Have you ever felt like your life could use a pop of color? Looking around any given streetscape presents us with grey buildings, grey pavements, grey clothes, and of course, grey cars. Well how’s this for an antidote? Ford has revealed a Bronco Sport compact crossover that’s wearing the shirt of a Free Wheeling F-150 from the ‘70s and it’s absolutely killing it.
If you aren’t familiar with the original Free Wheeling Fords of the ‘70s, they were technicolor trucks and vans for a post-’60s decade of cultural hangover. There was still a whole lot of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll going on, but it was less contained to the college student hippies of the peace decade. If these stripey Econolines were rocking, don’t come knocking.
With a disco state of mind, Ford broke out the vinyl and went to work on the Bronco Sport, giving it more stripes than the average tiger. Crimson, vermilion, pumpkin, tangerine, and yellow stripes blanket the body sides and hood, while shockingly orange wheel inserts cap off the exterior’s ‘70s look. It’s outlandish, but exactly the sort of outlandish we need. If Kia can sell a crossover that looks like it’s face was eaten for the sake of being bold, why not fight back with something more cheerful than aggro?
Wonderfully, Ford hasn’t left the inside alone, instead investing in similarly-stripey seat inserts, colorful stitching and orange dash trim to make an otherwise dark interior feel bright and energetic. It’s just all so fun, such a breath of fresh air in an era obsessed with all-black accents and greyscale paint.
However, beneath the fantastic ‘70s throwback livery, there is a slight problem — the Free Wheeling Edition Bronco Sport is based on the three-cylinder Big Bend trim, and you really want the Badlands trim for the best Bronco Sport experience. Swapping out the 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine for a two-liter turbocharged four-banger picks up the refinement and pace substantially, and the extra off-road goodies like an electronically-variable locking rear differential perform superbly on seriously slippery surfaces. The standard powertrain is adequate, but the Badlands engine makes the Bronco Sport much more competitive.
Still, since the Bronco Sport Free Wheeling Edition is a special edition model that’s likely to only stick around for one year, you’re more likely to see one on the roads than drive one, so does the powertrain really matter? It looks cheery, iconoclastic, and extroverted, a rare combination on today’s roads. Oh, and if none of that sounds like your cup of tea, Ford also has a 2024 Bronco Sport for you.
Dubbed the Black Appearance Pack, it does exactly what it says on the tin — blacks out the compact crossover’s roof, badges, and wheels, and adds a matte black hood graphic. I’m sure I’d find it great if I was 17 and “murdered-out” was still an aftermarket look, but in 2023, it just feels a bit boring. My advice? If you really want a Bronco Sport and are able to get a pop of color, take it.
[Editor’s Note: I gotta hand it to Ford for its fun colors on the Bronco Sport. I went off-roading with a Heritage Edition Bronco Sport, and I was into the color scheme:
-DT]
(Photo credits: Ford)
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Why do they keep changing the old paint to try to “improve it”. These new stripes look like ass compared to the old ones. They do this on ALL of their “heritage” bullshit models and its beyond my brain to comprehend. JUST COPY THE ONE YOU DID 40 YEARS AGO EXACTLY. All the new ones look so bad compared to the old ones.
I hate modern vehicle design. I hate this generation of designers and writers who can’t do a fucking thing originally so they have to ruin everything that came before to pretend they invented something new.
First and foremost, the obsessive yet diverse Autopian community would make for one hell of a focus group for any automaker. You should have consulted us before you tried to pull this off Ford.
Now on to my gripes…
Why is the base color gray?
This makes it look so tacked on.
If you’re going for fun and colorful don’t start with such a boring canvas.
Yellow or light blue would be a good start. Hell even white would be better.
Why the lines of base color between the colors?
It’s like looking at a painting and seeing the canvas beneath it.
Which means it’s not a good painting.
It makes it look like stickers, and gives off a bad wood paneling vibe.
The originals didn’t allow your eye to go there.
Once again, tacked on.
The orange(?) accents on the wheels and badges?
It’s been covered and I agree they look like adolescent aspirations of cool.
Like when I carelessly stole a random color of my sisters fingernail polish when I was nine so I could paint my Hot Wheels.
You did this for the Bronco Sport?
C’mon! Are you even aware you have a fan base of fanatics? I don’t think you are Ford.
I mean, I like that you’re trying, but you should have consulted us first.
This could have been awesome.
Not saying you are wrong, but you can get this on some colors, including red, green, and blue. It’s Atlas Blue, and the other two don’t seem like good ideas, but at least it isn’t just gray.
The other points are pretty good points, though.
I know.. but “at least it isn’t just gray” seems to be as far as they could be bothered to go here.
It just reminds me of Toyota’s TRD stripes to be honest. I prefer the sunset appliqué on the Jeep’s back then. This looks lame.Try wood trim next maybe.
The idea is excellent, and I loudly and robustly applaud Ford for actually doing something this cool.
The execution is ok. Not sure why they would choose the Bronco Sport over the real one, and the wheels are not awesome. I don’t hate red wheels, but those wheels are so not 70s and the red does not suit them.
I don’t think it looks worse than a regular Bronco Sport.
I saw one of those robin’s blue Bronco Sports at the grocery store, and I had to stare at it. Until I realized the driver was still inside looking at me. Then I ran away into the store because it got awkward.
The driver liked it.
We all know they did.
You don’t buy a “cactus gray”(?) Bronco Sport to blend in.
I like the stripes and love the seats but the wheels gotta go. They look like what happens when a kid gets their first car and their first can of plastidip.
I’m proud to say that I made it through my teenage car enthusiast years without ever painting a set of stock wheels and I’m not about to drive something today that has that look.
I have two cars with painted OEM wheels. I painted one of them. The other can legitimately pass for rotiforms.
Make the wheels silver and you got a deal.
Make them throwback slot mags and I’ll buy two.
I’m not going to lie, I do not understand why they chose to do this on the Sport? Because the moment you look it, the internet delivers you a handful of gloriously talk ’79 Broncos in all their utility beauty and then I have to go back to staring at a Bronco Sport and I’m supposed to feel good about that?
I want to see this on the Bronco, in fact, I’ll probably go fire up Forza this afternoon and do it myself.
Preach on. This thing is clear evidence that corporations simply don’t give a real shit anymore.
It’s the latest Marvel movie compared to The Godfather.
I’m guessing it has to do with production time lines, the sport was out first. If so we might see it on the Bronco next year.
The Sport is now being offered with buyer incentives – lower rate and cash back – I presume sales are slowing on this model and this is a way to get it back on people’s radar again.
I love it. You almost can’t tell if the vehicle is gray.
And you can get it on actual colors. Red looks weird, but you can put this on blue, which looks nice.
I was just coming down here to comment about how much better those stripes would look on blue. ????
Yeah, if they offered it with the Escape PHEV powertrain, I’d be considering this package in Atlas Blue. I just can’t see myself getting a 3 cylinder that only gets mid-20s mpg, but I like the look.
I think all these special decal packages and colorways look like shit (maybe it’s the Bronco Sport itself?) but I respect Ford for doing it
It’s an attention getter. Even if you don’t like the appearance package, you at least look at the truck again and maybe look into the model for purchase.
They should have gone with their “cactus gray” as the base color with white (instead of red) on the wheels and badges.
This! I love the stripes, but the orange wheel accents seems a step too far.
I feel the same way about the red BRONCO on the front of the heritage editions. They’re already colorful, and with the white wheels, it’s just too much discordant color.
Decal kits again?
No it’s a factory trim package?
What’s next wood grain vinyl?
Maybe a wild galloping Shetland pony silhouette?
1st one you see is cool, 10th one, oh yeah.
When every row of parking at the shopping mall has at least one, ha ha.
These will be rarer I expect. It’ll take someone like us to actually buy one of these; your average Bronco Sport buyer is buying them in black or gray I suspect, and certainly wouldn’t get the genesis of this.
That said, I’ve always felt that the retro Mustangs (SN95 and S197, the last of the live rear axles) needed a pop or two of fake woodgrain, just to complete the vibe.
This is pretty great, even if I think the robin’s egg heritage looks better. Glad to see fun colors, and I really like that the interior matches.
Solid fun package overall, especially those seats, but the red on the wheels makes me shudder. Feels like a Pep Boys special. To be fair, so does the red on white of the Heritage grille.
Small gripes to have when an automaker is daring to have fun again
When can we expect the new Mustang to offer an homage to the ’78 King Cobra?
I thought Matt would chime in about the resemblance to the Astros tequila sunrise color scheme. I’m interested just for that
We need to add a caption to that F150 advertisement photo. What exactly are those 2 guys talking about?
How do they get it so close, but so wrong??? They have the order backwards, it was correct on the ’70’s truck. The dark colours should be at the bottom. Damn, man, millennial designers these days just don’t get the 70’s.
*ducks*
you beat me to it. 100% the correct take.
I noticed it but I’m ok with the reverse as it more correctly resembles a sunset or sunrise.
What I find to be a bigger problem is the hood execution. They should have just left them off the hood. Both sides have the stripes going in the same direction; lighter yellows at the bottom and darker reds at the top. Then they follow that with fantastic recreations on the seats.
But the stripes on the hood are “sideways” for the design. They could have done something clever and placed them across the hood in between the two risen bump areas of the hood and that would be ok I guess. But as it is, it “reads” correct when viewed at one angle and upside down from the opposite angle. Also, it’s just too much, the sides were plenty for this execution and the hood is way too much and overdone.
Almost, Ford. So close…
Yeah, I feel the same way about the orange accents on the wheels. Even the original ’70s F150 shown doesn’t go that far.
Oh, wow. I had only looked at the sides. That hood would bother me more than I should probably admit.
But I definitely agree that I like the sunset gradient. I think it looks at least as good as the opposite.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcToaJm_ZLhRjMo7IoriB2i-qND2ZOEBYzHxd1aJEF4K8O5ZesI9S_mZf4M&s=10
A quick Google tells me that the colour gradient is in fact correct?
OK, so when are we going to see the Free Wheeling edition extended to the Bronco, Maverick, Ranger, and (why not) Transit?
When their sales numbers decrease, you’ll see special editions. Not now.
But Bronco Sport sales aren’t decreasing. YTD 2023 is up 8% from the same period in 2022 and is on pace to be the best year since the Bronco Sport launched.
She comes in colors everywhere
She combs her hair
She’s like a rainbow
Coming, colors in the air
Oh, everywhere
She comes in colors
–Rolling Stones
I love how ford is actually doing some fun colors on the Broco Sport and Bronco. I saw a Bronco with a sweet retro stripe and the “heritage” colors for the BS are great, there’s a couple of the blue ones here in town. And everyone I know who bought a Maverick got Area 51 paint which is a pretty sweet moonrock blue-gray.
I like it. I was going to say it’s a shame it doesn’t come with the better engine and all wheel drive system…but I watched the Savagegeese video on the Heritage Edition yesterday, and if you combine that with the Big Bend package it costs nearly $50,000. For a fucking Escape with some cooler sheet metal!
This is fine. No one will ever take one of these off-road anyway and if Brad or Becky want to look cool in the Whole Foods parking lot that’s fine with me. At least these things are small and pleasant to look at…and as I’ve said a few times, this is the correct answer for 95% of people that buy Wranglers, big Broncos, et cetera if they chose to be honest with themselves about how much capability they actually need.
If folks want to cosplay as adventurers I’d rather they do it in a 3 cylinder car that’s roughly the size of a lifted Golf than take up 1.5 lanes of traffic in a gas guzzling rollover prone brick that’ll never see worse than a grass parking lot…
I have also revised my outlook to something similar to this. I’m mostly done making fun of the outdoorsy cosplay, as I don’t want people buying lifted Broncos with monster truck tires as a response.
This looks like fun (colors!) and if someone wants to pretend their Ford Escape is more fun than it is, have at it! The Bronco Sport is to the Escape as the Accord coupe was to the Accord sedan. And I wish we had more options to dress up mundane cars today.
I really wish they’d bring the PHEV or at least the hybrid Escape powertrain to it, though. Mid-20s mpg isn’t great, but the Bronco Sport is just reminiscent enough of my old Explorer that I would probably by one that got mid-30s or so. And reasonable EV range would leave me not using gas a lot of the time.
But, yeah, a smaller adventure cosplay is great. Especially given that people suck at driving and parking regardless of vehicle, and that is magnified so much by size.
My wife once called the Bronco Sport the Yoga Girl Bronco which reminded me of British folks calling certain cars a hairdresser’s car
Ford: aaaand we’re done. No more colors after this
Based on Ford’s recent track record I can only wonder how long until Ford announces a recall for Decal Delamination at highway speeds or something…
How long before Kid Rock shoots up a Rainbow Bronco Sport?
I was going to say they’re about a month late in announcing this.
Don’t say gay.
It’ll be banned in Florida too.