Ford Bronco body revealed in latest spy shots

AFTER MORE than 12 months of catching Ford Bronco test mules fitted with Frankenstein Ranger body parts testing in both Australia and the United States, we finally catch a glimpse of one testing with the actual Bronco body on it.

Due to be revealed in just a few months as a 2021 model, the new Bronco is being billed as a genuine challenger to the Jeep Wrangler as an off-road vehicle, and as these images show, the five-door body shape is very Wrangler-esque.

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But far from being a copy of the Jeep, the Bronco will pay homage to the original 1968 Ford SUV which itself was very boxy. Unlike the original Bronco, but very much like the Wrangler, the 2021 version is expected to be available in both five-door long wheelbase and three-door short wheelbase models.

While this five-door prototype testing in wintery America is heavily disguised, it clearly shows the body will be boxy with short overhangs over the Ford Everest-based T6 chassis platform. That platform means IFS with coil springs up front and a live axle on coils under the back.

The camouflage is particularly heavy over the roof area to conceal what we expect to be a removable roof section, as was revealed in US patent documents seen last year. The patents also included removable doors, again much like a Jeep Wrangler; although, this test mule doesn’t appear to have those fitted.

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The camo also covers the front end of the vehicle, but online leaks have given us an indication of how the Bronco will look. It was always thought the new model would retain round headlights just like the original, and leaks to enthusiast website Bronco6g.com show what are claimed to be the headlights. These are round LED lights with horizontal marker lights that extend in to the grille rather than the separate marker lights of the original models.

These latest leaks have given the members of Bronco6g.com the ammo to update their ongoing renderings of how they imagine the new Bronco will look, and the renderings of the orange three-door car pictured here come from forum member TopRecon.

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We’ll have to wait until the US-spring to see the actual vehicle, but don’t hold your breath to see the new Bronco here; Ford Australia maintains that the vehicle won’t be coming here, as it is slated for left-hand drive production only.