Posted on 07/14/2020 5:44:49 AM PDT by Red Badger
Key Points
Ford unveiled its new “family” of Bronco SUVs Monday night, including two- and four-door Bronco SUVs as well as a smaller Bronco Sport SUV.
The Bronco models are squarely positioned against Fiat Chrysler’s Jeep brand.
The Bronco, according to Credit Suisse, would contribute nearly $1 billion to Ford’s North American operations if sales reach 125,000 units.
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Ford Motor is taking a run at the nation’s No. 1 off-road seller, the Jeep Wrangler, with its highly anticipated relaunch Monday night of the Bronco SUV — a boxy utility vehicle that developed a cult following after it was discontinued in 1996.
Ford is pricing the new Bronco starting at $29,995, including destination charges, just $205 above a base Jeep Wrangler. Top-end models with additional features and equipment can top $60,000. A limited “First Edition” Bronco model starts at $60,800, according to Ford’s website.
The two- and four-door Bronco models, according to Ford, are similar in size to the Wrangler, which is regularly among Fiat Chrysler’s best-selling vehicles in the U.S.
Ford originally confirmed its relaunch in January 2017, but fans had been awaiting the return of the Bronco for years before then.
“It’s a long time coming. The market is waiting and ready,” said Jeff Schuster, president of the Americas and global vehicle forecasts for research firm LMC Automotive. The Bronco is the Jeep Wrangler’s first direct competitor since General Motors’ Hummer, which is being relaunched next year, was discontinued in 2009. “We expect this to stack up nicely compared to the Wrangler.”
The Wrangler was seventh in sales last year among all compact SUVs and crossovers, according to LMC.
Like the Wrangler, the new Bronco models feature removable roofs and doors as well as more than 200 factory-backed accessories. All Bronco vehicles, Ford said, also will come standard with four-wheel drive.
“With Bronco, Ford is making a clear push into the off-road segment of the [North American] SUV market,” Credit Suisse analyst Dan Levy wrote in a note to investors Monday. “While we expect Wrangler to remain the leader in the off-road segment, we nevertheless see attractive opportunity for Bronco given its heritage.”
The Bronco, according to Levy, would contribute nearly $1 billion to Ford’s North American pretax earnings if sales reached 125,000 units. That’s based on profits per vehicle of about $7,500. That would make the Bronco one of Ford’s most profitable models, according to Levy.
Kumar Galhotra, Ford’s president of the Americas & International Markets Group, has said the company projects it will sell hundreds of thousands of new Bronco SUVs a year.
“They’re going to add substantial volume to the company, and they’re going to be growth volume because none of the vehicles exist today,” Galhotra previously told CNBC. “It is a net-add to the portfolio, net-add to volume and profitable volume.”
Ford unveiled its new “family” of Bronco off-road vehicles, including a smaller Bronco Sport SUV, online with a video narrated by actor Bryan Cranston.
“This time it’s not just one horse. It’s a whole family,” he said as the vehicles scaled rocks and drove through treacherous terrains. “Built with the toughness of an F-Series and spirit of a Mustang; built to be the future of off roading.”
The vehicles were also revealed through a partnership with Disney on ABC, ESPN and National Geographic during their 8 p.m. broadcasts. Each ad was unique to the channel and featured a special guest. Family of Broncos
The Bronco Sport is expected to begin arriving in dealerships by the end of this year, followed by the Bronco next spring. Ford began taking $100 refundable deposits for the vehicles Monday night.
Ford compared the Bronco Sport, which will be built on a different vehicle platform than the Bronco, to a Jeep Compass, a less truck-like compact SUV. The vehicle is expected to be more mainstream than the Bronco but still have off-road capabilities, according to Ford.
“This absolutely belongs in the family of Broncos and will surprise and amaze people,” said Dave Pericak, Ford’s director of icon vehicles such as the new Bronco models. Ford, according to officials, expects the Bronco and Bronco Sport to appeal to different buyers.
The Bronco, like the Wrangler, features a removable roof as well as doors that can easily be taken off, Ford said. Four-door models come standard with a cloth soft top. Two-door vehicles come with a standard three-section removable roof system.
The Bronco Sport will be powered by a 1.5-liter EcoBoost engine with a targeted 181 horsepower and 190 pound-foot of torque or a 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine projected with 245 horsepower and 275 pound-foot of torque. Both engines are paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission.
The Bronco will come standard with a 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine expected to deliver 270 horsepower and 310 pound-foot of torque. A 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6 engine projected at 310 horsepower and 400 pound-foot of torque also will be available. The engines are combined with a seven-speed manual transmission or 10-speed automatic transmission.
The Bronco Sport will be produced at the automaker’s factory in Hermosillo Sonora, Mexico. The Bronco will be produced at a plant in Michigan. Year of icons
Using the Bronco name on several vehicles is part of a larger plan by Ford CEO and President Jim Hackett to leverage the company’s most recognized and iconic brands to lead its $11 billion restructuring.
“It’s a really big product year. I would say an unprecedented product year,” Galhotra said. “We are building on products that are iconic.”
Ford last month unveiled the next generation of its F-150 pickup, including a new hybrid model, and announced plans to resurrect a well-known performance model of the Mustang called the Mach 1. It’s also using the “Mach” name for the Mustang Mach-E, an all-electric crossover that’s expected to go on sale later this year. An all-electric version of the F-150 also is scheduled to be released in the next two years.
Mark Grueber, Bronco consumer marketing manager, declined to comment on any potential all-electric or hybrid versions of the Bronco.
Ford’s Pericak said one of the biggest challenges for his “icons” team is balancing out the history of such well-known vehicles with more modern design elements and new tech-savvy features.
“The pressure is immense. It’s huge,” he said. “It’s a constant battle to find the balance between leveraging the fantastic and rich heritage that we have with a lot of these nameplates but not living in the past. That would be a mistake.”
For the Bronco, that included keeping classic design elements but adding useful features such as a new off-road navigation system, large interior screens and up to seven driver-selectable modes: normal, eco, sport, slippery and sand as well as mud or rock crawl modes for off-road driving.
“We’re going to separate ourselves a bit,” Pericak said regarding Jeep. “We’re not afraid of competition. It’s about time we shake this up a bit.”
Top-end models with additional features and equipment can top $60,000.
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WTF!
The OJ special will be the Bruno Mali/Kabar limited edition Bronco in white only. The top will flip open like a pez dispenser.
I’ll keep my jalopy Willys CJ5.
Die hard 4 runner fan says, meh.
Pretty cool looking but I think I like the ultra boxiness of the current Jeeps better.
Last Ford I had was a 1994 Ford Explorer. Bought it brand new. Transmission gave out at 80k. A friend bought a 2005 Mustang. Trans gave out at 90k. No thanks.
I now have a 2002 Toyota Sequoia with 220k and a 2009 Acura TSX with 205k and both run beautifully. No major repairs ever. The usual tires, brakes, battery, timing belt etc.
I don’t think we will ever see “less computerization” of cars anytime soon, especially when millennials will be demanding 12” LCD Displays in their cars and more gizmos that break after the 3 year factory warranty.
These cars are going to be super expensive to maintain after year 5 ish, just because all of that electronic crap will fail and finding replacements will be impossible
These are one of the reasons I bought some Ford stock.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ford-blends-tech-nostalgia-2021-001506448.html
You mean Fiats......
Jeeps are basically Fiats with a Jeep stamped on them
First, they will not only be competing with Jeep, but also with a well established, deeply rooted market for after market products and modifications. I doubt more than 10% of Wranglers, Wrangler Unlimiteds or Gladiators on the road are as sold at the dealership without the addition of some aftermarket item(s), suspension modification, etc. that makes the vehicle uniquely the driver's own. Ford fans will have a lot of catching up to do in this area, but hopefully will drive some innovation for us Jeep fanboyz.
Second, I have to imagine the Ford marketing people have done their homework, but we'll see what demographic they play to. I think serious off-roaders will largely stick to Jeep out of brand loyalty and established reputation; certainly there will be some Ford fans who push the competition in this area, but I suspect their numbers will be limited. The soccer moms and mall crawlers who buy Jeeps merely as another SUV do so for "the look" and nothing will compete with a Jeep in this area. The major drawback of the Wrangler and Wrangler unlimited as family SUVs has generally been interior cargo space, and if Ford pushes any advantage here as a selling point, it may draw some of this crowd, but in doing so, risks slighting the reputation as a serious off road capable vehicle.
It will be interesting to watch the rivalry and competition play out.
Top-end Wranglers easily top $50k.
Top-end Grand Cherokees cross the $60k mark.
The best vehicle I ever had was a Ford AND the worst vehicle I ever had was a Ford. I had a Ford Escape for 10 years, put over 150,000 hard miles on it and never had one mechanical issue and never did one single thing to it other than oil changes and other regular maintenance. But back in late 1990's I bought a Ford Taurus station wagon, first new car I ever owned. Nothing but problems, spent as much time in the shop as on the road (thankfully under warranty). In three years it blew two head gaskets, the transmission went out, the power steering failed, and alternator died. As soon as my warranty ran out I traded that lemon in as fast as possible.
I currently have a Range Rover, more expensive than the Escape, but it's five years old and hasn't had any issues with it either.
Jeep needs a competitor. This looks attractive. Jeep is dated and this looks much more up to date.
“Will they offer a white, low-speed special edition?”
My Jeep Gladiator actually has a rock crawler speed control feature adjustable in 1 MPH increments.
The initial Ford Bronco base price in 1966 was $2,194.
That would be $17,361.99 in 2020 dollars.
Knock off $10K in extras, and maybe it will sell as well as the 1960s.
But $30K base price? Too much.
Hey, I think it looks pretty good. I was never a big fan of the Bronco, but I could see why people liked it because they liked the way it looked. I did, too, but... I’m with the person who said, “Bite me once and you’re not going to get a second chance,” or words to that effect. ‘Course, I realize now I was perhaps being a little unfair to Ford buying one of their 10-year-old cars and driving it everywhere I went with the pedal to the medal and speed shifting it all the way right at redline, lol. But, hey, I was 17 and expected a lot out of my cars. I realize now you don’t always get what you want and you don’t always get what you expect, but you definitely get what you deserve!
I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE..................
If they really wanted high sales, they would have put in a small V8.
Half of that 30k is union hush money...................
The top of the line Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk comes with a 707 HP Hellcat engine, and starts around $88K. It will blow the doors off a Porsche Cayenne that sells for around $40K more than that.
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