There has been much hype over announcements made across the automotive industry of new electric vehicles, but everyone knows that the hype machine of the moment is the new Ford F-150 Raptor. Ford gave us a sneak peek of its new hardcore off-roader in January, and now it has finally been revealed to the world. The new truck has stirred up some heated debates on internet forums regarding its powertrain, with many believing the new vehicle would be powered by a 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 (which it is) and possibly a V8 further down the line. Those rumors have been settled: Ford F-150 marketing manager, Brian Bell, has confirmed that the Raptor R will get "a powerful V-8".

Ford confirmed the V8-powered Raptor will be known as the Raptor R, and this hardcore version of an already hardcore truck will almost certainly be powered by the supercharged 5.2-liter V8 found in the Mustang Shelby 500. In the Mustang, this means 760 hp and 625 lb-ft of torque, and a zero to sixty time of around 3.3 seconds, but early tests have shown that this setup has proven problematic in F-150 development cars, with reliability concerns rearing its ugly head.

Mike Levine, Ford North America Product Communications Manager, put rumors to bed regarding whether the Raptor R would be street legal by replying to a tweet from Joel Feder clearly stating " The Raptor R will be street legal".

With this much power under its belt, Ford will be able to take on the Ram 1500 TRX, which pushes out 702 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque from its 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcat V8. But even Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis admits that that engine's mounting compliance costs could see the TRX go to an early grave.

For now, Ford fans will have to settle for the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 which is a carryover from the previous car. Ford has yet to share the engine's official power outputs, but we can safely assume that it should produce more than the old truck's 450 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque and will be mated to a 10-speed SelectShift automatic transmission. The Ford's re-tuned five-link suspension setup is also promised to offer the most articulation of any production car currently available. We can't wait.