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2021 FORD BRONCO REMOVEABLE BODY PANELS: MODULARITY DETAILED

Here’s What Makes The Bronco Modular

2021 Ford Bronco
Photo via Ford

The 2021 Ford Bronco is sure to be a great off-road enthusiast vehicle from the factory. But like its chief rival, the Jeep Wrangler, Ford knows Bronco owners will be quick to customize their Bronco with performance and styling enhancements. Because of this, they’ve designed the Bronco to be modular, with almost every body panel able to come off with ease for a variety of reasons. The doors and roof are obvious, to provide an open air driving experience, but Ford also allows the fenders, grille and more to come off easily for future upgrades.

At the basic level removable components, the doors can be taken off with ease. They require only a minute or two to take off, and involve just two bolts and one electrical connection. Ford’s decision to fit the Bronco with frameless doors makes them lighter and more compact than they would otherwise be. As for the roof, it should also be fairly painless. Both the hardtop and soft top can be removed in front and rear halves with one to two people.

Photo via Ford

But it’s the other panels that are perhaps more interesting. Around the vehicle, a Bronco logo on an exterior or interior component means that part can be easily removed for customization or off-roading. The fenders, for example, only require a handful of bolts to be taken off, and can be done by one person in a matter of minutes. Ford Bronco owners may want to take their fenders and doors off when off-roading to avoid scratching the paintwork. They could also remove them to fit accessory parts, from Ford or aftermarket companies. The same goes for the grille and bumpers.

Ford says this allows customers to not only customize their vehicles to their liking, but modify it to different use cases. Want to go rock crawling one weekend? Take off all the body panels, roof and doors. Want to go overloading the next? Put on a hardtop and rooftop tent. This will truly be one of the most customizable cars ever made.

This also future proofs the Bronco. Ford themselves say Bronco owners will be able to hold onto their vehicles for a long time without fear of them being dated because it’s so easy to swap to newer parts. If a mid-life refresh comes along for the Bronco in 3-5 years, owners could theoretically put the updated body panels on and be right up to date with the styling.

Photo via Ford

This ease of use should mean novice off-roaders and car modifiers with little experience will feel comfortable customizing their Bronco, and the cost to do so will also be lower. Minor repairs could also cost less, as there is less labor going into swapping damaged body panels for fresh ones.

It’s great that Ford designed the 2021 Bronco with modification ease in mind from the beginning, and it definitely has a leg up on the Jeep Wrangler in that respect. We can’t wait to see what they come up with as we get closer to production go time.

2021 Ford Bronco Big Bend Sasquatch
Ford Bronco Big Bend with Sasquatch Package. Image via Ford Configurator

Written by Sam Krahn

Sam graduated with a communications Degree from Wayne State University, where he was also a member of the swim team. He's interested to see how new technology will affect the American performance vehicle landscape.

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