July 19, 2022: -As Ford Motor ramps its electric F-150 pickup production, it’s not giving up on delivering new, highly profitable implementation models with gasoline engines.

The Detroit automaker announced the F-150 Raptor R, a recent version of its high-performance, off-road pickup with a supercharged 5.2-liter V-8 engine that makes 700 horsepower and 640 foot-pounds of torque. The truck will begin at $109,145, which includes destination and delivery charges.

Between pent-up need and high prices, automakers have added performance variants to their lineups to beef up profit margins before changing to electric vehicles, offering high performance but lower margins than gas-powered vehicles.

The new “R” version looks identical to the company’s F-150 Raptor, but it includes some design tweaks and significantly increases performance and off-road parts. The standard 2022 F-150 Raptor is powered by a 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 engine that produces 450 horsepower and 510 foot-pounds of torque. Ford said the Raptor R’s top speed is 112 mph, limited by the vehicle’s 37-inch tires.

Ford has dominated the high-performance pickup truck market since launching the first Raptor model in 2009. But in current years, Stellantis’ Ram Trucks brand has been grabbing headlines with its Ram 1500 TRX, a 702-horsepower pickup with a supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 engine and 650 foot-pounds of torque.

The new Raptor falls just shy of the performance of the Ram TRX, but it offers different performance parts. It’s also the highest-powered engine Ford offers. The company previously used the engine for the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.

Carl Widmann, the chief engineer of Ford performance, said the vehicle is the result of customers “demanding the sound and power of a V8 back in Raptor.” Ford hasn’t offered a V-8 engine in a Raptor model since 2014.

The company said the F-150 Raptor R show would start in the fall at Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant in Michigan. On Monday, Ordering for the vehicle opens via franchised Ford dealers.

Current Raptor trucks start at about $70,000, almost $40,000 over a base F-150 but less expensive than the top luxury version of the F-150, which initiates at roughly $77,000.