Back when the sixth-generation Ford Bronco launched for the 2021 model year, Bronco and Bronco Sport chief designer, Paul Wraith, told Ford Authority that the automaker was open to the idea of offering a right-hand drive version of the SUV for other markets, though he admitted that the company wasn’t focused on that at the time. Then, last September, Ford CEO Jim Farley implied that he thought such a vehicle was “worth at try,” but for now at least, we have yet to see any concrete evidence that a right-hand drive Bronco is actually in the works. Now, new rumblings suggest that a RHD Ford Bronco Raptor remains a possibility, too.
According to CarExpert, Kay Hart, president of Ford’s International Markets Group (IMG), recently admitted that there’s quite a bit of demand for vehicles like the Ford Bronco Raptor in places like Australia, where folks drive RHD vehicles on the left side of the road. However, there are obviously obstacles standing in the way of actually making such a thing happen. “[Pricing is] definitely not the only limiting factor,” Hart said. “The vehicle is only currently engineered for left-hand drive. That’s the limiting factor, in fairness, is the engineering of it, the time it would take to engineer and then where you would manufacture it.”
“So it’s more the investment to engineer, tool up and manufacture in right-hand drive. I wouldn’t say anything is ever off the cards, but we definitely don’t have anything to confirm at the moment. But it’s something we constantly look at, what’s available in the portfolio and what would work and then whether or not we have an option to do it, it’s the investment that it’s going to take to get it there.”
As Ford Authority previously reported, The Blue Oval plans to continue building right-hand drive vehicles for specific markets, which in many cases have proven successful. The Ford F-150 is a good example of this, as the full-size pickup is currently being imported into Australia and converted to RHD by a third-party company, and in spite of its lofty price tag, has sold in strong quantities thus far. If Ford does ultimately opt to offer the Bronco or Bronco Raptor in Australia, it previously admitted that it would likely follow that same sort of process, too.
Comment
Since the Bronco is based on the T6 platform (same as the Ranger) and the Ranger is already built RHD; I don’t see what the big issue is…
Yes the dash needs to be flipped, but seriously why is this such a big issue for Ford when it’s not for other global manufacturers? (e.g. Toyota – yeah, I know Japan drives on the left)
With viable markets in Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Africa, as well as Great Britain; IDK why Ford doesn’t take the design flexibility into account when designing their trucks. Crazy expensive way for Ford to do business as customization must cost a fortune compared to building it at the factory.
Maybe Jim Farley needs to look further into that.