Bronco Heritage Edition plumbs Ford nostalgia
Oct. 20—Rough, tough and sporting the purpose-built shape of a classic sport-utility vehicle, the reimagined 2021 Ford Bronco was a marketing master stroke — just the thing to tickle the fancies of off-road enthusiasts who until recently were left to consider only Jeep's Wrangler line of certified rock-hoppers.
It was also a successful exercise in retro design, recalling fondly the model's early days when it rolled into Ford's showrooms for the 1966 model year. Apparently sensing there's no such thing as too much retro, however, the Blue Oval company doubled down on the nostalgia factor with the introduction of the Heritage Edition and Heritage Limited Edition for 2023.
The new Bronco also benefited from an easy-to-drive character, at least compared to the vague handling of the Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited. None of this is to say the Ford delivers a premium-level ride quality. With its truck-based body-on-frame construction, live rear axle, knobby all-terrain tires, and an aggressive exhaust note, the Bronco can make a real auditory ruckus at speed.
Aside from the aforementioned Heritage Edition packages, the Bronco rolled into 2023 largely unchanged. It's accompanied by its little brother, the Bronco Sport, which possesses a measure of off-reading ability but is designed more with the suburbs in mind. Offered either as a two-door or four-door model, all Broncos are designed to accommodate up to five passengers and varying amounts of cargo, depending on a hard- or soft-top roof.
There are eight outdoorsy-sounding trim levels — Base, Big Bend, Black Diamond, Outer Banks, Badlands, Wildtrak, Everglades and desert-conquering Raptor. Two-door or four-door configurations are available for all trim levels except the Everglades and Raptor, which are four-door only.
The 2.3-liter turbocharged inline-four's 300 horsepower and 325 foot-pounds of torque probably will be enough to keep most drivers happy. For those with stouter needs, there's an optional 2.7-liter twin-turbocharged V6 rated at 330 horses and 415 foot-pounds of torque. The performance-oriented Raptor, meanwhile, gets a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 making 418 horsepower and 440 foot-pounds of twist. Coupled with a long list of special suspension and chassis modifications, the Raptor is the quickest, sportiest and priciest Bronco in Ford's corral.
Like the competing Wrangler, the Bronco's easily removable doors, sectional roof and optional soft top are a boon to backroad and boulevard warriors looking to customize their rides.
Prices start just shy of the 37-grand mark for a two-door Base-trimmed model and climb to a reported $71,340 for top-of-the-line Black Diamond-trimmed samples dressed out in the Heritage Limited Edition package. The Base trim's list of standard equipment is pretty straightforward and includes the turbo-four engine, a seven-speed manual or 10-speed automatic transmission, tow hooks, keyless ignition, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity, manually-adjusting front seats, and an array of safety-sensing systems and off-roading aides. The larger V6 also is available, but comes only with the 10-speed automatic tranny.
The list of standard goodies lengthens and the price climbs as one moves up the trim ladder, adding bigger alloy wheels, additional underbody cladding, weatherproof interior surfaces, upgraded LED headlights, the bigger engine, more exterior bling, a larger infotainment touchscreen interface, beadlock-friendly wheels for lower tire pressures while off-roading, and much more. (As always, see your dealer for details).
Ford parked an all-the-way, four-door Heritage Limited Edition in our driveway for a week of on-road errand running and commuting. Dressed on a Robin's Egg Blue paint job — one of several eye-catching enamel shades — with a contrasting white roof and front fascia, and prominent flat-black fenders barely concealing a set of 17-inch gloss-black alloy wheels shod in aggressive-looking all-terrain tires, the Ford got noticed wherever it went.
Our particular Bronco was an "early production" sample, and thus wasn't accompanied by any pricing information. Ford's reported $73,000 base price includes as standard equipment the turbo-six engine and 10-speed automatic, heavy-duty steel underbody cladding, keyless entry and ignition, two front and rear tow hooks, intelligent cruise control, automatic high-beam headlights, a 12-inch LCD infotainment touchscreen display, an eight-inch digital gauge cluster, an array of safety-sensing systems, and much more.
Factoring in a list of options including the gloss-black wheels, sectional hard-top roof, upgraded tires and premium audio more than likely pushed the asking price even higher, as is often the case. Given that production of the two-door and four-door models will each be limited to 1,966 — get it? — vehicles each, it's safe to assume these particular Broncos will be in fairly high demand
Like the Bronco four-door we tested a year ago, the 2023 version delivered a busy but comfortable ride. Handling was precise and predictable for such a large, truck-based vehicle, with excellent highway-speed tracking. As mentioned earlier, tire and wind roar was a constant, especially on the interstate, as was the raucous-sounding exhaust note.Front-seat occupants will find plenty of leg- and headroom once they've made the considerable climb into the well-organized and no-nonsense cabin. There's room for three in the split-folding second-row bench; adults should find little to complain about, assuming the front seats aren't slid all the way back. The 38.2-cubic-foot cargo ok hold expands to nearly 83 cubic feet with the second row seat backs folded. Two-door models' cargo capacity is 22.4 and 52.3 cubic feet, respectively. Depending on trim level and properly equipped, Broncos equipped with either the 2.3-liter turbo-four or 2.7-liter turbo-six are rated to tow up to 3,500 pounds. The Raptor, meanwhile, can handle up to 4,500 pounds.
