Ford will mark the 60th* anniversary of its Bronco off-road SUV next year and has prepared a throwback model honoring a historic example to celebrate.
Why the asterisk? The Bronco hasn’t been in continuous production for 60 years. Ford took a 24-year break from making Bronco SUVs from 1996 to 2021 but 2025 will mark 60 years since the first example rolled out a factory door.
A Rally Legend of the Late 1960s
In the late 1960s, tuner Bill Stroppe produced a series of modified off-road Bronco models sold at Ford dealerships. Ford explains, “In 1969, a Stroppe-prepared Bronco recorded the first and still only outright win by a stock 4×4” at the famous Baja 1000 desert race.
“Bill Stroppe not only established Bronco’s competition legacy at events like the Baja 1000 and NORRA Mexican 1000, but Stroppe Baja Broncos put his off-road knowhow on the road and helped establish Bronco with consumers,” says Ford Archivist Ted Ryan.
Stroppe passed away in 1995, but Ford will honor his work with a 2025 Bronco modeled after that Baja-winning SUV.
According to Ford, the 2025 Ford Bronco Stroppe Special Edition “is available exclusively as a two-door model and takes the place of the Wildtrak in the Bronco lineup.” Ford hasn’t revealed pricing. A 2024 2-door Bronco Wildtrak starts at $62,120, including a mandatory $1,895 destination charge. We expect the Stroppe model to start a little higher to account for some modifications.
Beefed-Up Suspension, Nixon-Era Paint Scheme
They include standard Fox internal bypass dampers, a stabilizer bar disconnect feature, Ford’s High-Performance Off-Road Stability Suspension 3.0 (HOSS 3.0), and 35-inch Goodyear Territory RT tires.
The best feature is the incredible retro paint job. It wears Oxford White and Code Orange (though it looks red to us) with an Atlas Blue painted hardtop. The grille is Frozen White, like on the Heritage Edition Broncos, with Stroppe Special Edition and Bronco branding on special squared-off high clearance fenders.
The side steps are removable. Why take them off? So you can use the rock rails they mount to.
It’s a stunning retro look — the kind Ford seems to specialize in these days. In an era when four-fifths of new cars worldwide are black, white, or gray, we’re happy to see any adventurous color options. One so enthusiastically retro is an inspired move.
Ford calls the Stroppe Special Edition a “limited edition” but doesn’t say how many it plans to build. So, if you’re interested, let a local dealership know before the queue fills up. They’ll be available in January.
