When the sixth-gen 2021 Ford Bronco was revealed a few months ago, everyone already knew what sort of customer it was built to appeal to – those who enjoy hardcore off-roading. The Ford Bronco can be a serious rock climber, high-speed desert blaster, and pretty much everything in between. But what about its little brother, the Ford Bronco Sport? What sort of customer is it looking to attract?
Bronco Sport is “for those customers who are just really looking to get to the outdoors,” Jovina Young, Bronco Sport marketing manager, told Ford Authority executive editor, Alex Luft, in a recent interview. “There isn’t a lot of choice for them in a small SUV space that has the capability that the Bronco Sport offers.”
“But I think we’re going to be bringing in a lot of people in, especially because all of the consumer experience-level things we have in the vehicle – like the human-centered design that we took. We’re also going to appeal to a lot of outdoorsy camping people, when they see all those features we talked about, like the cargo management features – it will really appear to this customer subset as well.”
Like the regular Bronco, the Bronco Sport is designed to offer excellent off-road capability, durability, and the latest technology features, and it does all that in a small, easy-to-live-with package. All Bronco Sport models come equipped with standard four-wheel-drive and independent front and rear suspensions.
The Ford Bronco Sport is available in five trim levels – Base ($26,660 starting MSRP), Big Bend ($28,160), Outer Banks ($32,160), Badlands ($32,660), and First Edition ($38,500).
Two engine options are offered with the new Bronco Sport, depending on which model buyers choose. Base, Big Bend, and Outer Banks models come equipped with Ford’s 1.5L EcoBoost engine that’s targeted to produce 181 horsepower and 190 pound-feet of torque. Badlands and First Edition models are powered by the 2.0-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine that produces a targeted best-in-class 245 horsepower and 275 pound-feet of torque.
Both engines are backed up by Ford’s 8-speed automatic transmission. On Badlands and First Edition models, the transmission also comes with SelectShift technology and steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters.
Job 1 Bronco Sport production began at the Ford Hermosillo Assembly Plant in Mexico on October 26th, 2020, and deliveries are scheduled to begin later this year.
We’ll have much more on the new Bronco Sport very soon, so be sure to subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford Bronco news, Bronco Sport news, and continuous Ford news coverage.
Comments
I am an avid outdoor person and my family and I remotely camp for the whole summer (I am Retired). and also advise rugged camping for magazines and Boy Scouts including winter camping. I own a Ford F-150 with a small lift. I AM NOT A ROCK CLIMBER, by choice, but also travel on freeways and this is what I question about the BRONKO. Will it comfortably and safely keep up with with 65 mph heavy traffic?
I see a huge design flaw in the Bronco Sport pictures that have been shown. It’s the antenna sticking up on the back. It is going to interfere with loading anything large on top of the roof. I am looking to replace my 1986 Jeep Cherokee XJ that I routinely load a ten foot inflatable boat on for taking to remote locations. The roof rack on the Cherokee is perfect for that. It’s long and wide. I would not be able to load the boat on a vehicle with an antenna standing up on the back. That antenna is a deal breaker. I hope Ford realizes that, and has an option to resolve that issue. A good usable roof rack is extremely important to a lot of folks that travel to the back country. That is one thing I was hoping Ford was going to put a lot of thought into. For all Bronco models.
Very good point,I myself totally overlooked this flaw. Ford needs to get rid of this style antenna on all of its vehicles ASAP!