Australia's Premcar develops Coyote-powered V8 Bronco for American brand

Monterey, USA | 18 August 2023

Premcar’s latest new-vehicle project has been unveiled during this year’s exclusive Monterey Car Week in the USA.

Illinois-based Gateway Bronco, America’s leading manufacturer of reimagined classic Ford Bronco SUVs, has teamed with the Australian new-vehicle engineering and manufacturing firm to develop the chassis, suspension and steering for its newest 1960s-inspired LUXE-GT model, which has been unveiled at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering during this week’s Monterey Car Week event.

Known internally by its project codename Pegasus, the Melbourne-based OEM automaker has developed the ladder-frame structure with a 2350 mm wheelbase and 1623 mm (front) / 1630 mm (rear) track width reminiscent of the classic Bronco. It has also been designed and developed to accept Ford’s latest 343 kW / 460 horsepower 5.0-litre ‘Coyote’ V8 engine, 10R80 10-speed automatic transmission, and two-stage shift-on-the-fly all-wheel drive system.

Gateway Bronco’s new Premcar-developed platform is also equipped with a suite of active safety systems, including Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Traction Control (TC) and Anti-lock braking (ABS), providing drivers with modern safety support as well as impressive current-day ride, handling and steering performance.

The chassis has been developed exclusively for Gateway Bronco with US Patent(s) pending.

“Gateway Bronco’s new LUXE-GT is more than a reimagined classic, it’s a new car,” said Bernie Quinn, Premcar’s Engineering Director. “The Premcar team has developed this high-performance platform to new-car standards using the same processes we apply when we develop new vehicles for global automakers.”

Seth Burgett, Gateway Bronco’s CEO and President, said developing the new LUXE-GT necessitated world-class OEM know-how.

“The Premcar team has achieved remarkable results with this new chassis and suspension system. They’ve helped us reposition our classic-style LUXE-GT Bronco series into a new market realm. This is now a new car with classic style, not a classic car with new style.”

Beginning with specific attribute and performance targets, the two-year platform-development program progressed through extensive CAD (computer-aided design) and FEA (finite element analysis) phases before prototype construction and testing. Specific suspension components were also newly developed for the program.

All engineering and development work was conducted at Premcar’s Engineering and Production Centre in Melbourne and included heavy-duty testing in remote regions of Australia.

Gateway Bronco’s new Premcar-developed ladder-frame chassis will be made in Detroit, USA by Premcar’s global engineering partner, RLE International. Vehicle assembly will take place at Gateway Bronco’s production facility in Illinois.

Visit gatewaybronco.com for more information.