- Thread starter
- #1
So after seeing the reveal, most of us are left with some thoughts regarding the new info. To start, this thing looks absolutely incredible. The design is way better than expected even after seeing all the leaks and renders. It is certainly -- subjectively -- the best-looking SUV on the market by a wide margin.
But unfortunately, it's not all good. After teasing the vehicle for SIXTEEN YEARS, Ford announced a reveal, had everyone, including myself, wetting their pants with excitement, leaked info a little at a time to build interest as much as possible... then instead of an actual reveal, they showed a commercial. Since the reveal date was announced, I've had a viewing party planned to watch the reveal and everyone was stoked. The actual viewing party was held virtually due to the commie flu, but that worked out pretty well because we were able to fill a discord channel with leaked images, renders, specs, and wish lists to drool over. We counted down to 8pm and as the countdown passed ten seconds I'm pretty sure one guy fainted. Maybe it was me. There were tons of "oohs" and "aahs" during the teaser and everyone kept saying how they couldn't wait until they showed details about one feature or another. The teaser/intro went black... and the stream ended. Literally everyone in attendance asked "is that really it?" There's no way Ford could have dropped the ball harder without cancelling the reveal altogether.
Moving on to features, the commercial did skim over a lot of them lightning-fast and confirmed a whole lot of things we already suspected. They threw a few new surprises in that I can't help feeling might have been a lot more impressive if those features had been shown on screen for more than a nanosecond. The sway bar disconnect is phenomenal. Although many would prefer a solid axle, I get the feeling that few if any will be disappointed in the performance of the Dana IFS, especially after seeing the chassis shots of just how well put-together it really is.
Ford, in a show of blatant disregard for their customer base, has decided to only offer the manual transmission with the four-banger. As for me, I was already mostly set on the 10r80 anyway, but that's a market decision that will turn a lot of customers off the Bronco entirely. Speaking of four-bangers, the engine options are something we already knew, but to hear Ford confirm them is still a little disappointing. To even compete with the Wrangler, you'll have to step up to the "top" engine option -- one which should have been the "base" engine option available only on the stripped-down version. Stepping up to that engine option with no other features will likely push the price of the base model to around $40k.
Which brings me to the biggest weak point of all: Ford has said repeatedly that the Bronco will compete with the Wrangler in price. Instead, Ford has chosen not to offer most of the core offroad features independently of fancy mall-crawler trim packages that no one wants or needs. Want sway bar disconnect? That'll be an extra $20k in electronics, bling, and junk that you will never use. Want the low-ratio locking axles? Ditto. If you want vinyl flooring instead of carpet so that you can hose it out, in most vehicles that's a step down in price. Want vinyl flooring in the Bronco? We can do that, but it'll cost more to get less. Automatic 4x4 engagement? Whip out the checkbook. Lots of new cars come with navigation; would you like that too? Sign here, and follow Hacksaw Jimmy through the double doors to have one arm and one leg removed. Oh, and there's a monthly fee to use the navigation (no, seriously, they're charging to use GPS, read the fine print on the options sheet). Will that be cash, card, or the soul of your first-born? Whoever set the pricing and trim levels on the Bronco should be fired. Out of a cannon, into the sun.
Even considering that the engine options are as mouth-watering as stale french fries and the pricing is nowhere near competitive with Jeep, there's still a chance that I'll be buying a Bronco. It is, however, a smaller chance than before the "reveal" commercial. I was ready to reserve immediately had they surprised us with any V8 or diesel option -- or any one of about a dozen un-announced features on my wish list -- but that didn't happen. With the disappointing reveal, I don't currently have plans to reserve one at all. In fact, I'm kind of thinking of waiting until someone blows up a four-banger with an expired or voided warranty, and snatching it up cheap to drop in a better engine.
I've owned a dozen or so Ford vehicles and liked most of them. Every Ford I've had with a V8 I've loved. I own two right now. There's a lot of brand loyalty there. But Ford just ran the best Jeep commercial I've ever seen.
But unfortunately, it's not all good. After teasing the vehicle for SIXTEEN YEARS, Ford announced a reveal, had everyone, including myself, wetting their pants with excitement, leaked info a little at a time to build interest as much as possible... then instead of an actual reveal, they showed a commercial. Since the reveal date was announced, I've had a viewing party planned to watch the reveal and everyone was stoked. The actual viewing party was held virtually due to the commie flu, but that worked out pretty well because we were able to fill a discord channel with leaked images, renders, specs, and wish lists to drool over. We counted down to 8pm and as the countdown passed ten seconds I'm pretty sure one guy fainted. Maybe it was me. There were tons of "oohs" and "aahs" during the teaser and everyone kept saying how they couldn't wait until they showed details about one feature or another. The teaser/intro went black... and the stream ended. Literally everyone in attendance asked "is that really it?" There's no way Ford could have dropped the ball harder without cancelling the reveal altogether.
Moving on to features, the commercial did skim over a lot of them lightning-fast and confirmed a whole lot of things we already suspected. They threw a few new surprises in that I can't help feeling might have been a lot more impressive if those features had been shown on screen for more than a nanosecond. The sway bar disconnect is phenomenal. Although many would prefer a solid axle, I get the feeling that few if any will be disappointed in the performance of the Dana IFS, especially after seeing the chassis shots of just how well put-together it really is.
Ford, in a show of blatant disregard for their customer base, has decided to only offer the manual transmission with the four-banger. As for me, I was already mostly set on the 10r80 anyway, but that's a market decision that will turn a lot of customers off the Bronco entirely. Speaking of four-bangers, the engine options are something we already knew, but to hear Ford confirm them is still a little disappointing. To even compete with the Wrangler, you'll have to step up to the "top" engine option -- one which should have been the "base" engine option available only on the stripped-down version. Stepping up to that engine option with no other features will likely push the price of the base model to around $40k.
Which brings me to the biggest weak point of all: Ford has said repeatedly that the Bronco will compete with the Wrangler in price. Instead, Ford has chosen not to offer most of the core offroad features independently of fancy mall-crawler trim packages that no one wants or needs. Want sway bar disconnect? That'll be an extra $20k in electronics, bling, and junk that you will never use. Want the low-ratio locking axles? Ditto. If you want vinyl flooring instead of carpet so that you can hose it out, in most vehicles that's a step down in price. Want vinyl flooring in the Bronco? We can do that, but it'll cost more to get less. Automatic 4x4 engagement? Whip out the checkbook. Lots of new cars come with navigation; would you like that too? Sign here, and follow Hacksaw Jimmy through the double doors to have one arm and one leg removed. Oh, and there's a monthly fee to use the navigation (no, seriously, they're charging to use GPS, read the fine print on the options sheet). Will that be cash, card, or the soul of your first-born? Whoever set the pricing and trim levels on the Bronco should be fired. Out of a cannon, into the sun.
Even considering that the engine options are as mouth-watering as stale french fries and the pricing is nowhere near competitive with Jeep, there's still a chance that I'll be buying a Bronco. It is, however, a smaller chance than before the "reveal" commercial. I was ready to reserve immediately had they surprised us with any V8 or diesel option -- or any one of about a dozen un-announced features on my wish list -- but that didn't happen. With the disappointing reveal, I don't currently have plans to reserve one at all. In fact, I'm kind of thinking of waiting until someone blows up a four-banger with an expired or voided warranty, and snatching it up cheap to drop in a better engine.
I've owned a dozen or so Ford vehicles and liked most of them. Every Ford I've had with a V8 I've loved. I own two right now. There's a lot of brand loyalty there. But Ford just ran the best Jeep commercial I've ever seen.
Sponsored