The SUV market is not a zero-sum game, at least not for now, as early indications suggest that the Ford Bronco has not stolen customers away from Jeep, as one might have assumed. Instead, it appears to simply be growing the customer base for off-road-focused SUVs.
A new study from S&P Global Mobility indicates that as the Ford Bronco’s sales have increased over the last nine months, the Jeep Wrangler‘s sales have not declined. Although the former’s sales have risen to as high as six percent of the compact SUV segment (as defined by S&P), the latter’s segment share has held steady at between seven and nine percent.
Although the Bronco is still quite new, that indicates that there’s room in the segment for both off-roaders. And that may be reassuring to Jeep, whose Wrangler hasn’t had a direct competitor for years.
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Chuck Anderson, the general manager of a Ford dealership in Missouri, told Automotive News that he doesn’t think a single Bronco buyer has traded in a Jeep Wrangler.
“I don’t think it’s really taking away the Jeep market,” Anderson said. “I think it’s giving people that never really gave that segment of vehicle a chance an opportunity to buy something that they want.”
So, for now at least, an equilibrium appears to have been found. The question now is how much larger can the segment grow?
“The interesting thing about it will be if anybody else decides to join in,” Stephanie Brinley, S&P Global Mobility analyst, said. “We’re not necessarily saying we’ve got a ton of growth opportunity in that space, but Bronco’s addition has made the pie bigger.”
Volkswagen has already expressed an interest in seeing how large that pie can be. The automaker has made official its interest in producing an off-road-focused SUV through the Scout brand. It will be interesting to see, though, if the market can handle all three models or if history will repeat itself.
