2025 Ford Bronco vs. Jeep Wrangler

The Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler have long dominated the competitive compact SUV segment, and it’s not hard to see why. These traditional SUVs boast rugged, adventure-ready looks, spacious cabins, and a long legacy of exceptional off-road performance.

With both models returning in 2025, let’s discover which is better: the Ford Bronco or Jeep Wrangler?

Exterior Design and Build: Crafted for the Trails

Over the decades, the Jeep Wrangler has maintained its distinctive rugged look through subsequent generations and iterations. The 2025 model sticks to its design roots, retaining the signature boxy design we’ve come to know and love. It comes in two-door and four-door configurations, a removable top, and an array of wheel sizes. The 2025 Wrangler also introduces a new color, simply called ’41, to its exterior paint palette.

Like its rival, the 2025 Ford Bronco comes with two-door and four-door body styles and offers similar open-air possibilities thanks to its detachable roof and doors. It also features a distinctive black molded-in-color front grille with a white “BRONCO” signature. Additionally, it has daytime running lamps and LED headlamps.

Off-Road Features: Breaking Down the Essentials

The Ford Bronco makes it easy to tackle rugged terrains right out the gate thanks to its impressive 11.6 inches of ground clearance. Every model also comes with four-wheel drive and a sophisticated front suspension. Also standard on every model is a Terrain Management System with seven Goes Over Any Type of Terrain, or G.O.A.T., Modes, which lets you customize your drive depending on the road conditions.

Adding the Sasquatch Package, standard on the Heritage Edition and available on the Base, Big Bend, Badlands, and Outer Banks trims, gives you access to additional off-road-ready features, including 17-inch alloy wheels, 35-inch rugged terrain tires, and electronic-locking front and rear axles.

The new Jeep Wrangler, similarly, comes chock-full of off-roading features that make driving through mountainous terrain and muddy roads a breeze. While its ground clearance of 9.7 inches is less than the Bronco’s, you should still be able to drive over rocks, logs, and other obstacles on the trails around San Angelo, Texas, with considerable ease. Other standout features that enhance the Wrangler’s off-roading capabilities include protective underbody steel skid plates, solid front and rear axles, and tow hooks.

Under the Hood: Engine and Powertrain Options

The new Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler both offer potent engine choices to power your outdoor adventures. The base engine on the 2025 Bronco is a 2.3-liter EcoBoost inline-four that churns out 300 horsepower. For additional power, you can opt for the available 2.7-liter twin-turbo V-6, which generates 330 horsepower, or the 3.0-liter twin-turbo V-6, producing 418 horsepower.

The 2025 Ford Bronco’s standard transmission is a seven-speed manual, which delivers responsive shifts and a smooth, nimble ride. Meanwhile, a 10-speed automatic transmission is optional for those seeking the perfect balance of power and torque for all-terrain driving.

Like its counterpart, the 2025 Jeep Wrangler offers multiple powertrain options. Its base engine is a 3.6-liter PENTASTAR V-6, outputting 285 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. This powerplant pairs with a standard manual transmission on the Sport, Sport S, Willys, Rubicon, and Rubicon X models. Also available is a 2.0-liter turbo engine, producing 270 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. Paired with an automatic transmission system, this setup transforms the Wrangler into a force to reckon with on rugged terrains.

The other engine option for this edition of the Wrangler is a plug-in hybrid powertrain with an estimated range of 370 miles. Available on 4xe models, this powerful engine pairs with an automatic transmission system to crank out 375 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque.

Inside the Cab: Comfort Meets Functionality

The new Ford Bronco boasts a spacious interior with ample room for up to five passengers on the four-door configurations and four passengers on the two-door variants. Cloth seats come standard on the base model, along with six-way manual driver and front passenger seats. Other standard interior comfort features include ambient footwell lighting and carpeted flooring. Higher models offer an array of extra comfort amenities, including a heated and leather-wrapped steering wheel, leather upholstery, and heated front seats.

The 2025 Jeep Wrangler offers an equally impressive interior, with the best-in-class legroom on four-door models giving rear passengers ample room to relax their legs during drives. Standard and optional features available on this model include cloth-trimmed seating surfaces, dual-zone front air conditioning,  heated driver and front passenger seating, and a leatherette steering wheel.

On the technology front, the 2025 Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler pull out all the stops to deliver truly connected and fun drives. The Bronco has a standard 12.0-inch center touch screen running the latest SYNC 4 infotainment system. This system integrates many useful features, including voice recognition, wireless smartphone integration, and real-time traffic updates.  The new Bronco also offers an array of contemporary driver-assistance technologies in its Co-Pilot360 package. Notable standard features include precollision assist with automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control with stop and go, and blind-spot assist.

Like its rival, the 2025 Wrangler offers exceptional connectivity on the go through its advanced UConnect 5 infotainment system. A large 12.3-inch infotainment display sits in the dashboard’s center, providing user-friendly access to entertainment, communication, and navigational apps. Other noteworthy tech features include a Wi-Fi hot spot and a 12-speaker Alpine sound system.

The Wrangler also comes with similar driving-assist features to the Bronco, including forward collision warning with active braking, adaptive cruise control, and blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-path detection. However, unlike the Bronco, which provides most of its active driver-assistance systems as standard features, the Wrangler offers them as optional.

Who Comes Out on Top? Evaluating Off-Road Performance in 2025

While the 2025 Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler are a match in many areas, they also come with unique advantages that set them apart from each other and other competitors in their class. The new Bronco offers more powerful engine choices, a more comfortable cabin, and a plethora of standard driver-assistance features to enhance your confidence during your off-road adventures around San Angelo. On the other hand, the Jeep Wrangler delivers a more intuitive infotainment system with more sophisticated connectivity and entertainment features.

Discover the Off-Road Prowess of the 2025 Ford Bronco at Jim Bass Ford

Looking to buy your first off-roader or trade-in your current vehicle for a new model. Drop by our Jim Bass Ford dealership in San Angelo, Texas, to check out the 2025 Ford Bronco. Schedule a test-drive and discover why it’s considered the king of the rugged trail by many SUV enthusiasts.