As a reviewer I struggle with pricy large SUVs whose sole purpose appears to be off-road shenanigans.
It’s not the driving mind you, just the idea of these things as expensive toys.
This week’s quandary is a stylish Wimbledon White ($495) Ford Bronco, the big boy 4-door model loaded up with the Outer Banks package, an engine upgrade, a 60th Anniversary package and Sasquatch (really) package. All those aim at making an already off-road worthy SUV into a planet crusher.
That means taking a modest (yes, really) $50,085 SUV up to nearly $70 grand.
This is where my confusion begins. I understand the fun of rock crawling and mud splashing, but how many of the roughly 146,000 annual buyers (2025) of such a pricey truck do serious off-roading? General industry knowledge says maybe up to 10% of buyers go full-on ditch banging, the rest pay for the image of being an adventurous sort, apparently with money to burn.
As I said, I get the desire to go where others fear to tread. I’ve gone there, but always with someone else’s (usually a manufacturer’s) vehicle. I appreciate their putting up with the scrapes and dents and mud-packed wheel wells. But would I risk my $70 grand of fresh metal and composites? Not likely.
So, who are these folks that pay through the keister for such dusty, mucky high-cost thrills?
Online sources say they are mostly 25–50-year-old men (Jeep skews a bit older). Although for the new Bronco (reintroduced in 2021 after a 30-year absence) women make up more than 30% of buyers. No matter their gender, most are mid- to upper-middle income earners, and this is their second vehicle. Many pay cash. Wow!
So, from a daily-driver standpoint, what are the highs and lows?
Start with the highs.
This Outer Banks edition (one of seven trims on offer) added the optional 2.7-liter EcoBoost turbo V6 ($2,995) with 330 horsepower and a monster torque rating of 415. Grunt and jump are plentiful, and power can be applied to all four wheels via a 10-speed gearbox.
Ground clearance is a reasonable 8.3 inches, and the Sasquatch package adds an advanced 4x4 system made for off-roading, plus a 4.7 rear axle-locking differential along with a front axle locking diff and knobbly off-road R/T tires. All that, for $6,465, enhances Bronco’s off-road abilities.
We’ve tested similar Broncos (and competing off roaders) at Road America’s rugged off-road course for media days and they perform beautifully, if we can call such brutishness beautiful.
Power and off-roading the Bronco delivers in excess.
Still, one can have more by going top-end with the Bronco Raptor and its similar engine tweaked to produce a massive 418 horsepower with 440 pound-feet of torque. It rolls even higher with springs and shocks enabling 13.1 inches of ground clearance. That’s serious, as is cost at about $78,000 for starters. A Raptor can easily reach into the $100k range when optioned up.
Other goodies on the Outer Banks trim include standard running boards and multiple boarding handles on all the roof pillars, to ease access.
Meanwhile dialing in the off-road niceties, like the locking diffs, is easily accomplished via buttons atop the dash and five G.O.A.T. (Goes Over Any Terrain) drive modes are dialed in on a big console dial. Quick and easy.
Smartly, Ford goes with a 12-inch touchscreen for info purposes, and it’s easy to see and figure out. Yet there also are dash buttons for climate controls, the heated front seats and steering wheel, and a few other odds and ends. Easy peasy!
There’s a wireless charger on the console, a locking glove box and good-looking black and white fake leather seats.
The Outer Banks package itself adds a 360-degree camera, adaptive cruise control, and 12 stereo speakers, and full supplemental seat restraint system for $2,825.
Overhead are removeable roof panels that are fairly easy to unlatch, although best to have two folks lifting and separating them from the vehicle. This convertible effect is much like what Jeep’s Wrangler has been offering for decades. Doors also come off (except Raptor), if you have the time or climate that allows you to leave your vehicle roofless and doorless for more than a few hours of driving fun.
Here’s where some downsides start. First, the second row’s roof panel is large and definitely requires two people to easily remove or replace it. The back, cargo cover, likewise.
While these look great, the fit is not perfect and snugging them back down requires a bit of pushing and pulling to properly align everything so the interior latches will flip to their closed position. Air leaks are common. My wife insisted that a window was down on one drive due to the whistling wind. None were askew.
Add to that the major tire noise from the big off-roaders and as I’d said in a previous 2-door Bronco review, this may be the noisiest interior I’ve ever ridden in.
Ride also is punishing at times, a lot of rock and roll and not the classic 1970s type. Of course, those monster tires don’t help, nor Bronco’s off-road friendly suspension. You feel every road imperfection. If we lived in California or other points south with smooth roads, maybe that wouldn’t be an issue. It is in the Midwest.
Well shy of 5,000 pounds (I was surprised it didn’t weigh more), the Bronco feels bulky. There’s plenty of play in the steering wheel, which is fine when straddling boulders, but less fun on the highway as it wanders in its lane. Parking is fairly easy though as Bronco has a decent turning radius.
Gas mileage? You really want to go there?
This is rated at 17 mpg city and highway, which is exactly what the trip computer claimed I was getting. Surprisingly though, my calculation put the Outer Banks unit at 20.2 mpg, but I wasn’t revving that engine to climb a steep hill. Your results may vary, and premium fuel is requested.
I’m no fan of a giant split tailgate where the bottom swings wide like a fifth door. But it’s a heavy door because the large spare tire hangs back there. Also, like most SUVs, the A-pillars are quite thick, so can block side views.
A few more things of note, cargo space is generous at 38.3 cubic feet behind the rear seat. Fold it down and that grows to 83 cu.ft. Plus the Bronco will pull 3,500 pounds of boat and trailer. The powerful Raptor pushes that to 4,500 pounds.
While I can’t appreciate all the Bronco’s features I do like the way this one looks.
The Wimbledon White is a historic Ford color, a creamy white and here is accented with red 60th anniversary logos and trim, part of a $4,995 special package. That adds 17-inch Gravity Gray alloy wheels, a steel front bumper and a sound-deadening headliner, which I suppose helps a bit. But the 60th anniversary graphics on the doors, a console nameplate, and red Bronco lettering on the grille and hard spare tire cover really set this apart on the road.
Certainly, that makes the Bronco look special, although I still don’t get banging up my own pricey SUV. But I’d be happy to drive yours across the Mojave!
FAST STATS: 2026 Ford Bronco Outer Banks 4-door 4x4
Hits: Off-road ability, good power, dial for 5 G.O.A.T modes, button-activated locking differential, running boards, boarding handles, big screen, useful dash buttons and knobs, wireless charger, heated seats and steering wheel, removeable roof panels, stylish inside and out.
Misses: Severe tire and wind noise, rough ride, balky feel, roof panels fit less than perfect, poor mpg, split rear hatch door heavy with spare tire, giant A-pillars and drinks premium gas.
Made in: Taylor, Mich.
Engine: 2.7-liter EcoBoost turbo V6, 330 hp/415 torque
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Weight: 4,637 lbs.
Wheelbase: 116.1 in.
Length: 189.4 in.
Cargo: 38.3 - 83 cu.ft.
Tow: 3,500 lbs.
MPG: 17/17
MPG: 17 computer/20.2 (tested)
Base Price: $50,085 (includes delivery)
Invoice: $48,402
Major Options:
Group 314A (Outer Banks Series, Lux package, 360-camera, adapative cruise control, 12 speakers, SDRS), $2,825
Wimbledon White paint, $495
2.7-liter EcoBoost V6, $2,995
60th Anniversary Pkg. (hard top Wimbledon White, 17-inch Gravity Gray alloy wheels, steel front bumper, 60th Anniversary graphics, sound-deadening headliner), $4,995
Sasquatch Pkg. (Advanced 4x4, 4.7/rear axle-locking diff, front axle locking diff, R/T tires), $6,465
Floor liners w/floor mats, $160
Conn. Pkg. 1-time/7-yr. plan, $745
Sirius XM 3-yr. plan, $300
Test vehicle: $69,065
Sources: Ford, www.kbb.com
