The auto industry is rife with forbidden fruit, whether it’s Americans lusting over small European cars or Europeans jonesing for high-horsepower American metal. But, as Europe is about to find out, not all fruit stays forbidden forever.
Ford on Monday announced that it will bring the Bronco SUV to Europe. Ford didn’t offer up too many details just yet, saying only that the Bronco will arrive in certain left-hand-drive markets, and that quantities will be “strictly limited.” It should go on sale in late 2023, so Europeans keen to get their hands on one will have some time to figure out how to do that.
By the sounds of Ford’s press release, the EU-market Bronco won’t be much, if at all different from the US-spec Bronco. All the off-road capability is still there, all the cabin tech remains the same, which means it should function as a pretty potent competitor to the Land Rover Defender. A veritable Sears catalog of accessory parts is available for owners to personalize their vehicles, as well.
It’s unclear which of the Bronco’s many variants will show up in Europe. In the US, we’re privy to eight different models, from the base model all the way up to the extra-chunky Raptor. Nearly all are available in a choice of two- or four-door versions, and a 2.3-liter I4 and 2.7-liter twin-turbo V6 are available at different points in the lineup, as well. Autocar’s report casts doubt on the 3.0-liter V6 Bronco Raptor making it to Europe, but hey, some Broncos are better than no Broncos, right?
Late 2023 isn’t exactly around the corner, so it’s likely that Ford will trickle out more information about European Broncos as we creep closer to the targeted on-sale date.
