turn on.
“I want everyone who buys a Ford in Europe of passenger cars to feel like they're a rally driver."
“I think that’s really exciting, because the off-road world is here [raising an arm], (the) on-road world is here [lowering an arm], (the) rally world is somewhere in the middle.
“To me, that’s really exciting, and if you were to see a supercar from Ford, it would be really different from what you’d expect.
“I believe, personally, the supercar world is over-served, so for Ford to really make a difference, I think it’s going to be in a completely different execution. People will not see it coming.
“Now, I think performance is going to be more flexible, and where we want to innovate is this very unexpected territory between on-road and off-road.”
The success of Ford’s Raptor arm – which includes off-road focused, high-performance versions of the F-150, Ranger and Bronco – is understood to be a considerable influence on the unknown model.
In the US, Ford’s off-road variants (including the Bronco Badlands) account for about 20 per cent of its sales, while in Australia the Ranger Raptor contributes between 10 and 15 per cent of the ute’s deliveries, despite being one of the most expensive dual-cabs you can buy.
Stephen Ottley
Farley has previously teased the vehicle could take inspiration from the Raptor T1+ prototype which competes at the Dakar Rally, and is powered by a race-tuned version of the Coyote V8 engine.
In August last year, Automotive News reported the off-road supercar would produce 1000hp (745kW) with hybrid assistance.
“No one’s ever built a supercar for gravel, high-speed sand, dirt,” Farley said. “I’m thinking really deeply about it, and usually that turns into something.”
“These Raptor people are telling us something. They’re not stupid. They’re really smart people. They spent US$120,000 on an 800-horsepower pickup truck.”
