2020 Ford Bronco rumored to be a Wrangler-fighting hybrid
This thing is all over the map, but thankfully, there's still plenty of time before production.
Ford offered next to no details when it announced that the Ford Bronco would return to the US in 2020. But according to some reported details about the new Bronco, Ford itself may be just as confused about it as the rest of us are.
Gear Patrol claims to have held a conversation with a Ford engineer "closely involved with the [Bronco] project," in which that engineer revealed several details about the new Bronco, which will be based on the same steel frame as the upcoming 2019 Ranger midsize pickup.
Word on the street is that the Bronco will bear a close resemblance to the Troller, a Brazilian-market SUV that also gets its frame from the Ranger. Some at Ford are concerned that the Bronco will look too similar to its chief competitor, the Jeep Wrangler. Unlike the Wrangler, the Bronco will allegedly only come with four doors, because there's apparently "no market for [a two-door Bronco]."
In case you're wondering what the Ford Troller looks like, here it is. It does look a lot like the Wrangler...
If you're hoping for lots of sun, it will reportedly come with a three-piece removable roof. If you're hoping for some serious rock-crawling action, think again -- there are apparently some concerns with the Ranger's frame. It'll still be able to wade through about 20 inches of water, though.
Power is reported to come from a 2.7-liter turbocharged V6, which could put out up to 325 horsepower, as it does in the midsize Fusion sedan. There will allegedly be a hybrid in the Bronco's future, which makes sense, as Ford has already discussed adding hybrid variants of the F-150 and Mustang, too.
None of that really seems problematic, but actually creating the Bronco sounds like a nightmare. Gear Patrol's source paints a picture of infighting and death by committee. Suggestions are apparently coming from every corner of the company, from marketing and management to engineering and R&D. It's already reportedly in its third design phase, when most cars only require one.
Ford declined to comment on the speculation to Gear Patrol. In an email, a Ford spokesman told Roadshow that more information on Bronco would be available closer to its launch, including "how it will meet the needs of our most demanding off-road enthusiasts."
Of course, there's a chance Gear Patrol's source could either be wrong or lying, but it'll be more than a year until we know for sure.
