Could this Ford Bronco concept shown a decade ago could serve as a template for a new SUV.
They’re baaaack!!!
After plenty of hints, rumors, innuendos and leaked production plans, Ford officials confirmed today in Detroit that its bringing back the Ford Bronco SUV and Ford Ranger truck. Both will be built at the Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan.
“We’ve heard our customers loud and clear. They want a new generation of vehicles that are incredibly capable yet fun to drive,” said Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of The Americas.
“Ranger is for truck buyers who want an affordable, functional, rugged and maneuverable pickup that’s Built Ford Tough. Bronco will be a no-compromise midsize 4×4 utility for thrill seekers who want to venture way beyond the city.”
The Bronco will return in 2020. It’s long production run ended in 1996 when it was succeeded by the Ford Expedition. No word yet on how large a vehicle it will be when it returns, but the automaker did show off a concept version during the Detroit Auto Show in 2004.
(UAW official confirms return of Bronco, Ranger. For more, Click Here.)
Specifics are vague, though Ford revealed a very angular Bronco concept at the 2015 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Some fan sites have suggested the maker might base the new version on the Ford Everest sold in Australia.
The Bronco was a two-door full-sized SUV and the concept model stayed true to that heritage, although it was a much more militaristic looking vehicle.
The Ranger, which is likely to be upsized to a midsized truck like GM’s popular Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon, is expected to hit showrooms in 2019. Ford stopped making the truck in the U.S. in 2011. However, it lived on in other parts of the world as a midsized pickup.
Midsize trucks, or at least less-than-full-sized models, have been successful in recent years in the U.S. Aside from the recently introduced models from GM, the Toyota Tacoma and Nissan Frontier have captured a large and loyal audience. Even Nissan’s new Titan full-size and the newly crowned North American Truck of the Year Honda Ridgeline are not quite as large as their full-sized American competitors.
(Click Here for details about the Bronco.)
Additionally, Ford Ranger fans in the U.S. have become an increasingly louder chorus calling for the truck’s return to the U.S. market. They appeared to have gotten their wish.