10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
418 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2021 Ford Bronco Sport:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

Get free help with your lemon!
close ad
problem #68

Jun 062025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Sunroof exploded

- Paragould, AR, USA

problem #67

Mar 242025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Purchased the Bronco Sport brand new in September 2021. Almost from the outset, the vehicle has been a nightmare. We just purchased our third battery. The vehicle died at an intersection and had to be towed to the dealership. They replaced the battery but it again failed. We have experienced numerous electrical issues with the vehicle as well as with the brakes and the power train. We have had the shift system fault notification come on several times. We took it in to the dealership who made some repairs and the notification went away for awhile. However, most recently, we were driving the vehicle down the interstate when it suddenly would not accelerate. We were very lucky to be able to maneuver the vehicle onto the shoulder. After a few minutes, the vehicle started and we were able to drive it home very slowly on side roads. We took the Bronco Sport to the dealership again and notified them of the multiple trips we had made there to fix this code issue. The dealership did a diagnostic and had a transmission specialist look at the car. The conclusion was that we needed a brand new transmission to the tune of $11K. Additionally, the dealership stated that we likely had rear differential issues as well - the subject of one of the many recalls on this lemon of a vehicle. We have not had the diagnostic performed as we are waiting on Ford to let us know if they will buy back the vehicle. Again, we purchased the car new and it has about 80K miles on it. There is no discernible reason for the transmission to fail on a car this new which has primarily been driven to and from work. A quick Google and social media search shows this is a pervasive problem with the 2021 Bronco Sport - many owners are experiencing electrical, power train and transmission issues. NHTSA needs to investigate this matter before someone is seriously injured or killed because of the failure of Ford in manufacturing the 2021 Bronco Sport.

- Cypress, TX, USA

problem #66

Apr 172025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
The vehicle sometimes ran a little rough while idle at drive thru. Then week later the push start did not work... engine turned over but not start. After 6 times it finally started and ran good on way home. Later that week, kept having traffic lights in town turn red... constant slow so stop and go. Vehicle started sputtering and stalled out in the highway and died in middle of road and would not start. Had to let it sit several minutes and it finally started. We immediately turned around and went home. Made appointment at dealership. Tried to start vehicle to drop off for appointment but would not start. Had towed in. They claim fuel pump replacement required. Drove home and ran ok. Next day power inconsistent and runs rough at start and slow speed with one push start did not work. Reporting since my spouse is in a wheelchair and can not walk. This vehicle is only one we have that my spouse can get in due to disability and I am seriously concerned if vehicle stalls out on public highway again it is likely to result in an accident and he gets seriously hurt. Never had a vehicle I felt unsafe to have my family be in before and do not think it is safe for this vehicle be on the highway.

- Williams, OR, USA

problem #65

Feb 102025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
My car broke down and couldn-??t start. Leaving me stranded 6 hours away from my house. I had to stay in a hotel and get my car fixed the next day. It was a temporary fix because there is no solution for the problem. I had to pay for a new battery because there is not a fix for the problem.

- Deerfield Beach, FL, USA

problem #64

Mar 122025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Transmission slipping, needing completely rebuilt or whole new transmission

- Russellville, AR, USA

problem #63

Jan 042025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Regarding the current recall for my 2021 Bronco Sport. How can Ford say this is still safe to drive if the battery can cut off at any given moment, leaving you stranded on a highway, or anywhere. I expect better from Ford. They should be letting those affected rent a car until the parts are available. This is a safety issue and extremely dangerous. This same thing happened with my third battery (yes, I am on my third battery in 3 1/2 years). I was left stranded, no hazards, no lights, no nothing, windows didn't work, door locks didn't work, it was dark out, and I was alone. My windows were down and I had valuables in the car so I couldn't leave the car. Very dangerous. Yes, I called for help, but it was scary and unsafe. Thank you.

- Griffith, IN, USA

problem #62

Dec 012024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Vehicle would not start on two occasions, both times the vehicle was jumped and started. On the third occasion the car would not start, the electrical panel flashed all the warning lights and the dashboard continually flashed on and off. It was towed to the Ford Dealership in Oxford, MS in December 2024. The dealership looked over the car, no other issues and advised that this was likely a recall and recommended a battery replacement which I did. I paid $202.65 for the repairs and in February I received a notice for 12 Volt battery recall but no instructions were provided to seek reimbursement nor was there any recall fix given (time was Q2 2025). The instrumental panel upon attempting to the start the vehicle would light up but the engine would not turn over, all warning lights would come on. Yes the vehicle is available for inspection.

- Sacramento , CA, USA

problem #61

Feb 202025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
4wd service fault known issue with these vehicles I feel that this is a safety issue based on the fact that you could lose four-wheel drive in times when four-wheel drive could be necessary icy conditions snow conditions ECT losing four-wheel drive during a snowstorm can definitely cause an accident this should definitely be a safety issue especially being a known problem

- Coeymans Hollow, NY, USA

problem #60

Feb 032025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
The recall that is currently out my car is experiencing some issues they stated but there-??s no remedy for it at the time!! And I went to the dealership to have older recalls checked they won-??t do it for the front suspension or fuel injectors

- Farwell, MI, USA

problem #59

Nov 152024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
I bought a 2021 Bronco Sport Brand new and ever since the car has been a problem. The rear axle wasn-??t getting enough lubricants so it was grinding and I didn-??t know what it was at the time but I took it to a Ford dealership and was told after spending 200$ on diagnostic testing that absolutely nothing was wrong with the vehicle. The vehicle kept doing the same thing grinding noises so I took it in again and got the same results now mind you this is way before my power train was up. The car felt so unstable and unsafe it got to the point where I had to just leave it at the dealership until Ford could help me with some financial assistance. While at the dealership Ford told the mechanic to check the transmission and upon checking the transmission the mechanic found a problem. The total of repairs came up to over 10k for a vehicle that doesn-??t even have 65k miles on it. I was sold a brand new lemon. This was my first new car purchase and it has literally been the worst experience in my life. The brakes were recalled the fuel injection system now the battery which I-??ve already spent 500$ on a new one last year has guess what? Been recalled as of 1/17/2025. So after thousands of dollars in rental car and Uber rides which I have yet to be reimbursed for my vehicle is still at the Ford dealership has been there for over 3 months out of 10k in repairs Ford offered to pay only 4,100. What a rip off buying this junk was. I really thought Ford would do the right thing and take care of its customers but I was wrong dead wrong. Biggest mistake of my like.

- Antioch, TN, USA

problem #58

Jan 192025

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Rear brakes are noisy, they make a grinding noise. Ever since we got the vehicle. Screens turn black while driving, can control infotainment system Water gets into the vehicle when it rains or when getting car washed

- Fontana, CA, USA

problem #57

Feb 092024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
The battery that came with the vehicle lasted less than 2 years. It was replaced after one day the car just wouldn-??t hold any charge. I have the pep boys receipt and record to prove the battery would no longer hold any charge.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #56

Dec 102024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
On two occasions vehicle has turned off while in drive. Have taken to dealership without a resolution. After vehicle is off for several minutes (unable to turn anything on including hazards) vehicle starts up and computer resets without any warnings. Unable to put the vehicle in neutral to move off the road while occurring.

- Hanover, PA, USA

problem #55

Dec 092024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
Since performing a manufacturer update to the Sync technology system, my touch screen has not functioned properly, including the back up camera. The screen goes black or freezes on the rear view camera even when in drive and moving forward. Each time this happens, the system has to be rebooted.

- Rome, GA, USA

problem #54

Nov 242024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
As I was driving the vehicle it lost all power. Nothing on it worked, including the locks and windows. It turns out that the warning system that my battery was low wasn-??t functioning and my battery was down to 5%. If I had gotten notice I could have replaced the battery prior to the car literally bricking as I was driving it on a busy city street.

- Baltimore , MD, USA

problem #53

Nov 132024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
My vehicle was emitting fumes into my vehicle and making a strange noise. When I took it to the dealership they tested the emissions/catalytic converter and fuel injectors. Which all showed no issues. When investigating further, they found that the weld on the catalytic converter had broke and was causing an unstable catalytic converter. Service manager reported to me that he felt this was definitely a manufactured defect and said if I hit a bear that shouldn-??t have been an issue. No bear was hit and there was NO incident at all. Just driving to and from work.

- Forest Ranch, CA, USA

problem #52

Oct 182024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
My ford bronco stalled when I was slowing down at a traffic light. The entire car shutdown. The steering wheel locked up and the car could not be put into neutral. After about 15 minutes the car was able to turn on again. The stalling out at an intersection put me in danger by putting me in a situation where I was stuck in active traffic without the ability to move my car to a safe area off of the main road. There were no warning lights or messages prior to the car completely shutting off at the traffic light.

- Honolulu, HI, USA

problem #51

Oct 132024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
My car was stopped at a red light and when I hit the gas to go my entire car shut off. I was not able to turn my hazards on or put my car in neutral to push my car out of traffic. This is a huge safety concern because a car could-??ve rear ended me since I wasn-??t able to put hazards on. I attempted to jumpstart the vehicle but that didn-??t work. I had to get my car towed and sent to the dealership. The issue sounds like the recall notice 24S24 - however my bronco sport says I don-??t have any recalls. After talking to other bronco sport owners who had similar issues, they said they had to pay several hundred dollars to replace the battery with an AGM battery because the bronco sport isn't equipped to handle all the electronics.

- Ankeny, IA, USA

problem #50

Oct 052024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
My car made a loud pop noise when I go to turn it over. Then it was just dead others tried to jump it, but it wasn-??t getting enough juice. Along with this all the warning signals start flashing through on the dash before basically dying. There had been warning at all early I had been driving around just fine. When we finally get to the dealership they say it was just the battery. We replace the battery but I see that other 2021 bronco sport-??s had battery recall issues they said, mine didn-??t fall under the date when the bad ones were produced. Still I think they should look at other dates, since they might have been over looked or on the cusps of the dates between the bad batteries and the good batteries.

- Willow Spring, NC, USA

problem #49

Sep 262024

Bronco Sport

  • miles
While waiting in the drop off line at school the Bronco suddenly shut off and would not restart. The dash lights, AC controls, radio, etc all shut off as if the entire electrical system shut down. The orange pull strap used to put the vehicle in neutral did not work as the electrical shutdown seemed to have locked up the brakes. Fortunately since it happened in a school zone traffic was slow moving and we did not have to worry about getting hit. Unfortunately, the vehicle was stuck in the middle of the road an unmovable until a tow truck came. After some quick research I've seen that this is a fairly common occurrence in the 2021 Bronco Sport. I used the Ford site to check the VIN but supposedly my vehicle was not affected by any recalls. Seems more than a coincidence that I have experienced exactly what others describe yet I'm unaffected by any recalls. I am now extremely concerned to have my wife and children in a car that could potentially shut off at any time and lock up the brakes. If this were to have happened on the highway who knows how many people may have been injured or killed. Prior to the incident there were no warnings, no warning notifications, nothing. Currently the vehicle is at the dealership who is charging a premium to diagnose the issue and replace the battery.

- Xenia, OH, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »