Ford CEO Jim Farley has dropped a major hint the Bronco name is set to be used on a new Spanish-built SUV scheduled to arrive in European showrooms in 2027 – though it’s not yet confirmed for Australia.

According to Autocar, the Ford chief made the comments at January’s Detroit motor show in the US, saying: “The Bronco lineup is filling out globally, and I don’t think the media has caught onto that yet … We have great plans globally for Bronco.”

The Bronco name is currently used on a Ford Ranger-derived, Jeep Wrangler-rivalling body-on-frame off-roader built in the US and exported to markets like Europe; and the Bronco Sport, a smaller unibody SUV related to the Ford Escape and not sold in Europe.

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It’s also used in China on the Bronco New Energy, which rides on a car-like unibody platform like the Bronco Sport but is larger – at more than five metres long – and offered as either an electric vehicle (EV) or an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV).

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CarExpert understands Ford Australia will bring the China-made model to Australia, though it has yet to make any official announcement about it joining the local lineup.

Mr Farley said, as reported by Autocar, customers should “expect a lot of exciting powertrains for Bronco”, further suggesting the Bronco name will be applied to a portfolio of different SUVs in Ford showrooms globally.

The new SUV for Europe is expected to combine Escape (badged as Kuga in Europe and the UK) underpinnings with the chunky design language of the Bronco off-roader.

It’s expected to be a more premium model than the Escape – which was dropped from Ford’s Australian lineup in 2023 and its US lineup in 2025 – but will still be positioned as a rival to the Volkswagen Tiguan/Tayron, Kia Sportage and Hyundai Tucson.

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Autocar reports the new Bronco crossover will, like the Escape, be offered as a plug-in hybrid. Ford is putting greater focus on powertrains such as hybrids and EREVs after having lost billions of dollars on its EV programs amid slower-than-anticipated EV take-up.

In late 2025, Mr Farley told La Nación in Argentina: “We don’t want to build cars for everyone; we want to make beautiful off-road machines and work vehicles.”

He has also outlined ambitions for Ford to become “the Porsche of off-road”, expanding brands including Raptor and Bronco, while the company has also recently trademarked another heritage nameplate – Ranchero – in the US.

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