Ford Has Change of Heart, Will Offer Sasquatch Bronco with Seven-Speed

The new Ford Bronco Sasquatch package will be sold with a manual transmission.

Here at Art of Gears, it’s no secret that we stan the old-school row-your-own manual gearbox. We’ve been keeping track of all of the models for which the manual option is no longer offered, a list that gets longer by the day.

When Ford finally officially announced the revived Bronco, to much fanfare and jubilation, the enthusiasm was muted somewhat by the glaring absence of a stick shift option for the performance-oriented Sasquatch package.

Granted, even at the time of announcement, we knew that the lower trim level Bronco would be available with Ford’s quirky seven-speed manual. But Ford specifically denied that it would be making the seven speed an option for the Sasquatch package, which would instead be offered with the ten-speed automatic transmission.

The Sasquatch package is definitely going to be the go-to for offroad enthusiasts who want a Bronco that’s ready to go rock crawling right off the lot. The package includes 17-inch beadlock-compatible wheels, 35-inch mud tires, an electromechanical transfer case, locking front and rear axles, and a lifted and beefed-up suspension. So the decision to leave out the manual was a bit of a head-scratcher.

But everything about the Bronco’s return demonstrates that Ford is trying to woo enthusiasts, some of whom it may have alienated by its elimination of several of its other enthusiast cars. So when the automotive world collectively grumbled about the lack of the manual option for the Sasquatch, Ford took heed.

This is absolutely encouraging. Not only did we want to see this option offered for the Sasquatch package, but it speaks to a larger willingness on Ford’s part to pay attention to popular feedback. Sometimes it gets frustrating when it feels like you’re just howling into the void while automakers axe all of their interesting offerings, opting instead for more of the same old boring grocer-getters. In this case, people asked for a change and Ford listened.

Hopefully Bronco fans will prove Ford right in its decision to listen to their requests. There’s a definite cause-and-effect relationship between the popularity of various options and manufacturers’ willingness to continue to offer those options.