When Ford first revealed the design for the 21st century incarnation of its iconic Bronco, fans praised its tastefully retro design that had more restrained nods to the original. But during Monterey Car Week, Ford unveiled this new Bronco Roadster concept to celebrate the Bronco’s 60th birthday, and though it doesn’t majorly deviate from the regular two-door Bronco, the Roadster Concept is a million times cooler and more authentic to the original. Unfortunately for Ford, it’s also a lot cooler than the recently announced Bronco 60th Anniversary Package, too.
The original Bronco was sold in three body styles: two-door pickup truck and two-door wagon versions that had removable roofs, and then a roadster trim that had no doors, no roof, and no rear seats. It was meant to be a Mustang for off-road use, or at least that was the engineering team’s brief. Its stark feature set was meant to provide “fun through simplicity,” which is not a phrase that accurately describes the modern Bronco with its modern complexities, but the Bronco Roadster Concept tastefully offers a modern vision of that phrase. Unfortunately it’s not planned for production, but was created as “a tribute to Bronco’s roots.”
Ford can’t sell this from factory, but that doesn’t mean customizers can’t mimic it
In the transformation from stock two-door Bronco to the Bronco Roadster concept, Ford’s design team was inspired by a Wimbledon White 1966 Bronco Roadster that is owned by an enthusiast who worked with Ford in the development of the 2021 Bronco. Ford pulled out the Bronco’s rear seats and mounted a full-sized spare tire back there, and left the rear section as painted metal, like the original. The team also sculpted the belt line to mimic the original, removing the roll cage and all roof mounting points, as well as the doors and all mounting points for the doors. They then painted the majority of the dashboard and floor pan white and installed some awesome silver leather low-back seats.
Ford
Ford stamped the tailgate with the same retro “Ford” script as the original, and modified the bumpers to more closely resemble the original Bronco’s simple chrome bumpers. In order to emulate the original Bronco’s artful rear-wheel arch design, Ford painted the modern Bronco’s lower sides in what appears to be a deliciously retro root-beer brown that also graces the tailgate emblem. To complete the package, the new Bronco is fitted with machined Fifteen52 Analog wheels. It even has a manual transmission, just like the original.
No doors, no roof, no roll bars, and no head restraints means this truck would never pass safety regulations, but there’s nothing stopping Bronco owners from customizing their trucks to resemble this build. Obviously I’m smitten by the Bronco Roadster Concept, but what do you think of it? Sound off in the comments — would you buy one?
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