The new 2021 Ford Bronco has been finally revealed, reviving one of the most celebrated nameplates in the history of the American carmaker.
The new Ford Bronco returns as both a 2-door and -for the first time- a 4-door variant and will sit on top of a new family of rugged off-road models that includes the smaller Bronco Sport.
Ford says the new Bronco was designed for function, not fashion, with the company “quietly stalking the forums” for years to find out what customers want from a new Bronco. They even went as far as benchmarking pretty unconventional vehicles, such as the Polaris RZR, in order to make sure that the new Bronco would become the leader in the “rugged utility” segment.
Let’s start from the basics: the new Bronco offers best-in-class ground clearance, at 11.6 inches (294 mm), and best-in-class water fording capability, at 33.5 inches (851 mm). The maximum breakover angle is 29 degrees with the departure angle at 37.2 degrees. You’ll also be able to order one with 35-inch tires straight from the factory for the first time in the segment, which is something you must opt for if you want the aforementioned figures.
The 2021 Ford Bronco will become available with two Eco-Boost engines: a base 2.3-liter four-cylinder with an expected 270 HP and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of torque and a 2.7-liter V6 with 310 HP and 400 lb-ft (542 Nm) of torque.
Transmission options will include a new seven-speed manual featuring a crawler gear as standard only on four-cylinder models and a 10-speed automatic. Customers will also get to choose between two 4×4 systems; the base one features a two-speed electronic shift-on-the-fly transfer case while the optional advanced system comes with a two-speed electromechanical transfer case with an automatic on-demand 4H engagement.
If you mean serious off-road business and want the best-in-class crawler-gear ratio of 94.75:1, then you have to opt for the manual four-cylinder Bronco and the advanced 4×4 system.
Making its debut with the new Ford Bronco is the company’s so-called Trail Toolbox, a range of technologies to help you in your off-road adventures. This includes the Trail Control, which is low-speed cruise control for driving on trails, the Trail Turn Assist, which tightens the turning radius off-road with the help of torque vectoring, and the Trail One-Pedal Drive, which helps the driver be more precise and confident during rock crawling.
Both body styles of the new Ford Bronco will feature segment-exclusive frameless doors than can be easier to remove than the model’s main antagonist, the Jeep Wrangler. The longer Bronco can even store the removed four doors onboard in special protective bags. The side mirrors are cowl-mounted, meaning that they stay in their place when the doors are removed.
Two-door Bronco models will feature an easily removable three-section hard top while four-door variants will feature a soft top with four removable sections as standard. The latter can be optioned with both a soft top and a hardtop. Ford claims that each roof panel can be removed by one person just by unlocking the latches from the interior.
In addition, customers will be given tons of options for personalization that includes things like different types of doors, modular steel bumpers with integrated winches, various front grille designs, roof racks, LED light bars, and even a range of fender flares
Another highlight inside the new Bronco is Ford’s latest SYNC4 infotainment system, which drives a 12-inch touchscreen display (an 8-inch display is standard) and features not only over-the-air updates but off-road navigation as well. The system also uses the 360-degree camera for off-road spotter views to help the driver’s visibility in demanding scenarios like rock crawling.
The new Ford Bronco will feature an exclusive Terrain Management System with up to seven “G.O.A.T.” modes to choose from: Normal, Eco, Sport, Slippery, and Sand, with Baja, Mud/Ruts and RockCrawl for off-road driving. In case you were wondering, G.O.A.T. stands for Goes Over Any Terrain, a goal that was first set during the development of the original Bronco.
Both the 2-door and 4-door Bronco models are traditional body-on-frame SUVs, using a fully-boxed, high-strength steel chassis. This enables the new Bronco to also offer best-in-class suspension travel, with 17 percent more travel front and rear “than its closest competitor”.
At the front, we get a fully independent suspension with a Dana AdvanTEK differential for better control and comfort while at the rear we get a Dana 44 AdvanTEK solid-axle design with coil springs and five locating links for strength and off-road control. Both axles can be optioned with Spicer Performa-TRAK locking e-diffs. Speaking of options, the new Ford Bronco will also be able to be fitted with a set of long-travel, position-sensitive Bilstein dampers with end-stop valves and a segment-exclusive optional semi-active hydraulic stabilizer bar than can be disconnected for maximum articulation.
“We created the Bronco family to elevate every aspect of off-road adventure and equipped them with class-leading chassis hardware and exclusive technologies to raise the bar in the rugged 4×4 segment and take people further into the wild,” said Jim Farley, Ford CEO. “They’re built with the toughness of an F-Series truck and performance spirit of Mustang –and come wrapped in one of the most stunning and functional off-road designs that’s true to the original Bronco design DNA.”
