Revealed! Ford Purposely Underrated The New Bronco

The reborn 2021Ford Broncois one of the Blue Oval's most highly anticipated new reveals of the year, alongside the all-electricMustang Mach-E. Next year, the big debut will be the all-electric F-150, which couldrevive the Lightning name. But the focus right now remains all Bronco because the first deliveries are due this year after a nearly year-long wait.

Bronco production at the Michigan Assembly Plant will betemporarily shutting downthe last two weeks of this month due to the semiconductor chip shortage crisis. This won't affect the first batch of deliveries and Ford remains adamant additional Bronco sales won't be affected. Great news, right? For certain, and now there's more.

According to a technical sheet discovered by the Bronco 6G Forum, both Bronco engines are more powerful than what Ford initially claimed. How much more powerful? The base 2.3-liter four-cylinder EcoBoost and optional 2.7-liter V6 EcoBoost are rated at 270 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque, and 310 hp and 400 lb-ft of twist, respectively. The spec sheet confirms Ford underrated all of those numbers.

2.3 EcoBoost's true output is 300 hp and 325 lb-ft and V6 has up to 330 hp and 415 lb-ft. It should be noted those numbers do require premium fuel and regular fuel will drop them slightly to 275 hp and 315 lb-ft, and 315 and 410 lb-ft.

So why did Ford underrate these figures in the first place? The answers can vary but typically their standard of measuring is in different conditions compared to how most people dyno their cars. For example, the air is less dense when testing in hot climates or at high altitudes, resulting in a lower output. Other times it's for marketing reasons.

This is a common practice among automakers, especially high-performance brands like BMW, Porsche, and Mercedes-Benz. Whatever the situation was at Ford, we honestly don't care. More power is more power (for regular and premium fuel!), and both Bronco engines deliver the goods.