While Chevrolet and Cadillac went full-on futuristic with their Corvette CX.R and “Elevated Crossover” concepts at Monterey Car Week, fellow American automaker Ford took advantage of the Bronco’s 60th anniversary year to fabricate a stripped-down blast from the past.
As Bronco chief designer Robert Gelardi explained, the new Bronco Roadster Concept was directly inspired by what his team refers to as “the OG—the 1966 U13 roadster.” The Bronco was marketed as “the world’s first four-wheel drive sports car,” though the mission was apparently always to build a Mustang for off-road. The U14 half-cab pickup and U155 wagon, which most closely resembles today’s Bronco SUV, fit the bill, but it was the U13 Bronco Roadster truly embodied an off-roading pony car.
“What struck me about that original roadster was its compelling simplicity,” Gelardi said. “It didn’t need big tires, a lift, or off-road lights to look good. It was just this pure expression of what I call ‘go anywhere, open air’—the essential cool that made Bronco special from day one.”
The Roadster Concept seen here was modeled from Gelardi’s friend’s original U13 Bronco roadster in Wimbledon White—the same heritage color that adorns the Bronco 60th Anniversary edition. The result was guided by the answer to, “What can I take away?”—a frame of mind more usually associated with motorsports. As Road & Track points out, the front and rear bumpers are stamped with a 20th-century Ford logo in block lettering . There are no B-pillars or roof, and hefty off-set wheels wrapped in knobby tired are covered by vintage-style full-moon hubcaps. It even has a full-sized spare tire mounted on a cast-style Fifteen52 wheel that sits in an entirely Wimbledon White metal bed.
The super-spartan interior features just a handful of knobs and dials—the only hint of modernity visible is a pair of small digital screens, one for infotainment and one for the driver’s display. Keeping with the less-is-more philosophy, the interior features only splashes of black and silver seats to contrast with the primary, body-matched Wimbledon White hue.
“When you’re in a vehicle like the Bronco Roadster, you’re not just passing through nature—you’re immersed in it,” Gelardi said of the build. “It reminds me of riding a horse, navigating a kayak through whitewater, or mountain biking over rough terrain. You feel everything as you move through the landscape. Open air isn’t just a feature—it’s fundamental to what Bronco means, and it connects directly to our ‘Built Wild’ philosophy.”
Ford clearly states that the the Bronco Roadster Concept is “not intended for production,” but that wording seems to leave just a slight opening for a factory offering if you read it just right. After all, there isn’t a better way to celebrate the Bronco’s 60th birthday than with a limited-run reimagining of the model that started it all.
