Diesel vs petrol for overlanding in 2025 — real numbers on reliability and running costs
Running the Ford Ranger Raptor for 17 months now, 51664km on the clock including 6 proper off-road trips. Here is my honest take.
The good: the off-road capability straight from factory surprised me. I have done Sani Pass, Swartberg and multiple Kruger trips without a single mechanical issue. The 2.8L turbodiesel is 11L/100km on tar if you keep it under 120km/h.
The bad: the dealer experience left something to be desired. Also the dealer here in Bloemfontein could learn something about customer service, but that is a SA-wide problem not specific to this brand.
Mods I have done: Ironman bull bar (R11k fitted), OME BP51 shocks (R16k fitted), MaxTrax recovery boards, and a Engel MR040 fridge. Total spend on mods: around R79k. Worth every cent.
Price paid at my Bloemfontein dealer was R680,000 — they threw in a full tank and floor mats. Finance rate was 11.5% over 72 months which is the reality of SA interest rates in 2025.
Would buy it again. Happy to go into detail on any specific aspect.
4 Replies
Good honest review. My experience with the LC79 has been similar — the factory setup is better off-road than the road testers give it credit for. The tyres are always the first thing that needs changing regardless of which bakkie you buy.
Running the Ford Ranger Raptor for 17 months now, 51664km on the clock including 6 proper off-road trips. Here is my honest take.
The good: the off-road capability straight from factory surprised me. I have done Sani Pass, Swartberg and multiple Kruger trips without a single mechanical issue. The 2.8L turbodiesel is 11L/100km on tar if you keep it under 120km/h.
The bad: the dealer experience left something to be desired. Also the dealer here in Bloemfontein could learn something about customer service, but that is a SA-wide problem not specific to this brand.
Mods I have done: Ironman bull bar (R11k fitted), OME BP51 shocks (R16k fitted), MaxTrax recovery boards, and a Engel MR040 fridge. Total spend on mods: around R79k. Worth every cent.
Price paid at my Bloemfontein dealer was R680,000 — they threw in a full tank and floor mats. Finance rate was 11.5% over 72 months which is the reality of SA interest rates in 2025.
Would buy it again. Happy to go into detail on any specific aspect.
— riaan_bezuidenhout
On the mod budget — R87k sounds like a lot but if you are amortising it over 8 years of serious use, it works out to less than R1,000 per month. And the safety improvement in a real recovery situation is not something you can put a price on.
The fuel consumption figures you mention match what I see. The V6 Raptor is better than the official spec suggests in real conditions. The issue for me is long-range touring — I fitted a Brown Davis 128L long-range tank to solve the range anxiety completely.
Interesting points on the dealer experience. I had the same in Polokwane — 10 week wait for a service part that should have been in stock. This is why I budget for a proper extended warranty and use an independent workshop that specialises in 4x4s rather than the franchise dealer.