2027 Ford Bronco gets the Raptor's 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 in 380 hp tune

More muscle than the old 2.7, at a price to be confirmed

The new 3.0-litre easily out-muscles the 2.7-litre EcoBoost it replaces, which was capped at 315 hp and 410 lb-ft on premium fuel. Ford has not announced 2027 Bronco pricing, so it is not yet known whether the switch to the bigger V6 carries a price premium.

The entry-level Bronco and Big Bend grades appear to keep the familiar turbocharged 2.3-litre four-cylinder.

For context, the Raptor's state of tune, 418 hp and 440 lb-ft, makes it one of the most potent off-roaders on sale, though it still trails the Jeep Wrangler 392's 6.4-litre V8 with 470 hp and 470 lb-ft. The 380 hp figure for the wider range sits between those two extremes and keeps the full 440 lb-ft, which is the number that matters most off-road and when towing from a standstill.

The 2027 Bronco in its new Raptor-derived V6 tune, Image: Carscoops

Comfort and kit changes across the range

The engine is not the only change. Big Bend models ordered with the Mid Package now get a heated steering wheel. The Outer Banks with the optional Lux Package gains a new type of premium vinyl seats.

Badlands models receive improved Marine Grade Vinyl and, for the first time on that variant, a power-adjustable driver's seat.

New colours, including two Filson exclusives

Neptune Blue joins the palette for 2027, replacing Velocity Blue. The Bronco Filson, revealed in June 2026, comes in two exclusive colours, Field Green and Iron Sands Metallic, and wears exclusive leather.

None of the factory options match what Ford offers through its Custom Garage personalisation program, according to the source material's framing of the range.

Dodge is reportedly on track to return to the NASCAR Cup Series at next February's Daytona 500, which would put the brand back in the sport for the first time since 2012. The Athletic cites multiple people briefed on the situation in reporting that the parties involved expect Dodge to race in the season opener on February 21, though nothing is confirmed and negotiations to resolve remaining challenges are ongoing.

The return would take the Cup Series roster back to four manufacturers, with Dodge joining Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota.

The timeline is tight. The 2027 season begins in February with the Daytona 500, roughly four months away, and the report suggests four teams could be on the grid if everything goes right.

The engine deal that makes it possible

Dodge is reportedly working on an engine supply deal with ECR Engines, the operation owned by Richard Childress Racing, which runs Chevrolets in the series. The catch is that ECR cannot simply drop a Chevy engine under a Dodge body: it would have to build a new, technically distinct engine for the brand.

That engine question has shaped the whole timeline. According to the report, if Dodge had to build its own race engine in-house, the return would likely have slipped to the 2028 season. Securing ECR as a supplier is what keeps the 2027 debut alive, and the brand had already completed initial wind tunnel testing before summer after an unspecified breakthrough accelerated the schedule.

Kaulig Racing runs the cars

Kaulig Racing, the team Ram partnered with for its Craftsman Truck Series entry, would race Dodges in the Cup Series. That link matters because when Tim Kuniskis, now head of Stellantis' American brands and formerly Ram CEO, announced the Truck Series program in June 2025, Ram did not even have a team locked in.

The pieces have come together quickly since then. Kuniskis flagged a desire to return to the Cup Series at that June announcement, and the wind tunnel work and engine supplier followed within months.

Why the brand needs a win

Dodge's recent record under Stellantis has been rough. The Hornet crossover was axed after only a few years, and sales of the new Charger sit far below its predecessor, while the brand's bet on a battery-electric variant first and a shift to twin-turbocharged inline-six engines has not landed with the loyalists.

A Cup Series return puts the brand back in front of the sport's largest audience at exactly the moment it is rebuilding its performance credentials. Dodge is developing a new Charger SRT Hellcat with a supercharged 6.2-liter V8 that could enter production by the end of next year and make well over 700 horsepower; the same 6.2-liter V8 makes 777 hp in the Ram TRX and the Rumble Bee SRT. Loud, high-powered V8s are what built the fan base, and a NASCAR presence would reinforce that message on track and in the showroom.