In the latest issue Top Gear BBC (Cars of the Year, 2014 Edition), it is being reported that the 2017 F-150 Raptor has been producing closer to 600HP with the new 3.5L EcoBoost (EcoBeast?) V6.

Now, we don’t expect Ford to release a 600-HP factory Raptor, but we are certain that Ford has been testing the capabilities of this truck – because they know the typical Raptor owner is not going to leave the truck stock. We imagine this truck will debut with 450-475 HP by the time it hits showrooms.

However, this high-horsepower number is interesting in a few regards. First, Ford never announced official HP numbers at the Detroit Auto Show. Second, the new 2017 Ford GT is also powered by the same 3.5L EcoBoost V6 that will be stuffed under the Raptor’s hood. Although official numbers have not been released for the 2017 Ford GT, we are told that we can expect ‘north of 600 HP’ for the Ford supercar.

Now, obviously we don’t think that the new Ford GT and Raptor will have the exact same motor with the exact same HP/TQ numbers, but we wouldn’t be surprised if the Ford GT is actually closer to the 700 HP mark, and the Raptor may be the beneficiary of a de-tuned variant of that motor.

The most interesting point is that Ford knows that the Raptor enthusiasts are typical diehard V8 guys, and this new high-HP EcoBoost V6 may be Ford’s attempt to ‘win over’ the V8 crowd. Heck, even as upset as we are about the new Raptor not having a V8, a modified “600 HP” EcoBoost motor definitely sounds appealing to us.

Keep in mind that this new SVT F-150 Raptor will also be channeling all of that power through a 10-speed automatic transmission. And we can also expect high torque numbers considering that is a major selling and marketing point for the F-150 EcoBoost line.

Ford has certainly been pushing the EcoBoost family of engines on us lately. We are told this is part of a bigger effort to phase out the V8 motor altogether. As much as we will miss the V8, I am sure we can get used to a 600-HP Twin Turbo EcoBoost V6.

Welcome to the future.