Bronco looks legit

[lrtexasman]

Agreed, suspension set up is a big part of the reason as well as the very low payload rating (low tongue weight). Ford did not even bother with a rear sway bar. It’s obviously not the Powertrain as the Ranger gets 7500 lbs and the F150 uses the 2.7. I think they targeted the wrangler and didn’t worry about the JT

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[smlobx]

Agreed, suspension set up is a big part of the reason as well as the very low payload rating (low tongue weight). Ford did not even bother with a rear sway bar. It’s obviously not the Powertrain as the Ranger gets 7500 lbs and the F150 uses the 2.7. I think they targeted the wrangler and didn’t worry about the JT

I think they have the JT in there sights as there will be a pick up version of the Bronco rolling out maybe within a year. There have already been spy shots of it on the road.

 

[jimbom]

I think they have the JT in there sights as there will be a pick up version of the Bronco rolling out maybe within a year. There have already been spy shots of it on the road.

It's a UNIBODY truck. Not legit!

https://www.motor1.com/news/506745/ford-maverick-bronco-sport-photos/

 

[OVERLORD]

It's a UNIBODY truck. Not legit!

https://www.motor1.com/news/506745/ford-maverick-bronco-sport-photos/

The Maverick is their small pick-up based on the Escape platform, same as the Bronco S. Not the full size bronco.

 

[lrtexasman]

I wonder what changes would have to be made to the full size bronco to up the towing. I have only seen renders (attached below) of the bronco truck, which is forecasted for 2025 (we will likely have a redesigned JT nearing production by then) I do know the 2023 Ranger will be built alongside the Bronco and share the drive-train. Guessing the Tremor Ranger and Raptor Ranger will give Ford some pause before introducing the Bronco truck.

 

[Alligatorgun]

I wonder what changes would have to be made to up the towing. I do know the 2023 Ranger will be built alongside the Bronco and share the drive-train. Guessing the Tremor Ranger and Raptor Ranger will give Ford some pause before introducing the Bronco truck.

They have too many trucks as it is…
I’m thinking along your lines…no case for a Bronco pickup.

 

[jimbom]

They have too many trucks as it is…
I’m thinking along your lines…no case for a Bronco pickup.

I agree. They've gone from no truck smaller than the F-150 to now include the Ranger, Maverick and possibly the Bronco, plus any electric versions? Seems to me the market hasn't changed that drastically.

 

[MPMB]

I agree. They've gone from no truck smaller than the F-150 to now include the Ranger, Maverick and possibly the Bronco, plus any electric versions? Seems to me the market hasn't changed that drastically.

Boomers are going away. Younger generations realize they don't require a full-size pickup. They want the comfortable driving experience. Let's not forget the global marketplace, too. More urban density makes full-size vehicles difficult to navigate in those areas (Top Gear had an episode on that).

And the environmental pressures? Higher oil prices are driving the need for better MPGs, and a "smaller" truck requires less raw materials to make. If profit margins are the same, why wouldn't manufacturers build smaller trucks? Smaller trucks also are lighter, so freight costs are lower (ie, less fuel to haul). It might be minimal, but every little bit helps. That's why you see semi trailers with those aero deflectors underneath - saves truckers a lot of fuel. The math adds up.

Aside: Say a trucker saves 1mpg when hauling 8 Rangers instead of 8 F150s. 2000 mile trip at 7mpg. That's 285.7 gallons. At $3.50/gal, it's a $999.95 fuel bill. With that extra 1mpg, the fuel bill is $875, a savings of $124.95. Ford sold 101,000 (and change) in 2020. Say that 25% of those had to be delivered via a 2000 mile trip. 25,250 trucks at 8/load is 3157 trips. That's an overall fuel savings of $394,373. This is just a simple example (and likely incorrect) of what the bean counters are looking at.

Outside of towing, most truck owners rarely need the capacity of a full-size truck. If they do, they can rent one from U-Haul or Home Depot. Or they have significant disposable income (like my parents).

For me, I didn't want a full-size p/u as driving around town and commuting (read - city parking) would suck. I had an Expedition. It was tiring in small parking lots/drive thrus/etc. It just felt too big.

Smaller trucks like Tacoma/Ranger/Colorado/JT are right in my sweet spot of needs.

 

[bleda2002]

Ford is definitely driven by the bean counters. My F150 was full of clear spots where they saved a few cents here or a dollar there by going downscale. It seems insignificant, until you realize they sell a million+ a year so saving even just a few bucks by going cheap makes sense at scale.

 

[lrtexasman]

I can’t stand 7 out of 10 new F150 doos are bowed out. The clearance tolerances on their body panels has gone to hell since they switched to all aluminum body panels.

 

[DocMike]

I'm sure the Bronco is great. I just am not a fan of all the electronic gizmos. That's my opinion.
Seems like the new Bronco relies on all kinds of fancy things to off road. That stuff breaks and frankly I am not smart enough to fix it. Not to mention, it gives a false sense of security. People will buy it and rely on it to do things that skill and common sense should be primary. Will it cause Jeep to innovate? Yes. Capitalism. Competition breeds innovation. Look forward to watching both platforms develop.

Yes IFS is great. I got blown off the road by a TRD doing 100+ in the mountains. I like my slow and loose JT. Got other cars I can drive fast.

I have wheeled with Tacos. Nice people. But this guy needed a spotter on things my Sport S just did. He is flexing like mad. Wheel in the air all that. Did he make it? Yes. Does he want a JT now? Yes.
And frankly this is not hard core rock crawling. Not going to claim that it is. Hell one of the guys on the trip sent me this video. I was behind him. Just a Saturday afternoon jacking around with cool people on a trail. I'm a big fan of build it a bit above what you intend to do. Then you can enjoy your off road time with ease. People were asking if I had lockers...no. This trip, not even a disconnected sway bar. The Sport JT just happily did everything I asked with ease. I'm old and not about to hardcore rock crawl my DD. But I like doing what I do with grace and ease. If I want to do nasty stuff, I'd build a buggy.

 

[Aonarch]

The Bronco is built on the new Ranger platform. Which I guess because the Bronco came out first, the Ranger is technically built on the Bronco platform.

The new Ranger that is coming out, maybe next year, could be stylized like a Bronco. Either way it will be on the same platform like the JT is on the JL platform.

 

[MattK]

Bring on the competition! It only benefits us buyers. I like the Bronco and the option to go straight to 35s, mirrors mounted to the body instead of the doors, the three section hardtop makes it easier to get on and off. Jeep will take notice hopefully.

The one thing Jeep could do immediately is change the hard top design. Why are the side panels only removable on the sky one-touch version of the Wrangler? Why aren't the removable on all hard top versions? This would make it so much easier to remove the hard top or run it in a hard top safari mode.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

I have NOT read the entire thread but here's my $.02 anyway.

I'm not a Ford guy but have always loved the look of the '66-'77 Broncos. I think Ford totally missed with the look of these. They remind me of the swing & miss they tried to sell as a rebirth of the Thunderbird a few years ago. Just awful in terms of styling. Based on that I wouldn't even bother to consider its technical capability.

 

[Alligatorgun]

I have NOT read the entire thread but here's my $.02 anyway.

I'm not a Ford guy but have always loved the look of the '66-'77 Broncos. I think Ford totally missed with the look of these. They remind me of the swing & miss they tried to sell as a rebirth of the Thunderbird a few years ago. Just awful in terms of styling. Based on that I wouldn't even bother to consider its technical capability.

That‘s totally subjective, obviously. They have 190,000 converted reservations so you’re in the minority fer sure.

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