Lincoln plans luxury off-roader using Ford Bronco architecture

Ford is quietly laying the groundwork for a budget-friendly competitor to the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, and it is going to wear a Lincoln badge. According to a report by Autoblog, the automaker plans to leverage its existing Michigan plant—where the Ford Bronco is built—to produce a luxury-oriented off-roader before the decade is out.

Anyone paying attention to profit margins could see this coming. Automakers have long understood that large luxury SUVs with genuine off-road capability print money. Ford has already started testing these waters with the recently announced Ford Bronco and Filson collaboration, a vehicle designed to make the rugged SUV quieter, markedly nicer inside, and far more premium to look at.

That collaboration serves as a clear testing ground for a much larger ambition: a dedicated luxury marquee take on the formula.

What Underpins Ford’s Luxury Off-Roader

Production for the new Lincoln model is slated to kick off in the next few years at the Michigan facility. Just as the Lincoln Navigator takes direct inspiration from the Ford Explorer, this upcoming luxury off-roader will draw heavily from its Ford Bronco counterpart.

Automotive journalist Chase Bierenkoven notes in Autoblog that while the exact model name remains under wraps, the vehicle’s silhouette will likely preserve the core elements that define the Bronco. Expect the high waistline, boxy front fascia, and upright cabin to remain intact, though accented with a generous application of chrome. Crucially, the practical touches—such as the handy hood tie-downs that double as visual guides for the front wheels during technical off-roading, along with the removable roof—are expected to stick around.

Beneath the sheet metal, the core architecture will match the Bronco. However, Lincoln engineers will almost certainly recalibrate the suspension to tame the Bronco’s notoriously wild on-road manners.

Powertrains and Market Positioning

Under the hood, the powertrain lineup is expected to drop the base four-cylinder engine entirely. That leaves the optional twin-turbocharged 2.7-liter V6, which produces 330 horsepower, as the likely entry point.

Lincoln is already accustomed to pulling high-output engines from the broader Ford portfolio. The Lincoln Aviator currently utilizes a variant of the Bronco Raptor’s powerplant, generating 383 horsepower compared to the Raptor’s 418 horsepower. Whether Lincoln adopts the higher output figure depends entirely on how aggressively the brand intends to hunt down elite luxury competitors.

Aiming directly at the Mercedes-Benz G-Class is a lofty objective. The G-Wagen utilizes a dedicated luxury architecture and commands a staggering starting price of $155,000, before factoring in high-performance AMG variants. Analysts suggest a more realistic rival might be the Land Rover Defender. The base Defender 110 starts at a much more modest $67,000—a pricing threshold that buyers routinely clear when heavily optioning a standard Ford Bronco.

Timeline to Showrooms

Buyers looking to park one of these luxury off-roaders in their driveway will have to exercise patience. The model is projected to arrive before the end of the decade, pointing to an official debut sometime between 2028 and 2029.

Pricing and final specifications will ultimately hinge on how far upmarket Lincoln believes it can push a vehicle riding on the basic Bronco architecture. Until official design prototypes emerge from Michigan, the exact styling details and final nomenclature remain strictly under wraps.