‘New’ classic Ford Bronco revealed – with Australian engineering

The Melbourne-based team behind Nissan’s Warrior off-roaders – and the legendary FPV Falcons – have helped a US firm bring the classic Ford Bronco into the modern age.

A well-known Australian engineering firm has helped one US company achieve its dream of rebirthing the classic Ford Bronco off-roader with modern underpinnings.

At the Monterey Car Week, US company Gateway Bronco unveiled the Luxe-GT – a 1960s-style Ford Bronco tribute, running on a chassis developed by Melbourne-based engineering company Premcar.

If Premcar sounds familiar, it is the firm behind the Nissan Warrior series – both the Navara Pro-4X Warrior off-road ute and Patrol Warrior off-road 4WD wagon – and was born out of the now-defunct Ford Performance Vehicles (FPV) operations.

In a media statement, Premcar announced the Gateway Bronco Luxe-GT is based on an all-new ladder-frame chassis developed by the Australian company.

While development of Premcar’s ladder-frame chassis – codenamed Pegasus – took place in Melbourne, production has been outsourced to RLE International in Detroit, due to its proximity to Gateway Bronco.

Though the off-roader’s bodywork appears to be straight out of the 1960s, underneath it features modern safety technology such as electronic stability control, traction control and anti-lock brakes.

According to Premcar, the chassis can fit a number of current Ford engines – including the 343kW ‘Coyote’ V8, which powers the Ford Mustang – while it is also able to be equipped with the 10-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel-drive system from a modern Bronco.

Gateway Bronco also offers buyers with the ability to order electric power for their retro-inspired off-roaders, though they aren’t cheap – with prices starting from $US465,000 ($AU725,000).

The company doesn’t list prices for its V8-powered vehicles, but a handful of already-completed examples are listed from $US205,000 ($AU320,000) on its website.

Unfortunately, as with Ford’s official new-generation Bronco, the Gateway off-roader is not planned for official sale in Australia as it is built in left-hand drive only.

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