Why we will likely never see the Ford Bronco in Australia

The Ford Bronco has a long and illustrious history in America, with six decades of history for this SUV that bleeds red, white and blue.

The Bronco was revived in 2021 after the nameplate went on hiatus following the announcement that the fifth generation would not continue after 1996.

The announcement of the new model gained public interest in Australia. Still, after it was announced that it would not make its way Down Under, car enthusiasts from Australia were pretty bummed out.

"I feel like such a vehicle would be right at home there. Real shame," said one Reddit user.

"Aussies and Americans have similar taste in cars and trucks. This seems super dumb. I feel like they're leaving a load of money on the table. I'm interested to know the reasoning," said another.

Now, Ford has announced the introduction of a Raptor version of the Bronco, reigniting the hope that it could be sold in Australia.

Not to rain on your parade, but it's unlikely that it will – here's why.

Several factors, including its build, market strategy, and pricing, explain why the Bronco will most likely never go on sale here.

The biggest killer for the Bronco in Australia is that it isn't made in right-hand drive. The reason we don't see it in RHD is the same reason we don't see other vehicles in this specification – we just don't have a big enough market for it.

With a population of just under 27 million, our new car market is tiny compared to other right-hand-drive markets such as Japan, the United Kingdom, and South-East Asia.

This makes Australia a unique market because we are RHD, but we are a country that values big cars that can handle workloads, towing, and off-roading – unlike the UK and Asia, which are dominated by small city cars.

For Ford to develop a RHD model, it would probably only be for the Australian market, where it would have to compete against other Ford models such as the Everest and Ranger.

Sure, companies can right-hand-drive convert the vehicles when they land in Australia, but that brings us to our next issue.

Ford has seen success with locally converting the F-150 through RMA, as has Ram with its entire range through its partnership with Walkinshaw.

It's a low-risk strategy that allows these companies to sell the vehicles to the distributor without the cost associated with purchasing the tooling needed to convert them.

The issue with this is that it inflates the overall cost of the vehicle. Take the 2024 Ford F-150, for example. In the US, it's a $US65,495 ($AUD105,000) truck; in Australia, that same vehicle is $140,945 (plus on-road costs).

That's because there are costs involved with importation, conversion and taxes.

Taking a look at the Bronco, it starts at $US39,630 ($AUD64,788), and applying the rough markup of $35,000 to bring it here and convert it takes it to $AUD99,788.

Then, of course, we factor in the luxury car tax that the F-150 and Ram are exempt from, which the Bronco is not, and you end up with another $5766 – bringing the total cost up to $105,554 before you even pay stamp duty and registration.

That's over $100K for a base-model car built on a similar platform to an Everest that starts at $52,240 (plus on-road costs).

Once you start looking at variations such as the Wildtrak and the Raptor, the price could nudge the $200,000 mark and beyond.

These are ball-park figures, but even if the base model were $25,000 cheaper, it could still be a tough sell.

Considering the Bronco was partly developed in Australia, and the concept version was spotted around Melbourne, Ford Australia did undoubtedly once consider the market Down Under.

Obviously, the Bronco would be competing with the Ranger and Everest, which both have impressive sales numbers, considering the Ford Ranger was the 2024 number-one-selling new car in Australia.

However, in terms of comparable vehicles, the Jeep Wrangler would be the closest in terms of an off-road toy, marking just 724 sales in 2024 (for comparison, 26,494 Everests were sold in 2024).

Sure, Jeep isn't as popular a brand in Australia, but it's a good representation of what the average Australian buyer actually wants.

Our resident off-road expert, Sam Purcell, recently drove the new Bronco Raptor at a launch in the Middle East and shared what you should consider if your heart yearns for a Bronco.

SP: "The Bronco [Raptor] is just really ridiculous; it looks like it's been designed by a six-year-old kid who drank too much red cordial. Big tyres, big suspension and all this cool equipment in it.

"It's the wildest of the Raptors with its big tyres and big dampers; you can probably fit 37-inch tyres on it, which is nearly impossible to engineer by modifying cars available in Australia. Some have done it, but it's just a massive job.

"It rides so soft, it soaks up bumps beautifully, and it has so much power – but can still handle a slow crawl. It definitely bests the Everest and Ranger in terms of madness.

"In terms of what compares, you'd have to modify something. Maybe like a Jeep Wrangler, but then you're stuck with a naturally aspirated V6 that's pretty paltry.

"You could probably modify like a Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series, but that's now only a 2.8-litre diesel, and you'd have to spend a lot on suspension, tyres and engineering to come anywhere close.

"I'd say a Land Rover Defender Octa is the closest thing to it, but they're around $300,000 new, and even then it's such a different car. It's not as silly and rambunctious as the Bronco Raptor."

You can certainly import an older Bronco under a classic car scheme, but the new Bronco has not been placed on the Specialist and Enthusiast Vehicles (SEVs) list just yet.

However, Crossover Car Conversions in Melbourne has been working in the background to bring these vehicles in small numbers.

Without the same factory support as something like RMA, you could be paying a pretty penny for your new Bronco.

We have contacted Crossover Car Conversions for a pricing quote and will update the story with the reply.

Zane Dobie comes from a background of motorcycle journalism, working for notable titles such as Australian Motorcycle News Magazine, Just Bikes and BikeReview. Despite his fresh age, Zane brings a lifetime of racing and hands-on experience. His passion now resides on four wheels as an avid car collector, restorer, drift car pilot and weekend go-kart racer.

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