2026 Ford Bronco Review

To honor the Bronco’s 60th birthday, Ford has made a red and white 60th Anniversary version. It adds bucking bronco logos and “60” badges to various exterior and interior spots, building on the Outer Banks’ Sasquatch.

Pros

• Really good right from the maker.
• Open-top drive that’s fun.
• Make icon sets.

Cons

• Not very good at using fuel.
• The car becomes noticeably loud when driving at high speeds on the highway.
• Better than the Wrangler and 4Runner?

• The SUV comes with two engine choices: a 2.3-liter turbocharged four-cylinder producing 300 horsepower, or a 2.7-liter twin-turbo V6 generating 330 horsepower.
• It comes equipped with a 10-speed automatic transmission as well as a 7-speed manual option.
• There are four wheels on the engine.

The 330-hp twin-turbo 2.7-liter V-6 comes with a 10-speed automatic transmission as standard. However, you can also get a four-speed stick transmission if you’d rather build your own. Unfortunately, neither engine delivers an exciting sound, which is a bit of a disappointment.

This is an off-road car, equipped with a four-wheel-drive system that must be engaged when off-road and disengaged when returning to the road. Because it has an independent front suspension and well-calibrated handling, the Bronco is a big SUV that is meant to be used every day. The Ford generally moves better than the Jeep Wrangler and can go along the Interstate without having to change its steering as often as the Jeep does. It also has more accurate steering than the Jeep, which has a live axle on both ends.

Notable features include wheels that can be bedded, electronic locking front and rear differentials, wide 35-inch all-terrain tires, and an anti-roll-bar disconnect system that lets the wheels move as far as possible.

Ford doesn’t give the base Bronco a lot of driver-assistance features. Still, all of them come with automatic high beams, automatic emergency brakes, and a system that can handle different terrains with at least five settings.

• Automatic high-beam headlights and automatic emergency brakes are standard safety features.
• Adaptive cruise control, parking sensors, and blind spot tracking are all extra safety features that can be added.

First Row: The front seats were comfortable and roomy, even for our tallest workers, although they were somewhat compromised by a lot of wind noise (see our long-term Bronco review). We can see why Ford used hard plastic all over the car, even though it never feels five-star. This is a strong outdoor vehicle—notice how the roof and doors can be taken off—and the material won’t break easily. Ford now offers marine-grade vinyl upholstery and rubberized floors, catering to customers who frequently leave their cars open to the weather.

Second Row: The Bronco’s back row has four seats and two doors, so two adults can fit easily there. Three people can fit in the second row of the four-door sedan, which has a lot more headroom.

Cargo Capacity: The four-door SUV offers more cargo space than the two-door SUV, and all four doors can be removed. To take the back seats home, you have to fold them down if you want to take off the two-door Bronco’s doors while you’re out and about.

• Highway Gas Mileage at 75 mph. The test showed that the twin-turbo V-6 got 18 mpg, the turbo-four with a seven-speed manual got 19 mpg, and the turbo-four with an automatic transmission got 22 mpg.
• The EPA rates cities at 17 to 19 mpg.
• The EPA rates highway gas mileage at 18 to 21 mpg.

The EPA has not yet released the 2026 Ford Bronco’s fuel economy numbers, but they should stay the same. It is thought that the four-cylinder engine and automatic gear in the 2025 Bronco will get no more than 18 mpg in the city and 22 mpg on the highway. The manual takes one mpg off the second number.

The six-cylinder Outer Banks Bronco achieves 21 mpg in city driving and 19 mpg on the highway, making it the most fuel-efficient Bronco for urban use. However, adding the Sasquatch package reduces its fuel efficiency to the teens.

Based on our observations while driving Broncos with automatic transmissions on our 75-mph fuel-economy route, these numbers are correct.

• 12.0-inch tablet for entertainment.
• The vehicle features Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity and is fully compatible with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
• Audio systems include a 7-speaker radio as standard and a 12-speaker B&O stereo as an option.

Inside the dash, there is a 12.0-inch tablet that runs Ford’s Sync 4 software. Users can connect to Android Auto and Apple CarPlay apps wirelessly, and app updates can be made over the air. There are some Broncos with better sound systems than the usual seven-speaker setup, and a lot of them have navigation built right in.

The twin-turbo V6 reaches 60 mph in 6.2 seconds, whereas the turbo-four does so in 7.1 seconds with the automatic transmission and 7.4 seconds with the seven-speed manual.

A twin-turbo V-6 Wildtrak, on the other hand, had the fastest time to 60 mph (6.2 seconds) of any Bronco model we tried, except for Raptors. By comparison, a Bronco Everglades with a four-cylinder engine and automatic transmission accelerates to 60 mph in 7.1 seconds.

• Tow up to 3500 pounds of weight.

When it comes to the most weight it can pull, the Bronco is about the same as the Jeep Wrangler, but not as good as the Toyota 4Runner.

The 2026 Ford Bronco is priced between $42,000 and $55,000, depending on the model and optional features selected. Not answering is wrong. Each Bronco model features an impressive exterior and offers versatility that allows it to tackle off-road terrain beyond what most drivers would typically attempt. It limits your trim level choices and makes it hard for parents to load little kids in the back, but we prefer the look of the two-door model and appreciate that the back seat remains useful.