Last week we asked you what crossover vehicle you would like to see turned into a rugged body-on-frame SUV, and hilarity ensued. Body-on-frame SUVs ruled the roads by the end of last century, but once automakers began realizing that the most SUV-ish thing that their buyers did was jump a curb or drive down the occasional gravel road. You know what can also withstand those challenges? Anything that’s not a sports car, really. But buyers continued to demand commanding seating positions and the security, or perceived security, of four-wheel drive, so carmakers began lifting their car platforms and plopping tall bodies on top of them to make crossovers. In the beginning crossovers were revolutionary, but now they’re commonplace and boring.
So how do you un-boring a boring crossover? Un-crossover it! Now, none of this is ever likely to happen in the real world, but it’s still fun to imagine. Some of y’all got real inventive, so these are the crossovers that you wish were body-on-frame SUVs.
Citroën C4 Cactus
I always thought the Citroen C4 Cactus was a cool looking vehicle, it might be interesting what Citroen would do with a BOF vehicle.
Submitted by: Earthbound Misfit I
THIS IS WHAT I’M TALKIN’ ABOUT PEOPLE. A body-on-frame Citroën Cactus? Two words: Hell Yeah.
Lamborghini Urus
Easy, Ferrari Purosangue or the Lamborghini Urus.
I chose to focus on the Urus because Lamborghini has produced a badass off-roader before and I would love to see a successor. A body-on-frame Ferrari Purosangue would be hilarious, though.
Subaru Crosstrek Wilderness
The new Crosstrek Wilderness would be a nice start. Give it some solid axles while you’re in there and it would be a plastic clad TANK
Any body-on-frame Subaru would be cool, but I’m extra happy you chose the smallest one.
Mazda CX-50
A Mazda CX-50 with legit off-road prowess would be fantastic! As they are, they’re marketed with an outdoorsy but upscale feel, but I think a new Passport would put it to shame. Imagine the CX-50's look but 2" higher, more aggressive offset wheels, and A/Ts. Yes please.
Submitted by: Weirdly Brown Egg
This would be badass.
Jeep Renegade
How about a Jeep Renegade? Making it BOF could turn it into the American version of the Jimny. Small, fairly light, nimble off road, and most importantly, cheap! Everything a Wrangler used to be.
Submitted by: Anthony Thornton
Chevrolet Blazer
How is Blazer not the first answer here? GM has the Suburban & Yukon, might as well do a 2 door short version. And Ford has the Expedition and Expo Max, so they should do an Expedition Bronco.
Submitted by: sausagefingers76
Ford Ecosport
Ford Ecosport. I would also like a manual and the motor from the Fiesta St. This thing has soft roaded pretty well, and would make a fun little off roader with some nice mods.
I was thinking about the EcoSport when I wrote my answer! Same concept though; I said Buick Encore GX, which is GM’s jellybean subcompact crossover.
BMW X3
X3. Not that I want one, but just to see how much complexity and maintenance burden BMW could build into a full frame.
Submitted by: dustynnguyendood
YES YES YES.
Mazda CX-5
The world doesn’t need it, but it’s be kind of cool to see a legit rugged Mazda CX-5 BOF off-roader.
But seriously, there’s hardly a trail on earth that you couldn’t traverse with a properly set up unibody 4WD vehicle. If you need a purpose-built BOF 4x4 these days it’s because you wanted to built it for some ultimate rock-crawling challenge.
Submitted by: ReluctantFloridaMan
Nissan Pathfinder
Dear Nissan, bring back the BOF Pathfinder and stuff the Armadas motor in it.
Ford Maverick
This is funny because my first thought was a Ford Maverick, which really just means I want an actual small truck that is good for small truck things. Extended cab (not four-door) BOF small truck. Dreamy.
Submitted by: This burner burns premium
Bring back minitrucks!!!
Ford Bronco Sport
How about the Bronco Sport? I mean its based on the Escape but is probably close to the size of the original. Why not go whole hog and drop it on a frame and 4x4 chassis.
Initially I thought, “they already make a four-door body-on-frame Bronco,” but then I remembered the Bronco II and saw your vision.
Land Rover Defender
The Land Rover “Defender”, because right now it is only fit for the soccer team parking lot.
Jeep Cherokee
I think the best candidates for this are the crossovers that already have some decent offroad chops despite being crossovers. Like the Ford Bronco Sport or Jeep Cherokee.