Let's take a trip on the alley of time. Reverse to January 2017 – the magic moment when Ford announced the revival of the iconic Bronco. Finally, the Wrangler had authentic reasons to question its off-road dominance. The promised Bronco was, at least on paper, a formidable 4-wheel drive off-road machine with tons of power and packed with features.
Ford promised the world to off-roaders. In 2021, Ford delivered on its promise: the Bronco WildTrak was born, ready to tackle the trails, hills and sand dunes. Let's have a look at what makes it so good.
WildTrak Power
In the WildTrak spec, the 2021 Ford Bronco makes use of a 2.7-liter twin-turbocharged V6 that Ford brought over from the F-150 pickup. Unlike the pickup version, the WildTrak V6 is good for 330 hp and 415 lb-ft of torque. With these numbers, it rips a new one into every kind of terrain that’s out there.
Gear shifting is as slick as it gets. It automatically travels through its 10 ratios without any complaint while the always-on 4WD system does the heavy lifting. The center console knob switches between 2Hi, 4Hi and 4Lo controls and allows the Bronco to blast, climb or, if necessary, crawl over obstacles. One thing is certain: the Bronco WildTrak always reaches its destination.
Put it on the scale and the Bronco WildTrak is no lightweight. But despite its 4,750 lbs curb weight, the V6 still slingshots the car forward when you mash the throttle against the floor. From a standstill, the rear suspension will squat and the front will tend to go upwards – after all, it's a soft off-road suspension, not one to hit the track apex.
Problem Fixer – Including Wrangler’s
Ford put plenty of thought into beating Wrangler while designing the Bronco, and it shows. Take for instance the mirrors. Attached to the base of the windshield cowling instead of the doors, Bronco mirrors remain attached to the car even if you take the doors off.
The four door Bronco features four removable roof panels, giving direct sight to the sky above. As such, the hardtop section putting shade of the cargo area is now easier to remove. What if it rains and your top is off? Floor drains and rinsible floors will take care of that. Quite the smart features, none of which are available on the Wrangler.
Slaying The Tech Game
Most Ford’s new models have been playing hardball at the tech game, Bronco is no exception. Standard models feature an 8-inch touchscreen while the High and Lux Trims will upgrade it to a 12-inch monster that hints of Tesla. Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Amazon Alexa integration, these all come standard.
To keep it road worthy just as much as it is off-road worthy, Ford equipped the Bronco WildTrak with Ford’s Co-Pilot 360, a cocktail of passive and active security systems to make highway driving a breeze. The Bronco WildTrak might not be the quietest of the bunch, boasting quite a lot of noise from its chunky tires. If you can ignore the noise and odd trembling of panels, the Bronco WildTrak is a proper highway beast.
The 2021 Ford Bronco WildTrak hardtop is an overall tech-packed problem solver that is ready to tackle the trail and give Jeep Wrangler´s a very good run for its money.
