Ford gives its 560-mile Bronco Basecamp an EV glamping makeover

Some Ford names come with a fair amount of reputation to live up to. Mustang. GT40. F-150. And, of course, the Bronco – which has built its reputation as a rugged, body-on-frame off-roader that makes you want to leave the highway behind and take on tough terrain … happily. It’s one of Ford’s most cherished vehicles ever, so naturally, the company has now electrified it.

Except there's a rather important catch. This isn't the Bronco you know and love. The new Bronco Basecamp is a completely different animal.

Yes, it's still a five-seater all-wheel-drive SUV, but it now comes from China, thanks to Ford's Jiangling joint venture. It’s also built on a unibody chassis as opposed to a body-on-frame chassis. Less 'conquer the Rubicon Trail,' and more 'find a nice campsite, plug in the coffee machine, and stay there.'

Sure, the Basecamp looks like a Bronco. It has the Bronco name. It borrows heavily from the design language of the American Bronco. But mechanically, it isn't the same vehicle.

The Chinese-market version, known as the Bronco New Energy, measures roughly 197.8 in (5,025 mm) long, 77.1 in (1,960 mm) wide, and 71.5 in (1,815) mm tall, riding on a 116-in (2,950 mm) wheelbase. This one won’t be too different from that.

The Basecamp's party trick is the powertrain. It comes as an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV). Ford calls it a "super-hybrid," which is just marketing speak for 'electric SUV with a gas generator.'

There are two electric motors, one driving each axle, and they're fed by a 49-kWh usable battery. A 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine sits alongside the system, but here's the important bit: it doesn't drive the wheels. It's purely a range extender.

When the battery needs help, the little turbo engine acts as an onboard generator, producing electricity for the system rather than mechanically powering the Bronco. That means the Basecamp behaves much more like an EV than a conventional hybrid.

Ford is currently targeting a combined WLTP range of around 500-560 miles (800-900 km), although final specifications and certification are still to come. As for the electric-only range, Ford has not yet released a number there as well.

The Basecamp has been designed around outdoor recreation rather than hardcore off-roading like other Broncos. Ford says it was engineered "from the campsite out," which tells you all you need to know about the company’s intentions with this iteration.

Case in point: the five-seat cabin can be transformed into a sleeping area by folding the front and rear seats, with an optional custom inflatable mattress filling the resulting cavern. The top-spec Outer Banks version goes one step further with a power-operated pop-up roof, giving you additional headroom and ventilation while sleeping.

There's also an integrated 7.5-liter warm/cool storage console on Outer Banks models, while the rear swing gate incorporates a utility table. It doesn’t end there.

Ford has fitted what it calls the Pro Power Onboard system that delivers up to 6.6 kW of electrical output from the vehicle. That's enough to run an induction cooktop, kettle, coffee machine, lights, laptops and other camping equipment without dragging along a separate generator. Ford says the system has interior and exterior outlets, although the maximum output depends on how those outlets are being used.

The Basecamp is manufactured in China through Ford's partnership with Jiangling Motors, and that makes it part of a much bigger shift in the global auto industry. Chinese automakers have become extremely good at building electrified SUVs that combine large batteries, multiple electric motors, clever packaging, and an alarming quantity of electronics.

Ford has clearly decided that it can use some of that capability rather than trying to reinvent all of it elsewhere. And why wouldn't it? The Chinese Bronco New Energy already exists, and its EREV version has previously been offered with a 43.7-kWh battery, dual-motor all-wheel drive, and a claimed 758-mile (1,220 km) CLTC combined range.

The Basecamp, however, gets a larger battery, while Ford's local WLTP target is much more conservative (at up to 560 miles, as mentioned earlier). The difference in testing cycles makes those numbers impossible to compare directly, but the important point is that Ford isn't starting from scratch.

It's adapting an existing Chinese-developed electrified Bronco for Australia and New Zealand. Ah yes, another key point – only these two countries are getting the Bronco Basecamp … for now.

Ford is still finalizing the Aus/NZ spec Bronco, so don't treat every figure above as set in stone. The company specifically warns that production specifications, appearance, features, and accessories may change before launch.

As for global availability, who knows where the subdued SUV might end up later next year? Which brings me to the main point ... did anyone ask for this?

This isn't Ford's answer to a Land Cruiser or Wrangler Rubicon. It's a lifestyle SUV designed to get you to the outdoors and make it somewhat more comfortable when you get there. Many will even argue that the Bronco has gone soft. But maybe that's the point?

The Basecamp's cleverest feature isn't its range. It isn't even the hybrid drivetrain. It's the fact that Ford seems to have recognized that the modern adventure vehicle doesn't necessarily need to be that crazy, river-crossing, mountain-climbing 4WD.

People want to surf, fish, hike, ride bicycles, take the dog somewhere, sleep beside a lake, make coffee in the middle of nowhere. And then drive home without requiring a winch, a snorkel, and three friends named Dave.

The Basecamp is built around that reality. It’s no secret there will inevitably be people who’ll look at the Basecamp and complain that it isn't a "real" Bronco. They won’t be wrong either.

It isn't the same mechanical proposition. It isn't designed to be a hardcore off-road monster. It doesn't have the body-on-frame architecture of the American Bronco. But I'm not convinced that makes it a bad Bronco. It might actually make it a more useful one for most.

Source: Ford