By Christopher Tracy
We are all ready for the new Ford Bronco. The official reveal is not scheduled until sometime this coming Spring. The writers over at Car & Driver have compiled some ideas that they think are pointing towards what we will see and experience with the reveal of the new Bronco.
Delivering the new Bronco is not an easy task. There will be hurt feelings and many who won’t accept it. The new Bronco has to have a V8, the roof and doors must be removable, and it has to be a two-door truck.
What we will see is probably somewhere in the middle of what Bronco enthusiasts want and what Ford intends to engineer. The Bronco is based on the Ranger/Everest underpinnings. That has been confirmed since forever ago. New information indicates that the new Bronco will be assembled in the same building that had Broncos coming off the line before in Wayne, Michigan. The construction will be body-on-frame, joining the rest of the iconic off-road capable vehicles in the segment. Wranglers, Tahoes, 4Runners, and Gladiators all have the same construction.
Doors Off
The doors of the new Ford Bronco will be removable. There are also going to be two-door and four-door versions. It has not been confirmed if the two-door Bronco will have a shorter wheelbase and body than the four-door version. It is safe to assume that both versions will be the same. The roof of the new Bronco will also come off.
Powertrain
The standard powertrain looks like it will be the 2.3L four-cylinder turbo engine that produces around 270 horsepower and 310 lb-feet of torque. There will hopefully be an optional twin-turbo 2.7L V6 that makes 325 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque. The turbocharged engines have a higher torque number than the stock Wrangler’s 3.6L V6 that has 260 lb-ft of torque. A 10-speed automatic transmission will be mated to either engine option. There is a rumor of a manual transmission option as well. We can only hope.
Ford is considering a hybrid powertrain to go with the more conventional turbocharged engine choices. The purests with hate the hybrid. Wranglers in 2020 already have eTorque (mild hybrid) on both the turbo-four and V6 engine options — no mention of a diesel powertrain yet in the Ford Bronco.
Off to the Races
The Ford Bronco R concept raced in the Baja 1000 this year. Bronco R completed 580 miles before reporting a cooling fan issue. The team then dropped out of the race. 48% of all entrants into the competition did not finish. The 1000 this year was delayed a day because of heavy rain and racecourse repair.
We are all ready to see the official reveal this Spring, but these renderings will have to hold us over for now.
[Images courtesy of Car & Driver]
Jeff Glucker
Doesn’t look 100% to me; not enough front overhang for crash performance and not enough body height. I’m expecting a squared-off version of the Everest.
So, a retooled Ford Flex? I’m in!
I actually like the frills-free Flex design even better, but Broncho will do.
Doesn’t look 100% to me; not enough front overhang for crash performance and not enough body height. I’m expecting a squared-off version of the Everest.
Show me a two-doors with a removable roof, and I’m content. Even moreso if they can keep the starting MSRP in the mid-20’s (once we’re past the hype-driven dealer markup).
This looks like a classic! Would love to experiment with its parts and go for a drive!
Meanwhile, in Australia, the enormous problem of the Ford Ranger Raptor and it’s lack of power is being addressed.
With the fitment of the Mustang’s Coyote V8.https://www.whichcar.com.au/news/2020-ford-ranger-raptor-receives-mustang-v8-engine
https://d3lp4xedbqa8a5.cloudfront.net/s3/digital-cougar-assets/whichcar/2019/12/20/Misc/Ford-Ranger-Raptor-V8-2.jpg
Do you think they will sell more than the “Holy Grail” Falcons they (Premcar) did?
That was $45k for the whole package, I dare say there will be fewer bespoke parts needed for the V8 Raptor, so maybe it will cost under $120k?
They only have to sell a handful for it to be forevermore famous on teh internet forums.
It looks like it was designed by Playmobil
I was thinking Fisher-Price, but the sentiment is the same. This is a common issue I see with most retro designs. Somehow “like the old one, but modern” has come to mean “like the old one, but if it were a toy.”
2017 JK driver here, I love this. I would definitely consider the new Bronco if it’s close to this.
The lack of appropriate detailing in these renderings prevent make this look like a terrible toy version of the real thing. I certainly hope it looks better in the flesh.
That looks like aftermarket bumpers and body colored arches would go well.
017 JK is the driver here. This is fantastic. If it’s close to this, I’d definitely consider the new Bronco.