Ford Bronco Raptor likely, V8 possible

How many Raptors can Ford develop? The answer, it seems, is lots.

According to US publication

The new 2020 Ford Bronco will resurrect the nameplate that existed between 1965 and 1996, immortalised after former NFL superstar OJ Simpson tried to outrun the cops in 1994, resulting in a high-speed chase across Los Angeles.

Despite being based on Ford’s Australian-engineered T6 ladder platform, next year’s born-again Bronco will not be produced in right-hand drive and won’t be sold here, and nor is the ‘baby Bronco’ that will precede it this year guaranteed to be sold outside the US.

Nevertheless, some interesting Bronco news from the US could have some ramifications for our closely related Ranger.

Last week auto parts retailer Canadian Tire’s online store appeared to confirm the base engine for the Bronco will be the circa-200kW/420Nm petrol engine from the Mustang EcoBoost, which makes sense because it also powers the US Ranger on which it’s based.

Now, The Fast Lane Car says Ford's lusty (circa-240kW/540Nm) 2.7-litre twin-turbo EcoBoost V6 and 10-speed automatic transmission – a combination that already powers the US F-150 and Edge ST – is likely to be fitted to what could be badged the Bronco Raptor.

This also makes sense since the same engine has long been mooted as the most logical powertrain for any potential Ford Ranger Raptor in North America.

Turbo V6 power would give the Bronco considerably more performance than its closest rival, the Jeep Wrangler, which is topped by a 209kW/347Nm 3.6-litre Pentastar V6.

According to The Fast Lane Car’s source, the Bronco could even be blessed with Ford’s 5.0-litre Coyote V8, which produces 339kW/556Nm in the Mustang GT.

This could explain why a carsales reader spotted a left-hand drive Ranger with side-outlet exhaust and what he said sounded like a V8 engine near Ford’s R&D centre in Geelong in April.

Although the report says Ford is struggling to establish a business case for a Bronco V8, all of this raises the tantalising prospect that V6 and V8 versions of the Bronco – and therefore Ranger, and Everest for that matter – are technically feasible and could eventually become reality.

The new Bronco is also expected to offer Wrangler-esque, customer-focussed (but less safe) lifestyle features such as a removable roof and doors.

Meantime, the smaller baby Bronco will take advantage of the rear/all-wheel drive platform to be used for the next Escape and Explorer SUVs.

Such is its inherent brand value that the Bronco name is even being leveraged by independent car-makers such as Zero Labs, whose exceedingly expensive Bronco EV resto-mod comes complete with vegan-friendly upholstery and a 300km range.