Bronco Weekly #6

Ford Production Schedules Affected by Harsh Weather

Unless you live in Hawaii, you're undoubtedly aware of the extremely cold weather and massive snowfall that recently crippled most of Canada and much of the USA. This harsh weather and challenging conditions profoundly affected Ford’s vehicle production in January and February. Even Ford’s Mexico plants have been interrupted, since the delivery of vital components has been cut off.

For us, this is the more critical piece of information since the Hermosillo Assembly Plant in Mexico is building Ford Bronco Sport.

To compensate for the problems caused by the snow and ice, Ford has introduced additional shifts in some plants and tried to redirect the production (as far as possible) to other factories.

Also, Kentucky, Louisville, and other Mexican plants are running without interruption. So, if you're looking to order a new Ford Bronco Sport, it might take a little longer than usual.

Ford Made 99 Broncos in January

Although we're still a few months away from the first 2021 Bronco deliveries, Ford is preparing to start full-scale serial production in May. Interestingly enough, Ford made 99 of the 2021 Broncos in January.

Seems like an exciting development -- and it is -- but the fact those vehicles are just pre-production examples made for testing and promotional duties and are likely to be destroyed after serving their purpose tempers it a bit. Even though those Broncos produced are practically the same as the production versions, they won't be made available, and Ford can't sell them to the general public.

We can expect that the same amount of pre-production cars will be produced in February. This signals that Ford is making a small fleet of Broncos and preparing them for press events and test drives. 

Ford Just Issued a Recall for Bronco Sport

Although they're generally pretty embarrassing, recalls are a seemingly unavoidable part of today’s car industry, and all manufacturers have had their share. Just days ago, Ford issued a recall for the 2021 Ford Bronco Sport to replace its rear suspension modules, which might not have been adequately attached to the car’s subframe. So far, there are no injuries or crashes related to this issue, so Ford is acting preemptively.

The recall has been issued for over 1,600 vehicles out of the more than  13,000 Bronco Sports that have been sold so far to fix those rear suspension modules whose bolts might not have not been tightened properly. The issue is linked to the very first cars that were been built last year.

If your Bronco Sport has a production date after December 24th of 2020, you're good.

Sasquatch-equipped Broncos Pushed To 2022?

Just recently, there was a pretty alarming rumor that started circling in the Bronco community that all Sasquatch-equipped Broncos will be automatically pushed to the 2022 model year.

It looks like the production process for the Sasquatch package demands more work than originally anticipated, and Ford, in order to maintain quality standards and parts list, simply needs more time.

For those who don’t know, the Sasquatch package is a $7000 option for all models -- it's standard for the First Edition --  and it's a dedicated off-road package that adds 35-inch all-terrain tires, Bilstein dampers, 17-inch wheels, unique fender flares, front and rear locking differentials, and detachable sway bars.

Bronco Warthog Spied While Testing

The Warthog is designed to be the most extreme off-road vehicle ever to be manufactured by Ford and made available to the general public. Similar to what the Raptor is to the F-150 truck series, Warthog should be to the Bronco lineup. This means that this particular SUV will feature completely different drive train components, engine, chassis enhancements, and trim details than its lesser counterparts. 

The Warthog prototype was spied during its testing in Moab, Utah, and spotters paid particular attention to its engine. We know that the Bronco will not be getting a V8 and that some kind of high-performance Eco Boost V6 will find its way under the hood, but we didn’t know which one.

It appears that the upcoming 2023 Warthog will be getting the same engine as the Ford Explorer ST. This means that we'll find a 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V6 under the hood of the Warthog, good for an expected 400 hp and 415 lb-ft of torque.