Does Ford Need A WRANGLER Competitor? Is It Time To Resurrect The BRONCO?

Way back in 2004, Ford showed off a concept that was rough, tough and it oozed masculinity. Making its debut at the 2004 Detroit Auto Show, the Bronco certainly had presence and it was actually FAR ahead of its time.

It boasted a 2.0-liter turbo diesel motor and it had a dual-clutch six-speed transmission. Of course moving this rock crawler along would be a four-wheel drive system.

BUT it never came.

Imagine if Ford did build the Bronco Concept before the 2008 - 2009 gas spike and macroeconomic downturn that created significant demand destruction for its gas guzzling sport-utility vehicles and trucks? Perhaps then it could have isolated itself from that disaster.

NOW we're bringing up the need for a Wrangler competitor because when you think about it, who does compete with it these days? I guess one could say the Nissan Xterra and Toyota FJ but I think those vehicles have — more or less — faded from the limelight.

From my perspective, a domestic automaker with a storied nameplate AND looks as badass as the original concept would make some noise in the marketplace.

All of this considered, is it time to resurrect the Ford Bronco to go head-to-head with the Jeep Wrangler?

trmckin - 3/31/2013 10:45:27 PM

+1 Boost

yes please. Don't screw it up and make it hardtop only like the FJ.

jeffgall - 3/31/2013 11:25:14 PM

+2 Boost

As much as I would like to see it, given the mixed success of the FJ Cruiser, not sure it would be a big hit.

trmckin - 3/31/2013 11:49:37 PM

+2 Boost

Gotta be able to go topless or it'd see similar results.

MorePower - 4/1/2013 1:16:38 AM

+1 Boost

If it looks like the concept included in the post, HELL YEAH!

With the recent redesign of the escape, Ford needs a more "rugged", small vehicle like the Wrangler. The biggest hurtle is making the damn thing attractive: financially and in appearance.

ParadoX - 4/1/2013 10:11:53 AM

+1 Boost

I don't really see a market for it. It could steal sales from the Escape. Most Wranglers never leave the pavement, it is just a "cool" looking compact SUV to most people. Ford should focus on building the Escape's market share, not introducing another model.

trmckin - 4/1/2013 11:38:28 AM

+1 Boost

I've seen that "most jeeps never leave the pavement" comment many times before but how is that even monitored or even accurate? I know for me, I don't necessarily go rock crawling in our SUV but we see a lot of snow and use 4wd on a regular basis. Especially during ski season. I guess my point is, for people like myself that live in the snow belt, a jeep is a decent option. You have a 4wd SUV that can be a convertible in the warm months and get you almost anywhere in the winter months. While jeep advertises it's rock crawling capabilities, it's 4wd systems also handle nasty weather conditions well. If done right, Ford could compete. Especially with their new engine lineup. Turbo's would sound nice with the top down.