SPY PICS: Ford Bronco digs in Down Under

The Jeep Wrangler could soon have a serious problem on its hands in Australia, judging by the increasing number of Ford Bronco vehicles now being seen on local public roads.

The born-again Bronco has been spotted plenty of times at Ford’s development facilities in Victoria, which is no surprise given it’s based on the same Australian-developed third-generation T6 ladder frame as the new Ford Ranger.

But now the Blue Oval brand’s new Ranger-based off-road hero has been spotted on Aussie public roads for the first time – twice in Melbourne just this month, both in short-wheelbase two-door and long-wheelbase four-door guises.

The most recent images posted to the Ford Ranger Next Gen Owners Australia Facebook group page show a two-door Bronco finished in the unmissable Cyber Orange Metallic Tri-Coat.

The second Bronco spotted and posted to the same Facebook page was a four-door off-road model with all-terrain tyres, finished in Velocity Blue Metallic and spied in its natural habitat – cruising through a Maccas drive-through.

Both Bronco vehicles are left-hand drive and almost certainly owned by Ford Australia (our VicRoads rego checks proved inconclusive), although it’s possible one or both of them were imported by independent conversion and/or aftermarket accessories businesses.

Given the Ford Bronco’s development phase is now complete, it begs the question: If they belong to Ford why are left-hand drive vehicles still pounding the asphalt in Australia?

Not long after the Ford Bronco first broke cover back in mid-2020, Ford’s local CEO ruled out all-new retro off-roader for Australia, citing the lack of right-hand drive production.

But since then, the game has changed… in a big way.

The Ford F-150’s long-awaited official Aussie release by mid-2023 and Ford’s significant investment in local right-hand drive ‘remanufacturing’ have potentially opened the door for a range of other LHD-only Ford models previously ruled out for local release – including the new Bronco.

Ford Australia has established a dedicated new ‘special vehicles’ development division and the first fruit of its labour will be the new Ford F-150, following its RHD conversion in partnership with RMA Automotive – Ford’s equivalent to the Walkinshaw Automotive Group, Australia’s official RAM and Silverado truck converter based not far away in Clayton.

When the F-150 program was announced in March, Ford Australia chief Andrew Birkic refused to rule out the idea of bringing more US-spec vehicles Down Under once the Mickleham facility in Melbourne’s north is running in 2023.

“RMA and Ford Special Vehicles have got a lot of work to do in terms of the engineering and setting up the manufacturing facility,” he said.

“There’s a lot of work that goes in behind whether we bring a vehicle into Australia. Can we get the supply? Is it commercially viable? Is there a market for it?

“We would need to do all that due diligence, and that would be part of our decision-making process.

“But certainly we will test this out. This is a very significant step for us and really, globally, this is a first,” said Birkic.

The Ford Australia chief said that vehicles such as the Ford Maverick ute and even the Ford Explorer large SUV could be looked at for the Aussie market in future as well.

“We are going to learn a lot in the next 12 months as we go through this process, as we develop our muscle in this space,” said the Ford Australia boss.

The reincarnated Bronco has been a huge success for Ford in the USA but supply chain issues forced the closure of order books earlier this year and they could continue to pose a problem for the brand.

In the US, the Ford Bronco is available in eight model grades priced between $US30,800 ($A44,412) and $US68,500 ($A98,773) for the battle-ready Bronco Raptor. It’s offered with a range of engine types, including an entry-level Mustang-sourced 2.3-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder and a 2.7-litre twin-turbo petrol V6.

The Raptor gets a blustering 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 pumping out around 300kW, but the lack of diesel power could influence the decision makers at Ford Australia.

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