Quality issues with the Ford Bronco roof add to delays, frustration

DETROIT — The 2021 Ford Bronco was designed to go over any type of terrain, but thousands can't even make it out of parking lots near the plant that built them.

In another setback to the troubled launch of one of Ford Motor Co.'s highest-profile vehicles, the automaker last week said it needs to replace all hardtop roofs made so far because of quality problems.

That will push back deliveries for months, further irking customers who already had their orders delayed by the coronavirus pandemic, the global semiconductor shortage and earlier issues with Webasto, the same supplier involved in the latest snag. The previous roof issues, which were unrelated, forced Ford to postpone production of certain configurations.

With saleable Broncos so scarce — at the end of July, Ford had built 13,380 but sold just 4,078 of those — some dealerships are marking up the few that have made it onto their lots by as much as $50,000.

Ford officials are scrambling to clean up the mess. It has hired an Ohio design firm to shower increasingly frustrated owners with Bronco-branded gifts as the setbacks pile up.

It's unclear how much the damage control and replacements will cost Ford or for how much Webasto will be responsible.

"We're embarrassed we didn't catch this sooner," Jeff Marentic, Ford's general manager of passenger vehicles, told Automotive News of the latest quality problem. "We're doing everything we can to get the product to customers as soon as possible. We understand how unhappy they are, but we're working to get that resolved as fast as we possibly can."

After Ford bungled the Explorer launch in 2019, executives promised to do better, and analysts said the company couldn't afford another major whiff. The Bronco's launch snafus after Ford spent years hyping it up are turning the off-roader into an Internet punchline.

Disgruntled owners whose vehicles have been built but remain parked in a makeshift holding lot near the Michigan Assembly Plant have taken to calling them the #BadBatchBroncos on Twitter, and they have even mocked up a logo sarcastically styled after Ford's Off-Roadeo driving school badges.

For weeks, before Ford confirmed the plan to replace all hardtop roofs, a handful of customers had been pushing Ford officials for answers and were growing upset with what they perceived as a lack of communication.

"They're pissed off, and they probably should be," said Ross Musick, a Bronco owner who is active on the Bronco 6G forum. "Their Broncos have been sitting there and are going to be sitting there until October or later. That has to be the worst feeling."

Mark Kendrick is among those waiting. The Austin, Texas, resident's two-door Sasquatch model was built June 29 but has been stuck in the holding lot since then.

Kendrick is upset that he had to piece together most of what was happening from forum posts before hearing anything official from the company.

"Really all we were looking for was a plausible explanation," he said. "This explains it but, man, we had to work hard to figure out what they eventually told us."

Ford said owners such as Kendrick will get a new delivery timetable in September, and that the first replacement roofs would start to go out in October to owners who already received their vehicles. The roofs can have an "unsatisfactory appearance when exposed to extreme water and humidity," Ford said.

Production of Broncos with soft-top roofs — the only one of the four original options for the four-door version to not have any quality problems — is not affected. The two-door Bronco only comes in a hardtop.

The company told customers it would have to replace all existing "molded-in color" hardtops before making any more Broncos with hardtops. After that, Ford will replace the roofs on the Broncos parked around the plant and a nearby airport, prioritizing the oldest models first.

As a result, many buyers who first plunked down a deposit more than a year ago to secure their spot in line won't get a vehicle from the first model year, a coveted distinction for collectors and enthusiasts. Production of 2022 Broncos will begin in December.

In the meantime, Ford plans to continue sending gifts to future Bronco owners thanking them for their patience. The automaker has mailed stickers and posters featuring early concept sketches.

Ten10 Design, an Ohio graphic design and promotional products company, had listed Ford as a client on its website, noting it was chosen early this year to run the "manage the wait" gift program for Bronco owners. Ten10 said the program features "over a dozen premium products" including branded hammocks, blankets, posters, decks of cards and more items "meant to bridge the gap between the pre-order period and the time the buyer receives delivery of the much-anticipated legendary vehicle."

Shortly after a Bronco 6G forum user posted a link detailing the program, the page was removed from Ten10's website.

Musick, who lives near Columbus, Ohio, received the poster and sticker. Unlike many, he also has gotten his Bronco. The four-door Big Bend model he ordered was built and delivered in late June without issue.

Within weeks, however, the headliner started to come off and the exterior of the roof began developing a strange honeycomb-like pattern. But he said the issues haven't affected how much he's enjoying the new SUV.

"I love it," he said. "It's really fun to drive. People love to talk about it; at the parking lots or gas stations you always have to build in extra time to chitchat."

Overall, Musick said, the automaker has communicated with its customers well, at least until the most recent setback when he thinks "Ford realized it probably didn't have all the answers people wanted."

Musick has been active on the Internet forums, answering questions based on conversations with his own contacts at Ford. Many days, he has found himself attempting to reassure other members the wait is worth it.

"There's seemingly every possible scenario stacked against getting these things built," he said. "Everything kind of wrong that could have happened, most of it out of their control, did. I keep telling people, 'When you get your Bronco, I can tell you you're going to love it.' "