For those of you looking to get into a Bronco but are shell-shocked at the price range for this iconic off-roader—or you realize you don’t actually need all that capability—you’ll be pleased to know the 2024 Ford Bronco Sport Free Wheeling Edition is a good compromise. With a reasonable starting price and respectable off-roading capabilities, the Bronco Sport lets you have your cake and eat it, too. At least to a certain degree.

The Bronco Sport shouldn’t be considered a direct competitor to proper off-roaders like the Jeep Wrangler or Toyota 4Runner. Those duties are better left to the much larger and more capable Bronco. That’s because the Bronco Sport shares the same bones as the Escape, but Ford has baked in more off-road capability without compromising on-road manners too much. It’s a similar idea to crossovers like the Subaru Forester Wilderness and Toyota RAV4 Woodland, in addition to countless other automakers selling “trail-ready” trims, but you could argue the Bronco Sport offers a bit more capability than the rest.

This particular Bronco Sport is the new-for-2024 Free Wheeling trim. It’s inspired by the Free Wheeling package offered on the original Bronco in the late 1970s, and it elicited a wide range of reactions—but most of them weren’t complimentary. It’s all a bit over-the-top, especially the red accents on the wheels, but thankfully Ford offers several other trims that are perhaps a bit more tasteful. Stripes and accents aside, the Bronco Sport is attractive. Its boxy styling is still very much “in” these days, and certainly resembles its big brother.

Thanks to its upright design, the Bronco Sport has plenty of head room regardless of where you sit, especially if you’re over six-feet tall like me. However, sitting in the back can be challenging depending on how the front seats are set, especially if whoever up front is on the tall side. Still, in terms of overall space and accessibility, what you see is what you get: the doors open wide, and cargo space measures an impressive 920 litres with the rear seats up, and 1,846 L when folded. Our tester’s optional cargo management system allows for two levels of storage, and also doubles as a usable table. Very cool.

The Bronco Sport doesn’t feel as premium inside as other competitors, but that’s OK. Look for hard plastics used throughout, which may feel cheap at first, but they’re easier to clean if you get them dirty. The knobs and buttons are large and easy to use, and the cloth seats on the Free Wheeling trim also wear stripes, thus breaking up the otherwise dark interior. The Bronco Sport’s infotainment is easy to use, but the eight-inch touchscreen is small by today’s standards. For the price, I’d expect something a bit larger, but Ford will be addressing that next year with an upsized display as part of the Bronco Sport’s mid-life refresh.

Under the hood, you’ll find a 1.5-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine shared with the Ford Escape. It puts out 181 horsepower and 190 pound-feet of torque, paired to an eight-speed automatic. and AWD is standard throughout the lineup. Power output is acceptable for driving around town, but it does struggle when you pushit hard, and the note isn’t what I’d call flattering. Ford does offer a more powerful 2.0L turbo-four, but only on the most expensive trim. This engine would be better-suited to the Bronco Sport if you’ll regularly load it up with passengers and their gear. Unfortunately, Ford doesn’t offer any of the Escape’s hybrid or plug-in hybrid powertrains here, either.

Aside from the lack of straight-line speed, the Bronco Sport is easy enough to live with. There’s a bit of body roll when you take an on-ramp a bit too quickly, and due to its tallish and boxy shape, there’s more wind noise than you’d expect. But other than that, the Bronco Sport filters out potholes and other imperfections well, the eight-speed automatic transmission is well-behaved, and there’s more ground clearance here than most other crossovers.

Fuel economy is a reasonable 9.3 L/100 km in the city, 8.1 highway, and 9.0 combined; we achieved a better-than-expected 8.8 L/100 km. On top of all that, the Bronco Sport happily takes regular-grade fuel, which no doubt eases the sting at the pumps.

Pricing for the Bronco Sport ranges from $38,995 for the base Big Bend trim, to $46,550 for the top-of-the-line Badlands. The Free Wheeling trim sits in the middle at $41,995 to start, but watch out for those options. Our tester included the Convenience package for $1,495, Ford’s CoPilot 360 Assist+ package for $1,395, a power moonroof for $900, the Trailer package for $850, mud flaps for $300, and the aforementioned cargo shelf for $225. That brings the total to $47,150 as-tested before taxes, destination, and other fees. For that kind of money, you could step up to the Badlands and trade the stripes for a more powerful engine.

There is no doubt the 2024 Ford Bronco Sport Free Wheeling is more capable than most of its competitors without sacrificing on-road manners too much. It’s also roomy inside, easy to live with, and pretty good on gas. However, unless you plan on using these capabilities on a regular basis, there are better options out there that provide more power and a more premium interior. Or, if you really want a Bronco Sport, just wait until the updated 2025 models hit dealers.