Update, 7/24/25: This article has been updated with a statement from Ford.
Ford's family of Raptors might be growing. What appears to be a Bronco Sport Raptor was just spotted by our spy photographers virtually undisguised in Michigan, showing off a taller suspension, fender flares, and a serious set of off-roading tires. It even has Raptor badging. Unfortunately, Ford says this isn't an upcoming trim line, but rather a one-off custom Bronco built by an employee.
"This is our team having fun, not a Bronco Sport Raptor," a spokesperson told Motor1. "Just like our customers, we encourage employees to leverage the customization superpowers of the Bronco family and continue to explore possibilities."
You wouldn't know it by looking at the thing. There are three Raptor badges seen pasted to the car. One on each front door, where you'd normally find the Bronco Sport's trim level displayed, and another on the rear hatch.
Ford recently introduced a Sasquatch package for the Bronco Sport, which adds things like skidplates, all-terrain tires, and slightly more suspension travel and ground clearance. The SUV in these pictures goes a lot farther, with several more inches of clearance. There's also the tires, which look to be BFGoodrich KM3 mud-terrains—more serious rubber than what's used on the F-150 Raptor. There's even a set of bolted-on fender flares to shroud the rubber.
Our spy photographer snagged these pictures as the SUV was driving between Ford facilities, reportedly from an engineering building to a benchmarking building. What's under the hood is unclear, though if a Bronco Sport Raptor were in the cards, there'd likely be some upgrades from the Sport's normal 250-horsepower inline-four.
The front and rear fascias look to be lifted straight from the Sasquatch package. There's a metal skidplate and a push bar up front, as well as tow hook mounting points in the rear. We have no explanation for why a vehicle with a manufacturer license plate would have stuff on the roof rack or the quirky Mothman sticker on the rear glass.
While Ford says this SUV isn't destined for production, we can't help but wonder why the company wouldn't want such a variant in the Bronco Sport lineup. Given the public's lust for everything off-roading these days, it'd probably sell pretty well.
