Mobile Ad-hoc Networks (MANETs) depend on cooperative packet forwarding, making them vulnerable to selfish and malicious nodes that drop packets to conserve resources or disrupt communication. To address this, we propose Enhanced RORQ, an improved reputation-based routing mechanism that integrates a packet drop penalty into the reputation calculation. Unlike traditional reputation models, our approach accounts for the probability of packet dropping (PDROP) and penalizes nodes accordingly. The enhanced reputation model dynamically updates a node’s reputation based on its forwarding success while incorporating a penalty factor (γ) for detected packet drops. The probability of packet dropping is derived by considering various network factors, including forwarding success, collision-induced losses, and mobility-related link failures. By distinguishing between intentional and unintentional drops, the model ensures fair reputation assignment and discourages selfish behavior. Simulations conducted in a 100-node MANET under Blackhole and Greyhole attack scenarios demonstrate that Enhanced RORQ achieves up to a 25% increase in packet delivery ratio, a 40% reduction in packet drop rate, and 30% lower energy consumption compared to traditional RORQ. The model adapts to varying node densities and mobility patterns with minimal overhead. While reputation tracking and PDROP computation introduce slight computational cost, this is offset by significantly improved routing reliability and security. The penalty factor γ is tuned empirically to balance sensitivity to malicious behavior without over-penalizing normal fluctuations in delivery performance. These results show that Enhanced RORQ provides a scalable, intelligent routing framework suitable for dynamic and adversarial MANET environments.