Ford is readying a big product push and two key models will share names with some of its most vaunted vehicle lines, including a Bronco pickup and 4-door Mustang. Headlight.News has more.
Ford will replace the Ranger with a Bronco-badged pickup.
We’ve seen Ford thin out its line-up over the last couple years, with products such as Edge and Escape sent off to the automotive scrapyard. Now, however, the second-largest Detroit automaker is getting ready to add an assortment of new products in a bid to challenge competitors such as Toyota.
The list includes at least three that will share badges with some of Ford’s powerhouse nameplates, including a new Bronco pickup, a four-door Mustang and a downsized Transit van. It’s also possible we may see a small crossover paired with the popular Ford Maverick pickup, Headlight.News has learned.
The new models will also come to market around the time Ford begins rolling out the first entries from its Universal EV program which begins with the launch of the Fathom pickup next year.
All in the family
Ford is betting the Bronco name can give it more leverage against the dominant midsize Toyota Tacoma.
Automakers can spend hundreds of millions of dollars to introduce all-new nameplates – and the launch of the Fathom will certainly strain the automaker’s marketing budget at a time when EV sales have tumbled.
On the other hand, Ford is betting it can leverage some of its existing product powerhouses by sharing familial identity. That will be the case with the new Bronco pickup expected to reach market before the end of the decade, said Sam Fiorani, lead analyst with AutoForecast Solutions. In a bid to keep up with competitors such as Jeep and Toyota, meanwhile, Bronco will finally get a high-mileage hybrid drivetrain, as well.
Fiorani said his internal sourcing information shows the Bronco pickup set to replace today’s Ranger. Like other domestic and import midsize trucks, Ford’s current model is simply an also-ran compared to the segment’s overwhelmingly dominant Toyota Tacoma.
“This would give it an image dovetailing off Bronco,” one of the biggest successes Ford has had in recent years. Specific details are uncertain, starting with the new pickup’s styling. It’s unlikely Ford will go with a design as radical as the Jeep Gladiator, said Fiorani, though he expects it to adopt a design closer to that of the boxy Bronco.
Multiple Mustangs
A rendering by Autocar shows what a possible Mustang 4-door might look like.
For Ford, the good news is that Mustang remains king-of-the-hill in the sporty coupe/convertible segment. The bad news: the market for two-door models continues to wither. That’s where a four-door comes in. Plans to bring one to market were recently revealed to Ford dealers during a meeting with CEO Jim Farley, according to Automotive News.
“This should have happened a while ago,” said Fiorani. The Dodge “Charger opened up the market for four-door sporty cars. The two-door market has been waning for decades.”
The new model, internally referred to as the Mach-4, is expected to arrive during the 2029 model year. It will offer an assortment of gas-based powertrains.
The current all-electric Mustang Mach-E, meanwhile, is expected to remain in production until right around the end of the decade and Fiorani’s internal report shows a replacement is in the works. Specifics are TBD but there is a likelihood, he said, that it will make use of the technology and knowledge coming out of Ford’s California-based Universal EV program. Whether that means sharing the same platform as the Fathom pickup is uncertain.
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More to come
Don’t be surprised to see several versions of the Universal EV platform in production this decade.
On the van side, Ford wants to move back into the segment it abandoned with the cancellation of the Transit Connect in the 2023 model year.
Later this year, Ford will launch the all-electric Transit City as a 2027 model. It will feature a 56 kWh LFP battery capable of delivering up to 158 miles for the European market. But, considering the realities of the EV segment its sticking with gasoline and hybrid power for the U.S. with a Transit Connect replacement coming in 2029. It will be produced in Ohio.
Among other upcoming products, Ford is getting ready to phase out the current Bronco Sport which shared underpinnings with the compact Escape and Lincoln Corsair. Exactly what will fill that space remains to be seen. Ford has indicated its looking to add a new entry-level SUV – one of five models to come in under $40,000. There is a likelihood at least one of these will share underpinnings with the popular Maverick. And, said Fiorani, it’s possible Ford might create another family there by using a variant of the Maverick nameplate.
Lincoln will also get a Bronco-based SUV that, according to sources, will launch late in the decade at around $68,000.
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