Ford Bronco: Years to Avoid and Best Years to Buy
Ford Bronco: 5 model years scored from 886 NHTSA owner complaints and 60 recall campaigns. Worst year 2022, best year 2024.
Ford Bronco: which years to avoid
Across 5 scored model years the Ford Bronco ranges from 51/100 in 2022 to 76/100 in 2024 — a 25-point spread, so which year you buy matters. The weakest year’s complaints concentrate in Visibility/Wiper (65 of them).
Safest years: 2021, 2024, 2025 — scored 70 or better.
Scored from NHTSA complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. How the score works · every car’s years to avoid.
Editor's note
No Bronco year is AVOID, but the 2022 and 2023 are CAUTION at 51 and 60 on 369 and 218 owner complaints, and the 2022's rate of 92.2 complaints per year on the road is more than double the 2021's 45.0. Buy a 2021, which scores 71 on 225 complaints, or a 2024 at 76 on 74, and check the recall history, because every Bronco year has twelve campaigns. Engine leads the 2021 at 68, and 24V635000 covers 2021 and 2022 trucks with the 2.7-litre engine whose intake valves may break. Visibility/Wiper leads the 2022 at 65 and the 2023 at 89, matching 22V451000 for a windscreen that may not have been bonded properly and 24V142000 for rear quarter glass that can detach from the hard top. The 2024 and 2025 carry three separate campaigns for front control arm fasteners. The 2025 has no complaints on file yet and its score of 73 rests on low evidence.
Read the guide
Ford Bronco, Bronco Sport and EcoSport: what the first years on record say — written and signed by Adir Trabelsi, 2026-09-16.
Year-by-year data table
Best year in our data: 2024 (score 76). Worst: 2022 (score 51, CAUTION).
| Year | Score | Verdict | Running cost / yr | NHTSA complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 73 | BUY | $3,630 | 0 | 12 |
| 2024 | 76 | BUY | $4,473 | 74 | 12 |
| 2023 | 60 | CAUTION | $5,290 | 218 | 12 |
| 2022 | 51 | CAUTION | $5,952 | 369 | 12 |
| 2021 | 71 | BUY | $4,895 | 225 | 12 |
Running cost is fuel or energy plus the maintenance band midpoint for that car at its age today, re-priced to your country. Purchase price, insurance and depreciation are not included.
Photographs and every generation of the Bronco, through the years →
Bronco sub-models & family
Variants & trims on record
Body, powertrain and trim variants of the Bronco on the federal record. Variants folded into this nameplate are counted in this page's data; the rest have too thin a record for a page of their own yet.
What goes wrong on the Ford Bronco
Across every Bronco model year in our index, owners report these component groups most often. The cost beside each one is the representative repair for that group at a US independent shop, re-priced to your country.
- Visibility/Wiper154 complaints across all Bronco years · typical job: Wiper motor, linkage or windscreen replacement$490–$1,200
- Engine144 complaints across all Bronco years · typical job: Cooling-system or timing-drive repair$1,040–$2,220
- Electrical System108 complaints across all Bronco years · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement$540–$1,310
- Unknown Or Other106 complaints across all Bronco years · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair$360–$940
- Service Brakes89 complaints across all Bronco years · typical job: Pads, rotors and caliper service, both axles$580–$1,140
- Power Train64 complaints across all Bronco years · typical job: Transmission service or clutch-pack repair$1,290–$4,040
Flat-rate labour hours x local shop rate plus a parts band. An estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote. Formula.
FAQ
What are the best Ford Bronco years to buy?
2021, 2024, 2025 all score 70 or better. The strongest is the 2024 at 76/100, on 74 complaints and 12 recall campaigns.
Which Ford Bronco years should I avoid?
The 2022 is the weakest year we score, at 51/100 (CAUTION), on 369 complaints and 12 recalls. Check the year-by-year table above before committing to any particular car.
What is the most common Ford Bronco problem?
154 of the complaints filed against the Bronco across all its model years sit in the Visibility/Wiper group — more than any other component.
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Sources: NHTSA, EPA · Methodology · Updated 2026-10-04