Ford F-150 SVT Raptor customers have an affinity for outdoor adventure, and the truck is built to help them practice their adrenaline-filled activities. But Raptor also looks the part, with graphics inspired by the same extreme sports and activities that customers of the high-performance truck find so alluring.
In fact, the latest graphic available on the 2011 model has a history in off-road racing. “When I started looking at off-road racing history for inspiration, I noticed that a lot of Ford Broncos from the 1970s were running matte black hoods to reduce the glare,” said Bruce Williams, F-150 SVT Raptor designer. “So it’s a protective graphic that has a functional benefit and ties in with our racing heritage.”
Bill Stroppe, a member of the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame, is the mastermind behind some of those famed Broncos. Stroppe built race-prepped Broncos that competed in and won off-road races, such as the Baja 1000. Between 1971 and 1975 Stroppe’s shop modified about 650 Broncos, coined Baja Broncos, for Ford customers based on the cars that his team built.
The new optional hood graphic adds a personalized and functional touch to F-150 SVT Raptor. Matte black accent graphics – including the F-150 SVT Raptor logo – run along the hood, also helping to reduce glare. The Raptor logo in the graphic is done in body-color bleed-through, similar to “SVT” on the side vent. “F-150” and “SVT” are written in dark gray.
Inspiration from experience
The digital mud, a combination of matte and glossy black paint, is splashed across the box side of the F-150 SVT Raptor in a very abstract way, but the execution is actually quite precise. The design is meant to replicate the mud pattern that would be thrown from the truck’s unique BFGoodrich® off-road tires.
“For off-roaders, mud on their truck is a badge of honor,” said Williams. “Owners like to show what they have experienced with the amount of mud on their truck. But they also are proud of the condition their truck is in. Digital mud provides the best of both worlds, so even when the truck is clean, it still shows off its true nature.”
And designer Williams knows all about making the most of the elements.
Williams is an avid outdoor athlete who drew inspiration for the digital mud graphics that first appeared on the 2010 F-150 SVT Raptor while on a ski trip. He noticed that ski and snowboard graphics were trending toward using less color and becoming more tone-on-tone. They also were mixing in with patterned graphics, and he thought that would be a perfect way to add a new level of personalization to F-150 SVT Raptor.
“A good majority of our owners are into outdoor activities, and those are the type of people who are drawn to the graphics,” said Williams. “The truck is flashy, but in a different way. It looks like it can go anywhere and actually can, and that’s where the graphics come in.”
For those customers who do take their truck everywhere, the digital mud graphics bring the added benefit of protecting the paint from rocks and trees. Both graphics underwent durability tests to ensure they could withstand the elements.
