This 7.3L V8 Ford Bronco Raptor Swap Is So Clean, It's Like a Factory Job
It's true that forced induction can do a lot for a small V6, but that doesn't stop people from wanting a total thumper under the hood. Case in point: This Ford Bronco Raptor that ditched its 3.0-liter EcoBoost in favor of a 7.3-liter Godzilla engine. And thanks to a short list of worthwhile mods, it has plenty of power to roast its 40-inch tires.
The rig's owner, Eric Long, goes by @22broncoraptor on social media, and like you'd expect, he posts about it pretty often. Juicy Motorsports out of Fayetteville, Georgia, performed the swap while a fella named Justin Stamper was the lead builder. It's important to note that this is more than an engine-swapped truck; the crew involved did all the work necessary to make all of the Raptor's drive modes operate like they did from the factory. More on that in a bit.
First, though, let's run through the powertrain. The Bronco Raptor now sports a Super Duty V8 with a Stage Two Texas Speed cam, an intake from Ford's Megazilla crate engine, custom headers, and a 93-octane tune from 5 Star Tuning. Dyno results show it cranking out 395 horsepower and 466 lb-ft of torque, and that's after it makes its way from the massive Nitto Terra Grapplers to the ground. Accounting for drivetrain loss, that's way more power than stock, as the 3.0-liter EcoBoost makes 418 hp and 440 lb-ft at the flywheel.
To compensate for the extra power, Juicy also swapped in a sturdier 10R80 automatic transmission, which is an upgrade over the Bronco Raptor's factory 10R60 unit.
As you can see in this clip, Long is still able to cycle through all of the truck's G.O.A.T. (Goes Over Any Type of Terrain) modes. These change various settings to help performance in different drive scenarios, from general Off-Road to Rock Crawl and Baja. Not only does this adjust throttle mapping, but it also engages or disengages the Bronco Raptor's locking differentials depending on which mode you select. And because he claims these are '100% functional,' that also indicates that the engine swap doesn't interfere with the Fox Live Valve suspension, which reads the surface and adjusts on the fly. That's a stellar OEM+ modification.
The Blue Oval's big V8 should continue getting better over time as it's equipped with an advanced vehicle interface device. This enables Long to share data files with Five Star Tuning directly while also downloading custom tunes. He can also swap between a low-octane tune for Baja runs, just in case that sweet 93-octane isn't available nearby.
Long hints in one of his videos that a supercharger could come later down the line, and obviously, that would push this even further over the top. I'm not sure it needs one, though, considering how stout the current setup already is. I'd probably keep it like it is now, but then again, it's not my truck. I also don't see myself upgrading to one of these unless I get promoted to owner of The Drive Dot Com, so there's that.
On second thought, man, just enjoy your rig!
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