Photo: Ford
Pushed back from the original March premiere, the 2021 Bronco will finally be shown in the flesh “in July” according to the Ford Motor Company. “The exact date and time of the reveal will be communicated later,” reads an e-mailed statement.
Considering that the Bronco Sport – which features the unibody vehicle architecture from the Escape – was supposed to enter production on July 13th, chances are we won’t have to wait too long for the off-road twins to shed their secrets. The compact crossover utility vehicle, however, will enter production in September.
As opposed to Michigan for the mid-size Bronco, the Sport will be made in Mexico at the Hermosillo plant. On that note, try to guess how long has it been since Ford confirmed the revival of the off-road icon? One year, two? Nope; the official announcement was made back in January '17.
It should be highlighted that “this will be a virtual reveal” according to the Bronco6G forum administrator, which is a bit of a downer when you think about it. The question is, why couldn’t Ford take the veils off in a livestream as early as March 2020? Timing is the answer you’re looking for, and the sales figures for new vehicles in the U.S. in the past two months should bring the point home.
While the Sport is pretty much confirmed with the 1.5-liter EcoBoost three-cylinder and 2.0-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder turbo and an eight-speed automatic transmission, the larger of the two Broncos hasn’t shown what lurks under the hood. Some say the 2.3-liter EcoBoost will be the entry-level engine, the 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6 would be an option, and the Bronco Raptor – if it will ever happen – would get the 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 with 400-ish horsepower.
Even more intriguing is the seven-speed manual transmission rumored since eons ago. If the mid-size Bronco does get a granny-gear crawl ratio, Ford won’t miss the chance to take a dig at the Jeep Wrangler’s six-speed box.
There are three potential updates to the JL and JLU that could steal the Bronco’s thunder for the 2021 model year (but more likely later than that), starting with the Tornado straight-six turbo engine. As for the other two, don’t forget the Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid is also in the pipeline along with the Wrangler EV. The latter has been described by global brand president Christian Meunier as “the most capable Jeep ever.”
As opposed to Michigan for the mid-size Bronco, the Sport will be made in Mexico at the Hermosillo plant. On that note, try to guess how long has it been since Ford confirmed the revival of the off-road icon? One year, two? Nope; the official announcement was made back in January '17.
It should be highlighted that “this will be a virtual reveal” according to the Bronco6G forum administrator, which is a bit of a downer when you think about it. The question is, why couldn’t Ford take the veils off in a livestream as early as March 2020? Timing is the answer you’re looking for, and the sales figures for new vehicles in the U.S. in the past two months should bring the point home.
While the Sport is pretty much confirmed with the 1.5-liter EcoBoost three-cylinder and 2.0-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder turbo and an eight-speed automatic transmission, the larger of the two Broncos hasn’t shown what lurks under the hood. Some say the 2.3-liter EcoBoost will be the entry-level engine, the 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6 would be an option, and the Bronco Raptor – if it will ever happen – would get the 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 with 400-ish horsepower.
Even more intriguing is the seven-speed manual transmission rumored since eons ago. If the mid-size Bronco does get a granny-gear crawl ratio, Ford won’t miss the chance to take a dig at the Jeep Wrangler’s six-speed box.
There are three potential updates to the JL and JLU that could steal the Bronco’s thunder for the 2021 model year (but more likely later than that), starting with the Tornado straight-six turbo engine. As for the other two, don’t forget the Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid is also in the pipeline along with the Wrangler EV. The latter has been described by global brand president Christian Meunier as “the most capable Jeep ever.”
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