Ford Bronco launch delayed until summer 2021 due to COVID-related supply woes - The Detroit News

"The all-new Bronco two-door and four-door customer deliveries will begin in the summer rather than the spring due to COVID-related challenges our suppliers are experiencing," spokesman Jiyan Cadiz said Friday.

While not ideal, some industry experts and Ford dealers say it's better to delay the launch now than potentially deal with nagging quality issues later, especially on the heels of Ford's botched Explorer launch last year.

Jim Seavitt, owner of the Village Ford dealership in Dearborn, said that while he's not necessarily happy about the launch being pushed back and is concerned it might cause some customers to forego their reservations, he'd rather see the Bronco delayed than have a problematic launch: "Make sure it's right when it comes out.

The Mexico-built Bronco Sport already is in production; the Blue Oval sold 22 of them in November, sales figures show.

Other vehicles have experienced production issues or delays due to the pandemic.

“There's enough industry wide impact from coronavirus and delays that this doesn't reflect on (Ford CEO Jim) Farley or Ford, it reflects a larger industry issue," said Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iseecars.com.

AutoForecast Solutions LLC was expecting production of the Bronco to begin in late March, but the push until June or July isn't "too much of a delay," said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting.

“This is an important product for Ford," said Fiorani. "Whether the quality is there, whether the volume is there is going to be a key to make it a success in what is an extremely competitive market with one other major player.”.

The vehicle is an important one for the “built Ford tough” image as well as for profits, Fiorani said, so it's likely a better move to delay the launch now rather than risk quality issues and a recall.

The Bronco comes with a whole new set of challenges, Fiorani said: “This has removable doors and roof.

"When you look at quality ratings, the highest quality vehicles have been on the market for years, because their issues have been ironed out over the years," he said

"When you have a new model, you want to make sure they have all those issues wrapped up before it hits the dealership to make buyers happy.”

Anticipation for the new Bronco has been building for years, ever since Ford discontinued it in 1996

For years, fans and Ford employees alike pushed to get the automaker to resurrect the nameplate