The new Ford Bronco is one of the hottest cars of the year and it’s not even out yet. This is an off-road convertible SUV with retro styling done right and a swathe of clever new features. The answer to the question of why it exists is obvious: the Jeep Wrangler had essentially monopolized this market segment and was long overdue for a competitor. But there are other segments in the off-road-ready SUV/CUV space so Ford is also rolling out the Bronco Sport.
It’s a compact SUV about the size of a Mercedes-Benz GLB-Class. Except it isn’t like any other compact SUV on the market. Like its big brother, the Bronco Sport wears macho, rectangular styling, and it’s easily the best-looking vehicle in its class to my eyes. Of course, this is not exactly unique to the Sport – the Jeep Renegade and Mercedes GLB also resemble a medium-sized USPS shipping package.
Additionally, the Bronco Sport works off-road.
At this point, you may wonder what I’m on about. The Jeep Renegade is a small crossover with boxy styling. The Subaru Forester is a small crossover that can go off-road. But the Bronco Sport is different. It sounds like the Bronco Sport is good at everything the Renegade can do and everything the Subaru can do. The Subaru is pedestrian and the Renegade is, frankly, kind of crappy. But the Bronco Sport does it all and does it well. On top of that, it’s cool-looking and has a bit more attitude and style than most of the competition.
So, in my view, the Bronco Sport lacks a true competitor.
There is no other small crossover on the market that works as well as an off-roader and as a daily driver, especially for the money. Plus, the Bronco Sport has added some cool factor to one of the lamest segments in the car industry. Hopefully, other automakers catch on, and auto enthusiasts will have a slew of smaller, relatively civilized, off-road capable SUVs to choose from.
But for now, we ask, what competes with the Ford Bronco Sport?
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