Why Is The Ford Bronco EV Exclusive To China?

Based on Ford Motor Company's current trajectory, putting the words Bronco and EV together makes a ton of sense. Ford, like every other automaker, has made a big push toward electric vehicles over the last five years, and it's done so using some of its most popular and established brand names, including the Ford Mustang Mach-E electric crossover and the F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck.

The first half of the 2020s have also been successful for the Blue Oval, bringing the storied Bronco name back to its lineup. Not just in the form of off-road monsters like the Bronco Raptor, but also the smaller and more affordable Bronco Sport crossover. Adding a Bronco-branded EV to the lineup makes perfect sense, and that's exactly what the company just debuted, but this version of the Bronco won't be coming to America — at least not yet. 

The Bronco New Energy, as it's being called, is a new SUV for the Chinese market that will be offered in both full electric and plug-in-hybrid variants, and though it resembles the popular Bronco models American buyers are familiar with, there are few reasons why this particular Ford is exclusive to China, and could stay that way, including the fact that it will be built in China and was co-developed by Ford and its Chinese partner, Jiangling Motors.

At a glance, the Bronco New Energy has styling elements from both the Bronco and the Bronco Sport, including the nose of the Bronco Sport and the tail-gate mounted spare tire of the full-size Bronco. Though it's hard to tell from the images, the Bronco New Energy is significantly larger than the Bronco Sport and also longer than the big Bronco in length.

On the Chinese CLTC cycle, which is different to EPA's test cycle, the electric Bronco New Energy has a driving range of 404 miles, while the PHEV version can go up to 137 miles on a single charge of the batteries, after which it can charge its electric motors with its 1.5-liter gasoline engine.

Unlike the American big Bronco, which uses body-on-frame construction, the Bronco New Energy rides on a unibody platform, making it more like an electric version of the Bronco Sport than a rival to the upcoming, body-on-frame Scout EV trucks. In both its EV and PHEV forms, the Bronco New Energy has a powertrain co-developed with Jiangling Motors and batteries from Chinese EV giant BYD. From the perspective of Chinese car buyers, it combines familiar domestic EV tech with a fashionable brand name and a rugged look that stands out from the crowd. 

Not surprisingly, upon the debut of the Bronco New Energy, American Bronco fans and EV enthusiasts wondered if this stylish, electrified Ford SUV would make it to our shores. Right now, it's hard to say how this particular take on an electric Bronco would go over in the American market.

It's entirely possible, and even likely, that the U.S., as well as other international markets, will get an electrified Bronco in the coming years, but that vehicle is likely to be a newly developed model, rather than an exported or domestically assembled version of the Chinese market Bronco New Energy, especially when you factor in the current federal regulatory and economic climate, which has been shifting away from EV incentives and mandates, while also economically penalizing imported vehicles, especially those from China.

Even with those barriers in place, though, there still seems to be room in Ford's lineup for an electrified Bronco, whether it's a PHEV or EV version of the big Bronco 4x4 to take on the International Scout EVs, or a boxier, more rugged EV crossover counterpart to the Mustang Mach-E. EVs may indeed be facing an uphill battle in America right now, but the Bronco name and its fashionable styling could help give Ford a boost in the market.