Update (October 1, 2024): ‘Ford Bronco EREV’ added to ‘On the Ford Bronco Hybrid’ and ‘Release Date’ and ‘Bronco production & sales’ updated.
Former Ford President and CEO Jim Hackett confirmed that the Blue Oval would make a Ford Bronco Hybrid during the company’s annual shareholder meeting in 2019. However, few official details are available, with neither executives nor the company providing further information.
Here’s everything that has been reported on the Bronco Hybrid, and our general expectations on the specifications and release date:
New Bronco derivatives
The Bronco family has a wide appeal, with numerous configurations available and plans for even more. At the Bank of America 2023 Automotive Summit on April 5th, Jim Baumbick, VP of Product Development Operations and Quality at Ford, described the Bronco as a “winning party” and suggested that additional derivatives would be developed to capitalize on its early success.
So there’s three examples on the screen here, with Everglades, the Raptor, and Heritage, all distinctly going after different customers. This is just the start. We have a ton more coming. And on Bronco, we’re never going to let the foot off the throttle pedal. We have a ton of opportunity in different spaces to speak to different customers.
Jim Baumbick, Vice President – Product Development Operations and Quality, Ford (Bank of America’s 2023 Automotive Summit on April 5, 2023)
In addition to various styles and levels of off-road capabilities, the Bronco twins will also have derivatives focused on eco-friendliness in the future. This includes the highly anticipated hybrid and plug-in hybrid variants.
Owner’s manual confirms future Ford Bronco Hybrid
Ford released its owner’s manual before beginning sales of the gas-powered Bronco two- and four-door midsize SUVs. The original 550-page document reaffirmed that the company has planned a Bronco hybrid for a commercial launch. There are two citations of the hybrid variant, first in the Storing Your Vehicle section and again in the Scheduled Maintenance section.
The first section talked about leaving the Bronco Hybrid unused for a period of more than 30 days. In such a case, owners should keep the traction battery’s state of charge (SoC) at approximately 50%, and it’s recommended to disconnect the auxiliary battery as that would reduce the load on the traction battery.
We recommend the following actions for your vehicle:
When storing your vehicle for greater than 30 days the state of charge should be approximately 50%. Additionally we recommend disconnecting the 12V battery which will reduce system loads on the HV battery.
2021 Ford Bronco Owner’s Manual
Stating that the driver can control the state of charge (SoC), Ford suggests that the future Bronco Hybrid is a plug-in variant (PHEV).
The 2022 Ford Bronco Owner’s Manual mentions HEV and PHEV guidance related to the vehicle’s automatic climate control system. In a short note, it says:
For Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) and Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) vehicles, the blower motor may run, and you may feel airflow when the climate control is off, to provide cooling to the battery.
2022 Ford Bronco Owner’s Manual
There’s an indication of a hybrid variant in the owner’s manuals of the 2023 Ford Bronco and 2024 Ford Bronco as well:
Your vehicle comes with the Intelligent Oil-Life Monitor system, a message appears in the instrument cluster display at the proper oil change interval. This interval may be up to one year or 10,000 mi (16,000 km), hybrid vehicles could exceed 10,000 mi (16,000 km).
2023 Ford Bronco Owner’s Manual and 2024 Ford Bronco Owner’s Manual
On the Ford Bronco Hybrid
It is said that Ford conceived the sixth-gen Bronco with partial electrification in mind. Seeing the unsatisfactory mpg figures of the gas model, many customers must be looking forward to a Bronco Hybrid. Depending on the configuration selected, the gas model delivers a combined fuel economy of 15-20 MPG.
The reasonable, and dare we say, logical expectation for the Ford Bronco Hybrid (which shares its ladder-frame construction with the Ranger pickup) is the sharing of electrical hardware with the F-150 and Explorer hybrids.
A 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 engine with an electric motor and a modular 10-speed transmission could be an ideal combination for the Bronco Hybrid. Combined with a 47 hp electric motor from the F-150, a healthy system output of 450 hp is expected on the Ford Bronco Hybrid.
Ford Bronco Plug-in Hybrid powertrain
Now that the owner’s manual hints at a plug-in hybrid powertrain, this future electrified Bronco could allow customers to use the EV mode to cover a usual day’s drive without the engine.
Ford could introduce the Bronco Plug-in Hybrid with the 2.3-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder gas engine and the 35 kW motor from the F-150 Powerboost full-hybrid. The total system horsepower could be close to 350 hp, and the battery pack may allow a practical EV range of 30-40 miles.
The Ranger Plug-in Hybrid also has the same engine under the hood. Based on an updated version of the platform that underpins the Ford Bronco, the plug-in hybrid pickup truck has a targeted towing capacity of 3,500 kg (7,716 lbs.) – the same as its gas-powered donor model. Ford estimates the Ranger Plug-in Hybrid will deliver a pure electric range of more than 45 km (28 miles), as per WLTP.
The Jeep Wrangler 4xe has become America’s top-selling PHEV immediately after its introduction. The sustained demand likely made Ford aware of the potential for a rugged mid-size plug-in hybrid SUV.
Ford Bronco EREV
Extended Range Electric Vehicles (EREVs) combine the technologies of series-hybrid and plug-in hybrid models. They have an engine and an electric motor, but only use the latter for propulsion. Like in a series-hybrid model, the engine only serves as a generator that runs at an optimum engine speed to charge a high-voltage battery pack, which powers the electric motor. However, similar to a plug-in hybrid vehicle, its high-voltage battery pack is of a much higher capacity and customers can charge it using an external power source.
With demand for EVs slowing in key markets, many automakers are switching back to semi-electrified models. Chinese manufacturers are rapidly launching EREVs to meet changing consumer preferences. Ford is also exploring the release of EREVs, and one potential model could be a Bronco EREV.
“Early majority customers are really different than the early adopters, particularly in retail, and we see a lot more openness to hybrids and extended range electric vehicles we call E-REVs,” Ford president and CEO Jim Farley said during the company’s Q2 2024 earnings conference call on July 24, 2024.
“We want to be a first adopter to an E-REV or whatever is next on partial electrification because we want to be first and best at the choice,” he added. He expects the company’s skunkworks team in California to help it develop range-extender technology quickly and cost-effectively.
On the Ford Bronco Sport Hybrid
As for the Ford Bronco Sport Hybrid, reports state that it will employ the Ford Escape Hybrid’s powertrain, which makes sense given the ‘softer’ Bronco sits on the monocoque platform of the Escape. This system includes a 2.5-liter iVCT Atkinson cycle gas engine, coupled with an eCVT.
Ford offers the Escape Hybrid in FWD and AWD, both with a combined power of 192 hp. A Ford Escape Plug-in Hybrid with a 2.5-liter iVCT Atkinson cycle gas engine and eCVT is also available, but only in FWD. The total system power in the plug-in hybrid variant of the Escape is 210 hp.
When Motor Authority reviewed the Bronco Sport, they managed a fuel economy of 23 mpg in mixed suburban driving, almost the same level as the EPA rating (21 mpg City/26 mpg Highway/23 mpg Combined). Motor Authority wrote that the Escape’s hybrid powertrain on the Ford Bronco Sport Hybrid would largely improve efficiency. The 2023 Escape Hybrid’s EPA-estimated fuel economy is 39 mpg (combined) in both FWD and AWD.
Release Date
The Bronco twins are part of the Blue Oval’s strategy to have hybrid electric variants for high-volume models. The Ford Bronco Hybrid could launch as early as 2025 for the 2026 model year, coinciding with expected cosmetic updates to the vehicle. Competitors will include the Jeep Wrangler 4xe and the Land Rover Defender PHEV.
The Ford Bronco Sport could receive a hybrid powertrain when it is redesigned in 2027, as per an Automotive News report dated August 25, 2024.
Production & Sales
When ready, the production of the Ford Bronco Hybrid and Ford Bronco Sport Hybrid should occur alongside their respective combustion-engined counterparts. Ford manufactures the Bronco (both 2-door and 4-door) at the Michigan Assembly Plant (USA) and the Bronco Sport at the Hermosillo Stamping and Assembly Plant (Mexico).
In 2024, sales of both models have declined. Between January and August, Ford sold 69,186 units of the Bronco and 85,552 units of the Bronco Sport. These figures mark a year-over-year decline of 15.4% and 2.1%, respectively.
TopElectricSUV says
There’s one area where the new Bronco models need to improve seriously: efficiency. Introducing a hybrid option will address that concern, making them more appealing to a wider audience. For a small premium, these hybrid models could offer big gains in fuel cost savings in the long run.
A Mechanical Engineer by qualification, I started out as an automotive editor of a regional magazine in 2011. In my 11 years of experience in creating automotive content, I’ve traveled around the world to review, analyze and report on the world’s top electrified cars.
