You may have noticed that there’s a huge hole in the Australian Ford lineup. The “Ranger Car Company” as it’s cheekily known as in some circles still sells big numbers in Australia, largely thanks to the Ranger ute and its Everest SUV sibling. But even just five years ago, Ford sold more variety in Australia, including the Escape medium SUV, and it’s the that segment that we think is a sorely missed opportunity for the brand locally. Enter the Bronco Sport, which sold 135,000 units in the USA in 2025 alone.

Not to be confused with the full-size Bronco off-road SUV that shares its platform with the Ranger and Everest, the Bronco Sport is a smaller and less off-road capable medium SUV. But, crucially for those who love the retro styling of the Bronco, it looks a lot like its bigger sibling with shared big round headlights, a boxy body and a tall rear end.

The Bronco Sport also uses a different platform to the Bronco, and uses the same ‘C2’ platform that underpinned the Escape, as well as the last Focus, so it’s quite car-like to drive. In fact, the Escape was one of the best medium SUVs to drive in Australia, as European-developed Ford products have been since the early 2000s when the first Focus went on sale locally.

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In the United States, the Bronco Sport starts from around US$32,000 (approximately A$47,000 before local taxes and on-road costs at current conversion rates) for the entry-level Big Bend model, rising to around US$42,000 (roughly A$61,000) for the top-spec Badlands variant. If the Bronco Sport were sold locally, it would need to be less expensive than that, but they’re not bad considering how well equipped across the range the Bronco Sport is.

Under the bonnet, the Bronco Sport offers two familiar turbocharged petrol engines from Ford’s ‘EcoBoost’ engine family. Most variants use a 134kW/270Nm turbocharged 1.5-litre three-cylinder, while the off-road-focused Badlands upgrades to a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder producing 186kW of power and and 380Nm of torque.

Both engines are paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive as standard, and while there’s no hybrid system available in the US currently, the 145kW 2.5-litre hybrid from the Maverick ute (which uses the same platform as the Bronco Sport) would likely be an easy fit.

But whereas a lot of the medium SUVs feature very little off-road ability, the Bronco Sport can handle reasonable off-road journeys well. Sure, it’s nowhere near as capable as the full fat Bronco, but it’ll go much further off the beaten track than the majority of its rivals.

The top-spec Bronco Sport Badlands model is particularly impressive because it features a more sophisticated twin-clutch rear-drive unit that actively distributes torque between the rear wheels, upgraded suspension and additional G.O.A.T. (Ford’s ‘Goes Over Any Terrain’ marketing) drive modes. According to reviews, all of that allows the Badlands to tackle surprisingly challenging terrain.

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As for size, the Bronco Sport is around 30cm shorter than a new-generation Toyota RAV4, measuring 4387mm long, 1887mm wide and between 1783 mm and 1814 mm tall, depending on the model chosen. Its 2670mm long wheelbase is just 20mm shorter than a RAV4 though, so its rear seat space is plentiful, and there’s 920 litres of space behind the rear seats (measured to the roof) and around 1850 litres with the rear seats folded. Both numbers would make it one of the most spacious in the segment locally.

Alas, the Bronco Sport isn’t produced in right-hand drive for the time being, and we think that’s a shame. Sure, the majority of medium SUVs sold will never see anything but a tarmac, but the Bronco Sport appeals to buyers who spend 95 per cent of their time on sealed roads but still want to explore beaches, forest tracks and remote campsites on weekends, like cars such as the Subaru Crosstrek and Forester.

That’s why the Bronco Sport is a missed opportunity for Australia. Local SUV buyers have shown support for outdoors-oriented crossovers. Ford Australia already enjoys huge success with the Ranger and Everest, meaning the Bronco Sport would naturally complement those vehicles, while also attracting customers who don’t necessarily need a full-size four-wheel drive. Importantly too, if ute or large SUV sales start to die, the Bronco Sport would potentially give Ford Australia another volume-selling model to pivot towards.

While enthusiasts would undoubtedly love to see the real Bronco sold locally, to us, the Bronco Sport represents a stronger business case. It delivers much of the spirit of its bigger brother in a package that’s more affordable to buy and better suited to Australia’s love affair with medium SUVs. Because of that, we think that the Bronco Sport could be exactly the vehicle that Ford Australia is missing.