Video highlights of this vehicle

What Is It?

Ford Bronco Concept

What's Special About It?

There's no doubt that Ford has experienced great success during the past decade with its high SUV and truck sales. Having gone the distance in recently revamping its Explorer and Expedition lineups, Ford is now hearkening back to its SUV roots with the reintroduction of the Ford Bronco nameplate — currently as a concept vehicle.

"The Bronco is designed to be tough, raw and rugged — as if we started with a solid chunk of iron and carved out room for a spare tire and people," said J Mays, Ford Motor Company group vice president of design. The Bronco is designed and engineered to be a no-nonsense SUV with the familiar boxy outline of the original Bronco. Key design features include the upright roofline, short wheelbase and round headlamps. Exposed door hinges and the Bronco name milled into its front grille help strengthen its rough-rider image.

While the Bronco may be built to look like a simple, authentic sport-ute of the olden days, one glance under the hood will remind you just how far SUVs have come. Using the latest common-rail fuel-injection technology, the 2.0-liter intercooled turbodiesel engine puts out 128 horsepower and 244 pound-feet of torque. But that's not all. The added kick of a nitrous oxide system provides a temporary boost of up to 50 hp and a three-second improvement in quarter-mile times at the mere push of a button.

What's Edmunds' Take?

The Bronco concept is not only an exercise in possible Ford SUVs to come, but it also displays new technologies on the horizon to be shared with other Ford vehicles. For example, the Bronco concept uses the same four-wheel-drive system that will be introduced on the 2005 Ford Escape. So whether you set your sights on a possible production Bronco, or merely satisfy yourself with a current Explorer or new Escape, it's clear that Ford intends to remain a secure cornerstone in the SUV game. — Kelly Stennick