Can a Raptor be had without a dealer markup? I haven't looked much but all the ones around here run for 90-100k.
The initial demand is going down, so in a few months? yeah. A buddy got one for 4K over MSRP and the dealer shipped the truck from Arkansas to his door in Oregon.
Lets be totally honest, we're talking about an SUV vs a Truck. The two are apples and oranges. But they both represent trends of their respective companies. When I got my 4Runner I thought the TRD Pro represented Toyota's newfound interest in more aggressive vehicles. And ultimately what we got in the form of the Tacoma is a trend towards more gutless, conservative vehicles. You can't thrash your vehicle off road if it can't make power in the straightaways!
But more importantly, Toyota doesn't care about the offroad market in america, They just truly do not. For the vast majority of folks, going on county roads that a stock jeep could do equals offroading *cough* FJ Summit *cough* but it ignores an enthusiast market that truly represents the brand.
I commend Ford for auguring out of destruction in 2008, not taking bailout money, and actually making good vehicles again by using their EU designers to make some goddamn amazing vehicles. Much of the badmouthing of ford comes from people who don't take into consideration post-2008 vehicles. Every company has lemons, I know folks still fighting with Toyota to get their frames replaced.
Where I give ford a lot of credit is that they're making vehicles that by all accounts shouldn't exist. 450hp, Baja inspired, trucks with more features than an LC200? Goddamn, if you can't appreciate that then you're dumb.
Is it the right vehicle for most of us? nah, probably not. But again, most of us here don't overland, don't rock crawl, etc. This forum is the collection of the lunatic fringe for sure. Most overland builds are ridiculous, mine included, because (and here's where I'll shit in the punch bowl) Overlanding in america is horseshit. You are litterally playing dress up thinking that there's anywhere in america where an overland vehicle like the kind needed for Australia is applicable in the states. We have an amazing thing called ROADS here that negate the concept of being truly self sufficient in the middle of nowhere.
90 percent of where I go, an F350 can go, and that's why a Raptor appeals to me. If I lived in the NE where terrain was much tighter, the raptor would NOT appeal to me.
So much of this comes down to needs/wants. But I guess where the raptor speaks to me is that it's Ford making cool vehicles for the love of cool vehicles, while Toyota just churns out the same boring shit.
In baja I never felt like I didn't have power, I never lagged behind the raptors, it's just that to maintain those speeds I beat the shit out of the truck, a truck that is supremely upgraded but still didn't ride as well as a raptor.
That's my point. We wan circles around the raptors in tight terrain, but then again the Jeeps ran circles around us, every vehicle has their moment to shine.