Built for the Dark: The 2018 Ford F-150 Raptor

Ford built the Raptor for one job: covering rough ground fast. It's a desert truck, born from Baja racing, and the second-generation version came out of the factory with the hardware to prove it — a high-output 3.5-litre twin-turbo EcoBoost V6, a 10-speed automatic, FOX 3.0 internal-bypass shocks at every corner, a wide-track body and Ford's Terrain Management System. It doesn't need any help going fast on dirt.

Where a Raptor comes up short in Australia is after the sun goes down. Factory headlights are built for highways, not a corrugated track at midnight with roos on the shoulder and dust hanging in the air. So this 2018 Raptor's build is mostly about light: a full KC HiLiTES setup chosen to see further, see wider, and stay visible in conditions that swallow ordinary lighting. A sorted rear end for towing and carrying water finishes it off.

The Main Event: A 57-Inch Gravity Titan

The centrepiece is KC's Ford F-150 / Raptor Gravity Titan LED Light Bar Bundle: a 57-inch, nine-light Gravity Titan bar on KC's own F-150/Raptor-specific brackets. Those brackets bolt to factory mounting points, so the truck doesn't need any drilling.

Each of the nine lights runs KC's Titan Core, which uses three-source LED optics to cover short, mid and long range from a single housing. KC rates it at 1.7 times brighter than its long-running Pro6, with a 30 per cent larger illumination zone and 30 per cent more beam distance. A switch flips the whole bar between high-power mode and an integrated amber dust light, which acts as a marker so you stay visible in dust, rain or a convoy. Patented pass-through front cooling keeps it running cool in the heat, and a MoistureBlock plug built into the housing keeps water out of the connection.

The bar is also set up for the conditions it'll see. A set of Gravity Titan/Pro6 amber shields turns the output amber for when dust or rain throws white light straight back at the driver. KC's Smiley Face covers protect the lenses when the bar's off — and on a truck that's meant to have fun, they suit it.

Flex Era: A Bar and Two Sizes of Pod

Backing the Titan is KC's Flex Era range, which is built around one idea: you can change the beam pattern by swapping the lens instead of buying a different light.

The Flex Era 20" LED Light Bar is two linked 10-inch bars that can be run straight or curved. It puts out 15,824 lumens and reaches 567 metres with the factory combo lenses fitted, or 600 metres with the spot lenses that come in the box. An amber backlight mode handles the look around town, and the bar is IP68-sealed.

A pair of Flex Era 4 pods reaches out to 591 metres on spot and 324 metres on combo, with an amber hard cover for dust and wet nights. At the small end, a pair of Flex Era 1 pods takes flood, spread or spot lenses and throws up to 176 metres on spot, from a housing small enough to tuck almost anywhere. They're backed by clear and amber hard covers to protect against stone strikes.

Lighting the Ground

Long-range lights do nothing for the patch of ground right next to your tyres. That's the job of a KC Cyclone V2 amber rock light system: six 5-watt flood-beam lights that light up the terrain around the truck. They make it easier to spot a line over rocks at night and to find your way around camp. The Cyclone was originally developed for an off-road racer and fabricator, and it mounts with a quick-release DZUS quarter-turn fastener, the same kind used on race vehicles.

Out the Back

The rear of the truck is set up for towing. A Gen-Y GHM-313-5 Mega Duty Drop Hitch is rated to 4500kg and fits a 2-inch receiver, with a 5-inch drop and a 50mm ball fitted. Like every Gen-Y hitch, it's made in the USA and works in either the drop or the rise position, so the trailer can be set to tow level. As always, the real towing limit is the lowest-rated part of the setup, and that includes the truck's own rating. An Infinite Rule stainless locking hitch pin, made in the USA, keeps the hitch in the receiver and keeps it from walking off at a campsite.

Underneath, a Trail'd 52-litre Boondocker Water Tank is built to drop into the factory spare-wheel well as a direct replacement (with the spare now living on a removable Rig'd Supply hitch mounted tyre rack). That's 52 litres of water for washing off after a day on the dirt or running a camp kitchen, without taking up any room in the tray.

Built for the Hours Ford Didn't Plan For

Ford already did the hard part: the Raptor's engine and suspension are about as capable as anything you can buy off a showroom floor. This build doesn't try to improve on that. It adds what the Raptor needs for the way Australians actually use one — enough light to keep going when the sun's gone and the dust is up, and a rear end that can tow and carry water for the trip out.

Every part on this build is listed below. Add what you need to your build list to order online, or send it through as a quote request and the Tough Trucks team will build it for you.