• JP Magazine
  • Dirt Sports + Off-Road
  • 4-Wheel & Off-Road
  • Four Wheeler
  • Get A Print Subscription
  • Get A Digital Subscription
  • Gift Subscriptions
  • Subscriber Services
  • Back Issues
  • Personalized Covers

2010 Ford F150 Raptor - lower A Arm Bolt - Photo 14819912

Back to Article
Share this
  • In order to track what parts might loosen, bend, or stretch, each nut and bolt were marked with paint. The lower A-arm bolts (arrow) were also outlined to show any signs of alignment change. If a fastener was found to be moving, a photo was taken of the joint, the existing torque on the fastener was measured, and the bolt was retorqued and marked with a new paint color.
In order to track what parts might loosen, bend, or stretch, each nut and bolt were marked with paint. The lower A-arm bolts (arrow) were also outlined to show any signs of alignment change. If a fastener was found to be moving, a photo was taken of the joint, the existing torque on the fastener was measured, and the bolt was retorqued and marked with a new paint color.
For the last two years Ford's SVT division (the guys who brought us the Ford GT and the 500hp Mustang GT500) has been secretly developing a high-performance pickup based on the new F-150. However, instead of screwing together another lowered Lightning street truck, SVT built a four-wheel-drive, Baja-ready off-road warrior. Code name: Raptor. In addition to Ford's standard durability tests, SVT ran the Raptor through 1,000 miles of off-road testing in 62.5-mile laps. Each lap subjected the truck to high-speed dirt roads, washboard trails, muddy riverbeds, and loose sand dunes, requiring four-wheel drive and engaging the rear locker. Each driver pushed the truck to its top speed (95 mph) and pounded the suspension over whoops and rocks from full compression to full extension. After every 62.5-mile lap the Raptor was subjected to a tabletop test. Here the Raptor raced up a 16-degree jump at 52 mph and was launched into the air for 50-60 feet. When the truck landed, the suspension compressed and then rebounded as the truck dropped off a 2-foot-tall dirt wall. It was a wild test to watch, and it left us wondering what other 6,000-pound production pickup could handle this. The Raptor durability test was conducted by SVT's Eric Zinkosky (second from left) and supported by Brad Lammers, Eddie Khan, Tim Smith, Matt Johnson, Ross McNab from Fox Racing Shox, Gene Martindale, Tad Ohtake, Mario Dicicco from Roush, Bill Gachnik in the khaki shirt and pants from Pacific Contract Services, and Keith Healy from Roush, who was standing just off to the right of the camera. We met up with the group when they were roughly 640 miles into the test. Zinkosky invited us to ride with him in the Raptor prototype they called Durability. For this test the Raptor was outfitted with a six-point rollcage, Simpson five-point safety harnesses, a Lowrance 9200c GPS, and a PCI intercom and race radio that allowed the driver and navigator to talk with the support crews. Many of Zinkosky's SVT members have extensive experience driving everything from dirt bikes to road-racing Mustangs. When he signed onto the Raptor program, vehicle engineer Gene Martindale's resume included the Ford GT supercar and the LeMans-dominating Dodge Viper when he worked at Chrysler. Riding shotgun with Martindale was Ross McNab, senior project engineer for Fox Racing Shox, who was monitoring the Raptor's shock temperatures with a dash-mounted display.
So what failed? For the 250 miles of testing we witnessed, Durability got four flat tires and broke a rear exhaust hanger, and the alignment was knocked out of whack. That's all. After almost 900 miles of getting beaten on by five different drivers, the truck was still in great shape. In order to track what parts might loosen, bend, or stretch, each nut and bolt were marked with paint. The lower A-arm bolts (arrow) were also outlined to show any signs of alignment change. If a fastener was found to be moving, a photo was taken of the joint, the existing torque on the fastener was measured, and the bolt was retorqued and marked with a new paint color. SVT and Fox used the 1,000-mile Raptor test to validate these stone shields (A) that protect the rear 21/2-inch Fox shock shafts from debris. From our perspective they were a wise investment, as we saw new signs of wear after every lap. In a previous durability test, the F-150 shock mounts (B) on the axle bent, so Raptors will feature high-strength steel mounts made from the same material as those on F-350s. Fox Racing Shox's Ross McNab is an Australian with a background in ATV shocks-and really bad roads. He was particularly proud that nearly every piece of the Raptor's quadruple-bypass shocks were made in the United States. McNab had dozens of shocks on hand, and he gave us a glimpse inside Fox's patented internal bypass technology. When we asked him how many tuning changes he'd made to the Raptor's shocks, he confessed that he'd keep making them until they forced him to stop, and then he'd try to sneak another one in!
Back to Article
< 1 - 9 of >

Related Galleries

Connect With Us

Newsletter Sign Up

Subscribe to the Magazine

Sponsored Content