After an absence of about 25 years, Ford revived a long-lost legendary moniker- the Bronco. The 2021 Bronco was the most anticipated and hyped car launch of the year. And it wasn't just hyped but a large number of people actually went out to put their money and buy a Ford Bronco. Even if the pandemic, shutdowns, and shortages have been hitting hard, Ford seems to be delighted with the way the market is going gaga for their all-new SUV.
July 2021 was a pretty rough month Ford and the company reported over a 35% decline in retail sales over July 2020. But that didn't hurt Ford all that much because the Bronco was busy doing its job and stealing buyers from other brands. Ford has reported that over 70% of Bronco reservations have come in from customers who do not own a Ford vehicle. Ford could only deliver 3,277 Broncos in July but has received over 100,000 reservations.
Clearly, the Bronco is all set to take a big chunk of the off-roading SUV market which is currently dominated by Jeep. The Bronco was conceived with a target on this segment. The Wrangler has been the best-selling off-roader SUV for a long time, however, Ford seems to be poised to turn things around with the Bronco. After a successful outing in the off-roading pickup truck space with the Raptor, Ford does seem to have made things a little tough for the leaders in the off-roading space.
The hype for the Bronco isn't just for its name, but for everything that it has got on board. First up it's the way it looks; the Bronco is offered in two-door and four-door body style and boy does it look incredible. Secondly, it comes with two Ecoboost turbo engine options- a 2.3-liter, 4 pot, and a 2.7-liter, V6 that deliver 270 and 300 horsepower respectively. Further, it also gets a Getrag 7-speed manual gearbox with crawler gear. The first gear of the SUV, when coupled with a 4x4 transfer case, delivers a crawl ratio of 94.8:1.
Then comes the long list of customization options that the Bronco comes with. Of all those, we found the Sasquatch package the most interesting. The Sasquatch Package gets you the high-performance off-road stability suspension or as Ford calls it HOSS which takes the off-roading prowess of the SUV to the next level. There's so much for you to tweak with the vehicle; you can take the doors off, you can install a tent on the roof, and just take it anywhere and everywhere you desire.
The Bronco's arrival has indeed got Jeep's heart beating a little faster even if it just recorded the highest sales numbers for itself just recently. The Bronco is a fresh new vehicle with an iconic nameplate and far more capable and is loaded with tech features. It's not that the Wrangler isn't capable enough but Ford has successfully converted the hype it had built into reservations and buyers.
Moreover, it isn't just the Bronco that has been gaining traction. Ford recently unveiled an electric pickup truck- the F-150 Lightning. The idea of an electric pickup truck has always received a lot of criticism from purists and enthusiasts but the market does seem to love the concept. Ford says that it has received over 120,000 reservations for the F-150 Lightning and production is yet to begin! Further, Ford has added that 80% of these reservations came in from people who didn't own any vehicles of its direct rivals. Clearly, Ford just isn't stealing the business of its traditional rivals but also diverting people from those brands who never really saw Ford as a threat to them.
Ford is yet to reveal the power and performance numbers of the F-150 Lightning, but we bet that it'll deliver better performance and numbers than the conventional F-150. Ford has said that with the standard battery pack, the F-150 will do about 230 miles while the extended range battery will take the truck for around 300 miles before running out of juice.
On the other hand, the Ford Bronco Sport, the Bronco's urban crossover cousin, had most buyers who already owned a Ford. However, the second-largest chunk of buyers who dropped in to buy the Bronco Sport were Jeep owners. Buyers are showing great interest in the new lineup of the Blue Oval company.
While the heavy bookings and reservations of vehicles make the future of Ford seem very optimistic, they need to fulfill these orders on time. Ford is one of the worst affected automakers in the pandemic and due to the shortages and it needs to find ways to manage the demand. It was reported that over 20,000 Ford trucks were lying in the factories waiting for electronics to come and fit in.
Many buyers even canceled their orders for trucks with Ford and went on to buy RAM and Silverado. As a result, both the trucks had better sales numbers than Ford's F-Series trucks in the second quarter of 2021. We really hope that Ford capitalizes on the shortages and fulfills the heap of reservations that it has had before buyers shift to other brands. The sun is shining bright on them and they should try and make as much hay as they can.
