The reception at Bronco 2021 - Ford's flagship series of 4 × 4 vehicles that were unveiled earlier this month - exceeded most of the company's expectations optimistic initial projections, said CEO Jim Hackett on Thursday in a earnings call.
More than 150,000 customers raised $ 100 to reserve a place to order one of the vehicles, according to Ford.
"We think this family of vehicles has great upside potential in the growing off-road category and this is a category with a leading OEM that has not been seriously questioned until now," said Hackett.
These are, of course, simple reservations, not real orders. Deposits are refundable. Now, Ford is focused on the due diligence required to determine how many of these reserves will be converted to orders while expounding its production strategy for the brand.
The Ford Bronco 2 and Bronco 4 will be built at the Michigan assembly plant in Wayne, Michigan. Bronco Sport will be assembled in the plant in Mexico. The company is now determining how many shifts for each factory staff to match actual orders.
"There is still a lot of work to be done," said Jim Farley, Ford COO, in a call with analysts. "But the mix is fantastic."
Bronco is a brand that strongly relies on nostalgia, personalization, functional design and technology, such as the car manufacturer's next generation infotainment system and a digital traceability feature that allows owners to plan, register and share their experiences through an app.
While the response to the Bronco has been palatable, there are also some competitors who aim to win over customers. GM released a video this week making fun of its fully electric Hummer GMC. While the video was a promotional password mashup, it also showed that GM had clearly identified Ford Bronco and Tesla Cybertruck as its main competitors. Then there is Electric Rivian, which plans to start production of its EV and SUV pickup in 2021.