After the 24 years of hiatus, Ford has revived its popular nameplate, the Bronco boasting the retro-style and all good features of the Wrangler plus some of its own. This year’s biggest and most anticipated launch, the 2021 Ford Bronco comes with two- and four-door body styles. It also has a new variant, the Ford Bronco Sport.
The body-on-frame SUV boasts Dana axles on the front and rear, with a MacPherson strut independent front suspension and a solid rear axle with coil springs. For enhanced offroading capabilities, the company will install long-travel Bilstein dampers with end-stop control valves to ease the inflexible off-road compression.
To make it a perfect off-roader, Ford is offering part-time and full-time four-wheel drive with a 2-speed transfer case, Spicer Performa-TraK front and rear locking differentials, 35-inch tires with Beadlock-capable wheels, skid plates, a low crawling ratio, a disconnecting sway bar, an array of terrain modes, and even off-road navigation. Owners can even remove the top and doors.
The two-door Bronco has three sections (two up front, one in the rear) with standard hardtop but you can also have a removable section at the rear. The four-door Bronco comes with four-section roofs with removable quarter windows with an option of cloth soft top. Moreover, you can store the frameless removable doors in bags and carry them in the vehicle.
Ford says the Bronco comes with the best-in-class ground clearance of up to 11.6 inches, front and rear suspension travel that is 17% more than its immediate rival, a crawl ratio of 94.75:1, water fording ability of up to 33.5 inches, and breakover departure angles of 29 and 37.2 degrees, respectively.
The company also says its 4- and 6-cylinder torque and fuel economy beat its rivals by a good margin. The 2021 Ford Bronco carries a 2.3L turbo-4 good for around 270 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque. A more powerful 2.7L turbo V-6 will pump out about 310 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque. The fuel economy figures are a mystery yet. The make it a highly capable offroader, Ford has introduced a terrain management system, known as, G.O.A.T. (Goes Over Any Terrain). It included Normal, Eco, Sport, Slippery, Mud, Sand, Baja, and Rock Crawl modes.
The typical drivetrain features part-time, shift-on-the-fly 4WD system while the 7-speed manual transmission and the full-time four-wheel-drive system are accessible with 94.75:1 crawl ratio. A 10-speed automatic transmission is optional.
The 2021 Ford Bronco will hit the roads next Spring wearing a starting price tag of $29,995 (including $1,495 for destination). The prices for higher trims are very high. For reference, the two-door First Edition starts at $59,305 (excluding destination). To satiate the needs of different offroad enthusiasts, Ford is offering six models, and we can call all of them the ultimate off-roaders except the standard trim level.
The variants include Base, Big Bend, Black Diamond, Outer Banks, Wildtrak, and Badlands. To boost Bronco’s off road abilities, you can select the Sasquatch package, which boasts full-time 4WD, locking front and rear axles, high-clearance suspension, and fender flares, 17-inch Beadlock-capable wheels, and a high-performance suspension with the aforesaid Bilstein dampers. Ford is also readying a Launch Edition underpinned on the Badlands. This variant will be limited to only 3,500 units.
The salient attributes of the Bronco encompass:
- Heavy-duty bumpers
- Water-resistant marine-grade vinyl upholstery
- Locking rear differential for the Black Diamond
- LED headlights and taillights and glossy trim for the Outer Banks
- The V-6 and 35-inch tires with beadlock-capable wheels for the Wildtrak
- The disconnecting front stabilizer bar, performance suspension, and locking front and rear differentials for the Badlands.
That’s not all! The automaker is offering over 200 accessories to customize your off-roader. You can go for donut doors, exposed front and rear tow hooks, underbody shield through a front bash plate; engine, transmission, transfer case, and side rock rails.
The company will share full pricing information closer to the launch, but you can book the 2021 Ford Bronco by depositing $100 on Ford’s website.
Source: MotorAuthority
Images: Motor1