Complaint volume
217 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2021 Ford Bronco Complaints
217 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Ford Bronco, grouped by component category.
217 Total complaints
6 Crash reports
3 Fire reports
6 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are engine, suspension, unknown or other. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 6 crash reports, 3 fire reports, 6 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 39 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 25,774 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to engine, suspension, unknown or other?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2021 Ford Bronco?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2021 Ford Bronco
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Ford Bronco complaints?
6 Crash
3 Fire
6 Injury
0 Fatality
13 Towed
2 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Ford Bronco complaint categories?
ENGINE 51
SUSPENSION 19
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 14
VISIBILITY/WIPER 12
STRUCTURE 10
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 9
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 9
BACK OVER PREVENTION 8
SERVICE BRAKES 8
AIR BAGS 5
217 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2022 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Whilst traveling at highway speeds on the Jersey Turnpike, black smoke suddenly started emanating from the rear of the vehicle. All power was suddenly lost from the vehicle, with the accelerator pedal being nonfunctional. I was able, even though the vehicle was starting to fill with smoke and leave a trail of smoke behind, navigate across the lanes to the hard shoulder. The engine had of course ceased to run. At this time I exited the vehicle to assess the situation. Upon finding no obvious defects and the smoke having cleared, I reentered the vehicle, to see what the engine would do when the key was turned. The engine would not turn over, with only items running off of battery power. Basically the car was dead. At this time I called a AAA for a tow of the car. Unfortunately AAA can't tow on the New Jersey Turnpike, so a local tow company had to be called, to transport the car to a local exit. After the car was deposited in a car park close by, I then reached out to AAA to transport the car to my local Ford dealer. The Bronco was taken to Stamford Ford, in CT, where after inspection, we were told the car had suffered a "catastrophic failure". The vehicle took over one month before it was returned, as the whole engine had to be rebuilt. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2021 Ford Bronco. The contact stated the front windshield cracked and was repaired by the dealer; prior to the second crack that occurred while driving approximately 35 MPH. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer; however, they diagnosed no failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 9,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 9,000 |
| Jul 2022 | ENGINE | On May 17th At 6,800 miles my motor randomly experienced catastrophic engine failure and has been at the Ford dealership since. The dealership has not told me anything on how or why this happened other than the motor needs to be replaced. The dealer received the new motor on June 22nd. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | ENGINE | The contact owns a 2021 Ford Bronco. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH he heard a ticking sound coming from the engine and then a grinding sound before the vehicle stalled. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that after coming to a complete stop there were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer. The dealer had not yet diagnosed or repaired the vehicle. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 2,812. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 2,812 |
| Jul 2022 | STEERING | Within days of buying this 2021 Bronco in April 2022, the power steering and drive modes (e.g., Eco, Sport) stopped working and we got the following error message: [See Steering Assist Fault - Service Required] We called the dealership in Georgia, which is far from our home, and they advised us to take it to one closer to us; the problem would be covered under warranty. We made the first available appointment with the dealership in Havana FL and took our vehicle in on July 11th. We showed the photo saying "service required" and explained that every morning the drive modes don't work and the power steering usually does not work right away. We have to re-start the vehicle to get the power steering to work, but the drive modes don't work until later in the day (usually). We get the error messages shown repeatedly below saying "drive mode not available." Despite the service department at the dealership saying they identified the malfunctioning part, Ford sent us away without approving a warranty repair—citing a policy that because the service personnel could not report a computer code for the part, Ford will not pay to fix it. The problem continues and we continue to provide photos to Ford and ask them to fix this problem for us and for anyone else who is experiencing it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | We were on vacation in Miami, Florida in February 2022 driving in stop and go traffic when our 2021 Ford Bronco with 2.7L Ecoboost engine suddenly shut down. The entire electrical system shut down and the emergency brake was applied. We were unable to start the vehicle with the ignition button or key fob. Traffic was backing up behind us and we couldn’t put our hazards on to let them know we were having vehicle trouble. A pedestrian tried assisting us with pushing the vehicle but due to the parking brake being applied it wouldn’t move. As a last ditch effort I decided to try to start the vehicle through the Ford Pass app. Thankfully, that worked and the vehicle started. We called a dealership in Miami to see if they could look at the vehicle before we traveled on to Key West. They were unable to get us in so we traveled to Key West. The Ford dealership in Key West was gracious enough to look over the vehicle and errors we received on the Ford Pass app. They did not find anything that would have caused the issue. We were just thankful we were on a side road in stop and go traffic when this happened rather than driving on the highway at 70 mph! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | Multiple times the engine has failed to respond to the accelerator pedal when engaged from a cold stop. The delayed response has happened several times while attempting to merge into moving traffic so even a 1 second delay is both dangerous and scary from a driver perspective. The vehicle was taken in for service recently and no problems were identified after mechanic testing. However, I wonder if this problem is related to the ongoing investigation of defective valves in the 2.7L EcoBoost engine. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2022 | ENGINE | Engine locked up with 1,255 miles. Seemed to be running fine, then heard a noise and unit started to deselerate and started clicking. Was lucky enough to be on a local four lane road and coasted to a school zone pull off. Tried to restart and would not catch. Starter would stay engaged with foot taken off of brake. Had the unit towed to the dealership and the engine was replaced in about a months time. Hopefully this engine is good as it seems to accelerate better much better. My dealer did repair, but my concern is the value going forward. The Bronco is still valuable for resale, but that's having all original numbers and this one no longer does and it will of course show up on a Car Fax and I'm afraid my resale value will decrease for theses reasons. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I was pulling into a residential driveway and as soon as the front tires entered the driveway the pre-collision alert warning went off and when I applied the brakes they did nothing. I proceeded to roll 25+ feet and crashed into the back of a parked car in the driveway. There were people standing just to the right of the parked car I hit. The Ford dealer has had the vehicle for over 4 weeks now and all they've said is certain modules aren't communicating properly. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Towed | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | On June 9, 2022, while traveling on an Interstate Highway at about 80 mph, the engine sputtered and died without any warning light activation. The vehicle failure caused an extremely unsafe condition which caused me to navigate without power, in moderate traffic, from the #1 lane, across the #2 lane and onto the shoulder. The failure caused me to perform this high risk maneuver in front of an approaching big rig traveling in the #2 lane. The vehicle was towed to the nearest Ford dealership where an inspection determined the fuel pump had failed. The fuel pump was replaced but the dealership did not know if the replacement had been redesigned to prevent such catastrophic failures in the future. The loss of power was sudden and immediate without any prior warning messages and/or warning lamp activation. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | About 1 hour into our trip the vehicle started to shutter while at highway speed, no warning lamps or notices were indicated when the shutter started and I assumed it was a road vibration. We came to a stop sign about 2-3 miles after the shutter was noticed and the vehicle stalled at the intersection and would not restart. At that point the check engine light, in dash notifications and Fordpass app notices indicated a serious mechanical malfunction. The vehicle needed to be put in neutral and pushed to the side of the road by me and my son to clear the intersection. Ford roadside assistance was contacted and a tow truck was dispatched to take the vehicle to the closest dealership. We sat at the side of the road for 2 hours waiting on the ford dispatched tow truck. The vehicle was towed to Ford of Clermonth. The Ford of Clermont, Florida service department ran diagnostics on the vehicle the next morning(12/06/21). The Ford service technician, following Ford's diagnostic directions, determined there was catastrophic engine failure and Ford immediately authorized an engine replacement. As per the attached service invoice the Ford Service technicians determined it was a valve failure that caused the engine failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | According the the service department at the Dealership, the valves on my vehicle's engine failed and caused a complete engine failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | Engine completely destroyed with no notice at 4600 miles destroyed itself in less than three minutes while driving. New engine replaced | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | Engine died, won’t start again | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | 8:28pm 6.8.2022 - Bronco was towing 1 boat on a single axle trailer (total weight less than 3000lbs). - First soft top convertible roof panel was open - Music playing at medium volume to drown out adjacent highway noise - Heading NE on the Highway 820 feeder road. - Stopped at stop sign at intersection of Cahoba Drive. - Pulled out of intersection and was traveling on a slight uphill at 18pmh - Interior of vehicle smelled sweet and we noticed white smoke filling behind the vehicle - Warning lights for Battery (red battery) and Service (wrench) came on and then a warning to stop vehicle and restart engine. This coincided with a sudden decrease in power. - Pulled to the side of the road to a safe position and powered off the engine, allowed several minutes for it to cool then attempted to restart the engine with no luck. Service (wrench) light turned off and Check Engine light came on. - Open hood to allow engine too continue to cool and to check for exterior engine damage. - Documented current state of vehicle with photos. - Had Ford tow to Grapevine Ford in Grapevine, TX. 8am 6.9.2022 - Service Advisor reached out to confirm vehicle was in shop and would be looked at this week. - I advised that based on the engine build date on the engine sticker, this vehicle was in the batch of potentially faulty valves from the Lima facility. He said he and Ford had no knowledge of potentially faulty valves and that the tech would perform the necessary checks. 10am 6.10.2022 - Service Advisor & Manager reached out to advise that one spark plug was sheared off and that the engine would need to be replaced and possibly the turbos; FoMoCo would confirm what to replace. They actively avoided any discussion of the valves and did not respond when I mentioned them. I verbally requested copies of all videos/photos/reports related to my vehicle and access to parts. 1pm - I requested via text message to Scott Service Advisor access to the my request above. Dealer to follow up next week | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1. Vehicle Issue. -At approximately 2k miles while driving through severe weather in the Rocky Mountains my New Bronco lost ALL electronic driving systems that controlled driving modes including 4 wheel drive modes(GOAT) along with safety systems such as traction control, sensor systems, and cruise control. I was forced to drive through a white out in Rocky Mountains with 2 wheel drive due to the electronic GOAT modes failing. This was a dangerous situation as the systems I was relying on failed me when I needed them most. These systems failed off and on for the next three months before mysteriously subsiding. 2. Attempts to resolve. - Took vehicle to Ford dealer to identify issue and they said there was no record of these failures in the code system which is extremely concerning. If I had gone off the road and injured myself and or died Ford would attempt to say there was no electronic failure when in fact there was a significant electronic failure of ALL traction systems. Fortunately I took video and photo evidence of the electronic failures. Alarmingly, these failures are not being recorded within the vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | The contact owns a 2021 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made clicking sounds and then lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The dealer informed the contact that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 923. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 923 |
| Jun 2022 | ENGINE | While pulling up to a yield sign the vehicle lost all power and shut off causing it roll past the yield sign and come to a stop in traffic blocking the roadway. The vehicle was towed to the Ford dealership and after being diagnosed it had a broken valve that caused catastrophic failure to the engines head and caused the head of the engine to be replaced | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,POWER TRAIN | Loud grinding noise coming from transmission at 800 miles | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2021 Ford Bronco. While starting the vehicle the contact became aware of a line crack on the front of the windshield. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 7,337. | Crash: No Fire: No | 7,337 |
| May 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | -I bought the Ford Bronco to Flat-tow behind my Motorhome. (All 4 wheels on the ground) -Per Ford this is permitted, they outline a procedure in the owner's manual on how this must be performed. -At least 48 states require a supplemental braking system on towed vehicle. -The Bronco has an Electronic Break Booster (EBB) -When the Bronco is placed in the Flat - tow mode, the last step is to turn the key off. -Ford has set a timer (30 to 45 minutes) to shut down power to the EBB, when the key is turned off. -After timer expires, the brakes have no boost. This causes any after-market braking system installed on the Bronco to be useless. -In these circumstances, The Bronco is providing no help to the motorhome for braking, causing longer braking distances. Also, If the Bronco were to become detached from the motorhome, the emergency braking system that should come on and stop the vehicle, would not work. Could cause injury or death by having a runaway. -Ford has been unresponsive in attempts to remedy the situation. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | POWER TRAIN | Transmission broke at 4,884 miles reversing out of the driveway. The driveway has no grade and never sits on a hill. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ENGINE | Engine failure. My wife was driving the vehicle and was enveloped in smoke and the engine stopped and she was stuck in the middle lane of a busy road in rush hour. A dangerous section of road a few miles from our house. I drove down and gave her my SUV and then called AAA who towed it to the dealership. The motor was dead. The vehicle was towed to Future Ford of Sacramento. They then diagnosed it a few days later and informed us that it is a complete engine failure and that it will take several months to get the vehicle back to us. There were no warning lights or any warning prior to the engine stopping and a large amount of smoke to the point that my wife thought the whole vehicle was on fire. Four people stopped to help her and get her to the side of the road. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ENGINE | On Monday, March 7, 2021, my Ford Bronco First Edition with the 2.7 engine experienced catastrophic engine failure. I was driving near my home when my vehicle stopped running. I did feel a strange pull in my steering and tires; but I was also driving on ice and assumed it was the traction control system at play. I was wrong. It was my engine losing compression and my engine failing. My dash lit up with a series of errors (all in quick succession and could not catch them all) and my vehicle lost all power and control. As mentioned above, I was driving on ice covered roads and had difficulty steering. I attempted to pull off the road and into a parking lot; however, the drive sloped up and I could not get clear of the entryway. I had to stop blocking the entrance to the veterinarian's parking lot. To increase the risk here, my vehicle was not visible from traffic turning in because of snow banks that were taller than my vehicle. I want to stress how incredibly lucky I was that this happened close to home. I went on a road trip and had returned home the night before. We had contemplated taking the Bronco. If we had, we would have broken down on the Parks Highway in Alaska. This highway is remote at most times with spotty cell service. The risks of having broken down in subzero temperatures with zero help was extremely high in my area. I also consider myself extremely lucky that I had a friend that was able to come move my vehicle from blocking the business entrance. When I used the Ford app to get a tow, it quoted me 7 hours. I did call and complain that that was unacceptable. The vehicle was towed to the dealership and catastrophic engine failure was determined with a faulty valve being the contributing factor. This is a known valve issue and I have included my engine build date sticker in the photos. I included a photo of my Bronco being loaded on the tow truck showing the ice roads and snow bank blocking my car from view. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ENGINE | at 2,000 miles the engine dropped a valve. Vehicle has already received a new engine. Vehicle shut off running down the interstate. safety was had to coast to shoulder and wait on tow truck. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |