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About Bronco

For a quarter century the Ford Bronco existed mostly in memory: the boxy 1960s original that collectors now chase at auction, the big full-size trucks of the 1970s through the 1990s, and, unavoidably, a certain white Bronco on a Los Angeles freeway in 1994. Ford killed the nameplate in 1996 and let Jeep have the off-road icon business to itself. When the new Bronco finally arrived for the 2021 model year, the reservations rolled in like a flash flood, and dealers spent the next couple of years managing waiting lists and markups.

The modern Bronco was built to beat the Wrangler at its own game. It comes in two-door and four-door forms with removable doors and roof panels, rides on a body-on-frame chassis with an independent front suspension that makes it more civilized on pavement, and offers trail-focused tricks such as the Sasquatch package and selectable drive modes. The Bronco Raptor turned it into a wide-bodied desert racer, while more recent off-road trims borrow Raptor hardware for less money. Critics note wind noise, fussy roofs and prices that climb fast as the options pile on.

Its sibling, the Bronco Sport, is a different animal: a smaller, crossover-based model built in Mexico that brings the Bronco look and genuine light-trail ability to buyers who never plan to remove a door. Together they have made the badge one of Ford's most profitable, and quarterly sales battles with the Jeep Wrangler have become a spectator sport. Reports of a Lincoln-branded luxury version aimed at the Mercedes G-Class suggest Ford sees even more room for the shape.

The Bronco story keeps branching. New trims and special editions arrive regularly, comparison tests against the Wrangler and Toyota 4Runner fill the magazines, and the rumored Lincoln version would carry the badge into an entirely new price bracket. Owners follow recall notices and resale values closely, SEMA builders treat the Bronco as a blank canvas, and vintage examples keep fetching remarkable sums from collectors who remember the first time around, when a Bronco was simply a small, tough truck with a removable top.