Hennessey Offers A Modern Ford Excursion, The VelociRaptor
Do you remember the Ford Excursion, the gigantic SUV built on an HD truck chassis? The huge thing was, at the time, the largest vehicle built by the Dearborn manufacturer, being powered either by a V10 or a diesel powerplant. It was used by those who wanted a vehicle that could haul large trailers while ferrying people around. Victim of rising fuel prices, the Excursion went the way of the dinosaurs in 2005, leaving its smaller brother the Expedition as the largest Ford SUV.
Right now though, fuel is cheaper than it was; rich people are missing the behemoth, and some of them would actually like to buy a new one… Hennessey saw the market, and realized there was money to be made there, so they launched the VelociRaptor SUV, which is essentially a modern Expedition.
Based on Ford’s F-250 chassis, the truck has an off-road bumper, seating for eight and doors that open like those of a barn, which were part of the Excursion’s charms.
Where the original vehicle had a 6.8-litre V10 engine that drank fuel like it was going out of style (in retrospective, it was), the VelociRaptor is powered by a 6.2-litre V8 with 411 horsepower. Customers can spec their truck with a Power Stroke diesel mill with 880 pound-feet of torque, an option that will be useful for those who want to tow with their truck.
If you want a VelociRaptor SUV, Hennessey announced a build time of around six months and a price tag of $160,000 USD.