Ford Bronco coming to Australia? Global Ford boss leaves door open for more models to join local line-up including Bronco and Bronco Sport SUVs

If Australian Ford Bronco fans are patient the US off-roader may make it Down Under - eventually.

That’s the good news from Ford’s global CEO, Jim Farley, when speaking to CarsGuide at the unveiling of the new-generation Mustang in Detroit.

Ford Australia is extremely reliant on just two models, the Ranger ute and Everest SUV, with the Mustang, Escape, Puma and the rest of the range typically making up less than 20 per cent of its volume.

The Bronco, Ford’s answer to the Jeep Wrangler, was developed primarily for the US market but is based on the same ‘T6’ underpinnings as the Australian-developed Ranger and Everest. Despite this, Ford doesn’t produce the Bronco in right-hand drive, something which upset Ford and off-road driving enthusiasts in Australia who wanted to get their hands on the retro-inspired SUV.

The spin-off Bronco Sport is another US-only model for now, with styling cues from its namesake but this small crossover is actually on the same platform as the Escape SUV.

Asked why Australia misses out on these products that could have potential to expand Ford Australia’s appeal, Mr Farley made it clear he wants our country to have exciting, or as he called them “opinionated” models, like the SUVs and its latest sports car.

“Mustang is really important to Australia,” Mr Farley said. “I guess what I’m saying is we really want to be a brand in Australia with opinionated products.”

When pushed further by CarsGuide if this meant there was still the possibility of introducing models like the Bronco and Bronco Sport, Mr Farley left the door open but said the priority for the company at present is meeting US demand.

“We can do Bronco and Bronco Sport for the globe for sure,” he said. “But we have, like, a year or two order bank so we have a lot of work to do on our capacity before we can even consider something like that.”

He said Ford is still expanding the Bronco line-up too, with new model variants including the high-performance Raptor, rugged Everglades and throwback Heritage special editions, so that also impacts Ford Australia’s chances. He likened the situation to the start of a nine innings baseball game, implying there is still much more to come in the Bronco’s future.

“Of course it can be engineered, just like Mustang, but you have to invest in the capacity and it’s like the first or second inning of building up the Bronco line-up,” Mr Farley explained. “It’s a whole family, we’ve just come out with the Heritage, we’ve got Everglades, there’s going to be a lot of iterations so just give us some time.”

As Farley indicated, the Bronco range has been expanding in the US and now features eight variants - entry-level, Big Bend, Black Diamond, Outer Banks, Badlands, Wildtrak, Everglades and Raptor - plus the limited-edition Heritage special. The Bronco Raptor was developed alongside the new Ranger Raptor and is fitted with the same 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6.

Even though it will likely take some time for the Bronco to make it to Australia, if it makes it at all, Ford Australia is still in a strong position with the recently-launched Ranger and Everest. As we’ve previously reported, the wait time for high grade models for both the ute and SUV stretch up to nine months as demand for these Australian-engineered vehicles remains high.