Ford F-150 Raptor virtual driving chair has a seatbelt — and you'll need it
Image: Mashable, Adario Strange
NEW YORK — Fear the Raptor.
That's what the Ford F-150 Raptor driving simulator, lurking on the lower level of the Javits Center at the New York Auto Show, should say as you walk up to its imposing display.
A combination virtual driving course and amusement park ride, the
operators of the simulator demand that you sign a lengthy legal waiver
before entering the circular area housing the intimidating machine.
In addition to the waiver, a large sign is posted nearby that
prohibits anyone under 18 years old, under 5'2" tall or over 220 pounds
from entering. Those warnings alone give some indication of how intense
the experience might be, but it's not until you sit down behind the
wheel of the interactive beast that you really find out just how
seriously those warnings should be taken.
Image: Mashable, Adario Strange
Long
story short: It's like riding one of those old mechanical bulls, but in
this case the "bull" is a dynamic chair designed to mimic the violent
jerks of the real, nearly 5,000 pound 2015 Ford F-150 truck,
and the surroundings aren't inebriated bar patrons but three screens
that show you a virtual display of where you're traveling.
The off-road experience is fairly unsettling, forcing you to
aggressively wrestle with the steering as you plunge into challenging
backwoods terrain. There's even a real seatbelt on the rig to strap you
in, a safety device that you'll actually need once you start jumping
over virtual hills and screeching across pixelated dirt roads.
Seasoned car show veterans know that this simulator has been around
for a few years, but this was my first time trying it out, and I was
impressed, despite its vintage. As you might guess, I failed to get to
the finish line, but the brief dance with the virtual pickup truck was
enough to make me wistfully consider one day actually getting behind the
wheel of a real one.
Therefore, for Ford, mission accomplished.
