The Ford SVT Raptor is an extremely capable truck that has captured the attention of the off-road community over the past few years. Since the Raptor’s release ICON Vehicle Dynamics’ engineers have pushed this vehicle to extremes in order to develop the most comprehensive suspension components on the market. From the brutal deserts of the Southwest, to the deep snow of Michigan’s U.P., to the wooded trails of the East coast, ICON suspension systems have been put to the test and performed flawlessly. Unable to leave “well-enough” alone, ICON is once again aiming to raise the bar in Raptor performance with the introduction of the RXT Rear Suspension System.

Through a combination of in-house R&D and close collaboration with several Raptor enthusiast groups, ICON has spent the better part of the last year identifying limiting factors in OE components and looking to further extrapolate performance out of this vehicle. The RXT Rear Suspension System includes an all-new RXT 3.0 Rear Bypass shock and an RXT Multi-Rate Leaf Spring that work in conjunction with the ICON Raptor Rear Bump Stop Kit. Installation of this system replaces the aforementioned “limiting factors” and completely redefines the potential of this truck with a 20% increase in up-travel, a 30% increase in down-travel, and the ability to adjust the leaf spring rate to compensate for varying vehicle setups.

ICON Raptor Rear Bump Stop Kit: The job of the bump stop is to control and limit the final position of the suspension during up-travel. The OE rear bump stop is made of foam rubber, is limited on how much energy it can absorb, and is also a limiting factor in the amount of travel that can be had in the rear of the Raptor. The ICON Raptor Rear Bump Stop Kit utilizes a velocity-sensitive 2.0 hydraulic bump stop that increases the amount of energy absorbed the faster it is hit. This kit was originally designed to limit bump at the factory location, but has always had a provision to allow for more up-travel through the use of a removable spacer. When combined with the RXT leaf spring and rear shock, the spacer can be removed resulting in a drastic increase in up-travel and off-road performance.

ICON RXT Multi-Rate Leaf Spring: To take advantage of the additional travel that the RXT Rear Suspension System offers, ICON engineers had to scrap the OE leaf springs and develop a replacement that addressed issues found in the R&D process. The result is a user-adjustable multi-rate leaf pack that offers a major performance gain for almost every Raptor setup imaginable. Features like tip inserts and leaf separators add to ride comfort, while a triple military wrapped front and rear half wrapped eyelet increases durability and strength of the leaf spring. A rebound leaf was added to reduce the axle wrap of the Raptor, which was another issue that has been found through ICON’s extensive testing. To increase the ride quality of the truck and gain additional droop travel, the spring rate has been lowered slightly. While most Raptor owners will embrace this, there are those who have outfitted their trucks with a significant amount of weight in the form of a chase rack, spare tires and parts, or other additions. Understanding this, the leaf pack was designed with an additional leaf (included with kit) that can be exchanged or added to the pack, yielding an additional 10% or 20% spring rate that will handle heavier vehicles.

ICON RXT 3.0 Rear Bypass Shock: To complete the RXT Rear Suspension System, a new shock had to be developed that could control the suspension throughout this new range of travel, as well as stand up to the off-road abuse that the Raptor would now be capable of delivering. The increase in up-travel was answered with a unique side-mount eyelet approach that allowed ICON engineers to develop a shock that is shorter in collapsed length, longer at extension, and still fits in the factory mounting location. A Dual Hose Recirculating Reservoir (Patent Pending) incorporates a check valve that allows hot fluid in the shock body to be exchanged with cooler fluid in the reservoir. The result of this is the ability of the Raptor to be driven harder for longer periods of time without the worry of shock fade and degraded performance.