Starting at
Starting at
300-330 | Horsepower (hp) | 260-285 |
77.6 | Cargo Space (cu.ft.) | 72.4 |
3,500 | Max Towing (lbs) | 3,500 |
Rugged off-road SUVs aren't a dime a dozen. Only a few manufacturers regularly churn out durable, high-end 4x4s with plenty of low-end torque to spare and lots of different customization options. However, both Ford and Jeep have two undeniably popular options, one in the Wrangler, the longtime champion of consumer off-road travel, and the Bronco, which has quickly risen in popularity in order to take the crown and usurp the throne from Jeep. Well, we'll find out if the Bronco is capable of dethroning the Wrangler in our 2022 Ford Bronco vs 2022 Jeep Wrangler showdown.
We'll compare the performance, capabilities, and technology of both vehicles and break down which one is right for you. The 2022 Bronco is available across seven base trims, including the Base, the Big Bend, the Black Diamond, the Outer Banks, the Badlands, Wildtrak, and the Everglades. The Wrangler is available in eight base trim formats, which include the Sport, the Willys Sport, the Willys, the Sport Altitude, the Sahara, the Rubicon, the Sahara Altitude, and the High Altitude.
While both the Wrangler and Bronco also have special iterations available, we'll focus mostly on the base trims instead. You can get both vehicles with plenty of available optional packages and color schemes. The Bronco is available in 11 base colors, while the Wrangler is also available in 11 colors. You can get both vehicles in select premium colors, too.
Both the Wrangler and the Bronco offer multiple powertrains in four-wheel drive configurations. Both also offer drivers either automatic or manual transmissions, depending on the trim and powertrain setup. There's certainly a give and take when it comes to both vehicles in terms of power and performance, which depends entirely on what you're looking for out of an off-road capable vehicle.
The Wrangler is available with four different powertrains, starting with the base 3.6-liter Pentastar V6. It produces 285 horsepower at 260 pound-feet of torque. The base engine can be paired either with a 6-speed manual transmission or an 8-speed automatic transmission. If you can't afford one of the upper-end trims but still want more power out of the Wrangler, the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 with eTorque comes with more instantaneous access to the 260 pound-feet of torque, providing more off-the-line acceleration. The V6 with eTorque, however, is paired up with an 8-speed automatic transmission instead of having the 6-speed manual option.
The final two powertrains available for the Wrangler include the 2.0-liter turbocharged inline 4-cylinder and the 3.0-liter turbocharged EcoDiesel V6. The 4-cylinder manages up to 270 horsepower at 295 pound-feet of torque, whereas the EcoDiesel V6 is the most powerful of the Wrangler's options when it comes to torque output, producing 260 horsepower at 442 pound-feet of torque. The two engines, much like the Pentastar with eTorque, are also paired up with the 8-speed automatic transmission.
The Bronco only has half-as-many options as the Wrangler when it comes to powertrain configurations, but they're much more capable. You could basically count it as quality over quantity. The base engine is the 2.3-liter EcoBoost turbocharged inline 4-cylinder, which produces 300 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque. You can have it paired with a 7-speed manual transmission or a 10-speed automatic transmission, giving you more gears to move through, which means smoother overall shifts when moving toward the top-end of the rev limit.
The second powertrain option is the turbocharged 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6. This hefty power plant manages to output 330 horsepower and 415 pound-feet of torque. It's paired up with the 10-speed automatic transmission. While the EcoBoost V6 may not have as much top-end torque as the EcoDiesel, it does absolutely beat out the Wrangler in every other powertrain category when it comes to horsepower and torque. At the top end of the engine options, the V6 produces nearly 15% more horsepower than the Wrangler’s offerings. And compared to the Pentastar and 4-cylinder options available for the Wrangler, the Ecoboost manages to produce nearly 29% more torque, giving the edge to the Bronco.
Performance is just part of the equation when it comes to building an effective off-road machine. There are a lot of other important facets required as well, such as an agile suspension and reinforced frame, both of which are present on the Bronco and Wrangler. However, in the showdown between the 2022 Ford Bronco vs 2022 Jeep Wrangler, Ford has gone the extra mile to make the Bronco more capable than ever before.
The Bronco is equipped with the HOSS system, known as the High-Performance Off-Road Stability Suspension package. On the standard trim lineup, you can have the HOSS 3.0 installed, which offers 2.5-inch Fox internal adaptive dampers with aluminum bodies designed to dissipate heat and improve longevity. This means you get more travel, more rugged activity, and more punishment out of the Bronco before the dampers have to be replaced. They coincide with the available 35-inch all-terrain tires and reinforced tie-rods to ensure maximum wheel travel with reduced wear and tear on the undercarriage.
On the subject of the undercarriage, steel bash plates and a powder-coated front bumper are all designed to ensure that the Bronco can take a beating from mother nature and keep on trucking. But it would take fairly high and jagged rocks to even touch the Bronco's underbelly, given that select trims can achieve up to 11.6-inches of ground clearance. There's also the ability to achieve maximum torque range with either the 4x4 part-time electronic transfer case or the available automatic on-demand 4x4 transfer case.
The Wrangler is no pushover. It comes equipped with a number of different 4x4 systems depending on the trim, including the Command-Trac part-time system with a 2-speed transfer case and the Selec-Trac transfer case with full-time 4x4 support and low-range torque with wide-track lockable axles for maximum suspension travel. The Wrangler, much like the Bronco, also comes with Dana axles, and both vehicles have a max tow rating of 3,500 pounds. Additionally, both the Wrangler and the Bronco also come with available open-air designs, with removable doors and roofs.
However, the Bronco gets the advantage with the segmented panel roofs that can be removed in sections, and the fact that removing the doors from the frame doesn't take the side mirrors with it, so you still have access to your side-mirrors even when you take the doors off the vehicle, opposite of the Wrangler. Plus, with the HOSS stability and anti-roll mitigation system, the Bronco is able to maintain stability and upright axis, whether you're rock-climbing, descending a hill, or even if you engage in a head-on collision which gives the Bronco a nice safety edge over the Wrangler.
There may be a lot of tech that underpins the off-roading capabilities of the Bronco and Wrangler, but there's also a nice entertainment edge made available for both SUVs as well. It's not all about the rough and tumble. However, in the 2022 Ford Bronco vs 2022 Jeep Wrangler debate, the Bronco manages to slip out in front of its arch-rival thanks to a few bells and whistles not present in Jeep's offerings.
At the top end of the table of the Bronco's offerings is a 12-inch HD touchscreen with the SYNC 4 infotainment suite and the Ford Co-Pilot360 safety technologies. The Wrangler doesn't quite compare in that regard, topping out with an 8.4-inch HD touchscreen as part of its Uconnect infotainment suite. On the upside, both the Bronco and Wrangler at least come with a wide assortment of the latest in media access and network connectivity, including Android Auto and Apple CarPlay integration.
The Bronco also makes it easy to switch between off-road capabilities and standard on-road driving thanks to the G.O.A.T. Modes, also known as the Go Over Any Type of Terrain Modes. This allows you to easily select from Normal, Eco, Slippery, Mud/Ruts, Baja, Sand, and Rock Crawl modes with a simple button. It's an efficient way to get the most out of the Bronco's performance capabilities using easy-to-access, integrated technology right on the console dashboard. The Wrangler also has off-road pages and profiles that can be configured using Uconnect, but with a smaller screen to boot, it really dampens the appeal of the Wrangler’s infotainment features. Both vehicles come with a number of safety features, but the added Ford Co-Pilot360 synchronization with the Ford SYNC software suite just adds a lot to the Bronco’s overall tech appeal.