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My Takeaways From the Garnet Ford Dealer Event (West Chester, PA)

Cousin Eddie

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I went to the Bronco Dealer Event at Garnet Ford in West Chester, PA today. I have to say I was awestruck when I finally got to see them. I'm not even sure what version I was looking at! Both were 4 door soft tops and had MGV seats. I believe the one was a Black Diamond, Mid package, Sqatched in AMB. The other was a Badlands, Lux, in Iconic Silver and upgraded wheels.

The Badlands showed up first. It looked sweet! Tire to body ratio looked good. Brush bar covered the lettering.

Then the Black Diamond showed up. Holy shit did it look good! The 35s are HUGE! The tire to body ratio just looked so much better! I was truly blown away by its stance. The Antimatter Blue also looked incredible. I am seriously considering switching from Area 51 to the AMB. I'm 5'9". Climbing into the BD was easy. I was able to just kind of get on my toes and slide onto the seat. It's a Mid package so I wasn't impressed with the interior overall but the seats were comfortable. The only concerning issue to me was that the BD did not have any floor protection, i.e., floor mats. The floor felt "rubbery" with some cushioning between the cover and the body. While I may be wrong, I got the impression that the floor could be ripped by a sharp object.

The other thing that struck me about the BD was the overall width of the vehicle. It wasn't as wide as I was expecting but that's a good thing. I think it will be nimbler than I thought it would be.

The interior on the Badlands was very nice. Sure "Lux" in another vehicle would get you wood grain dash and other beauty items but I felt the Badlands interior was nicer than the BD. As far as the radio goes... I just spent 2 hours driving to the event in my wife's '21 Explorer XLT so I had a half decent radio as my baseline. I turned up the radio to halfway and it definately sounded better and louder than the radio in my wife's car. I don't believe it sounds as good as the Bose sound system in my 2011 Caddy but it sounded better than my baseline on the ride down.

Overall my biggest fear has been abated and that's dropping 60k on a vehicle sight unseen! I couldn't be happier with what I saw and I am looking forward to getting my email tomorrow that my Bronco made the cut to be built in June (I wish)!!!
Ford Bronco My Takeaways From the Garnet Ford Dealer Event (West Chester, PA) 20210421_120539
Ford Bronco My Takeaways From the Garnet Ford Dealer Event (West Chester, PA) 20210421_115034
Ford Bronco My Takeaways From the Garnet Ford Dealer Event (West Chester, PA) 20210421_114900
Ford Bronco My Takeaways From the Garnet Ford Dealer Event (West Chester, PA) 20210421_114127
Ford Bronco My Takeaways From the Garnet Ford Dealer Event (West Chester, PA) 20210421_115314
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David12691

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That side profile shot may be one of the best side shots of this vehicle I've seen. Glad I went with SAS.
 

aonorato

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I saw you there today! I was glad to be there early before the down pour and so happy to see the AMB which is what I ordered. It would've been nice to have one 2-door, one 4-door, but I am so happy I got to sit in them both and play around a bit.
 

Fly by Nite

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I'll be checking them out on Monday in Doylestown!
How are running the show....do they only let a 1-2 people in at a once and have a time limit (5-10 min), or is it a free-for all where the trucks are avail for all to check out during their 1 hour appointment?
 
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Cousin Eddie

Cousin Eddie

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I was one of the first people to get there. They set up everything in the hour before the start. They were taking some of the dealer employees (I think) for a ride before noon. At noon, they opened the check in. Gave my name and phone number and they gave me a sticker ("I'm Checked In!"). I didn't preregister my wife who came along. The registered her on the spot and checked her in as well. Once we were checked in, we were aloudto dig into everything. My guess is there were maybe 20 people at most crawling around them. Everyone was courteous to each other and took turns checking out what they wanted. The Bronco team were very nice and answered any questions people had. There was also a regional sales rep there displaying some of the accessories.

They had the center console vault on display. It was all steel and the top felt heaver gauge than the sides. I had a top, right and left sides and a hinged rear plate.

I stayed for about a half an hour and then left.

The check in line was set up to accomodate a bunch of people waiting in line but I didn't see anyone waiting. I believe there was a nasty downpour after I left so that might have affected the crowd size.
 

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jaruss01

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How did you find the interior size / cargo compared to your explorer? Think family hauling purposes. Was it night and day difference spatially? Or just a slight downgrade?
 
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Cousin Eddie

Cousin Eddie

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How did you find the interior size / cargo compared to your explorer? Think family hauling purposes. Was it night and day difference spatially? Or just a slight downgrade?
It felt way smaller than the Explorer but it didn't feel small. Maybe 4 to 6 inches less across the vehicle. The back seat of the Bronco had less leg room than the 2nd row seat of the Explorer. The reaar storage of the Bronco was deeper than the Explorer if the third row seats were up. If the 3rd row seats were down, I'd say you had maybe 50% more depth in the Explorer than the Bronco.
 

sjp

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Excellent photos - thank you so much! Reconfirms three of my decisions:

1 - AMB is AWEsome
2 - A four-door is way too big for my needs
3 - 35" tires + lift look impressive but are also way too big for my needs

It's like when I go to a restaurant and order the biggest thing on the menu (because you know, it just looks so good and I'm so hungry) then later I feel like crap for eating it.

I realize some people have bigger appetites than I do, but I'm happy to not be eating a sasquatch this year.
 

jaruss01

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It felt way smaller than the Explorer but it didn't feel small. Maybe 4 to 6 inches less across the vehicle. If the 3rd row seats were down, I'd say you had maybe 50% more depth in the Explorer than the Bronco.
Looks like it 'felt' exactly how it should. I looked up the 2021 explorer dimensions - interior width is 5" wider (your real feel was 4-6"), and cargo volume behind second row is almost exactly 50% bigger.
 

Td3

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Thanks for your thoughts and photos! I saw those same two Broncos in Baltimore earlier this week, and I liked the AMB well enough though it was under their roof. Seeing your pic in the sun looks even better and confirms that is what I want.

Agree the BL looked good with the KO 33s, and wish I could see a non Sas BD with steelies. That said it was awesome to see them in person!
 

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Cousin Eddie

Cousin Eddie

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Looks like it 'felt' exactly how it should. I looked up the 2021 explorer dimensions - interior width is 5" wider (your real feel was 4-6"), and cargo volume behind second row is almost exactly 50% bigger.
I was specifically thinking about it on the drive there. The thing I took note of was the center console between the driver and passenger seats.

When I said I was awestruck and couldn't remember what I was looking at... The best I could compare it to was Ralphie meeting Santa and couldn't get his thoughts together! :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO:
 

phillyfx4

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just saw those 2 same Bronco's @ Kennedy Ford, in Conshy.....can the drivers seat be raised up ?
seemed like I had a bit of trouble seeing over the hood in the drivers seat, I have a much better view over the hood in my 08' F 150..... maybe they were at the lowest position ?
thanks 🍻
 
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Cousin Eddie

Cousin Eddie

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just saw those 2 same Bronco's @ Kennedy Ford, in Conshy.....can the drivers seat be raised up ?
seemed like I had a bit of trouble seeing over the hood in the drivers seat, I have a much better view over the hood in my 08' F 150..... maybe they were at the lowest position ?
thanks 🍻
Yes, they can be raised. There is a handle lever on the outside of each front seat. Pulling it up raises the seat, pushing it down lowers it. I noticed that too, it was sitting pretty low when I got in but I found the lever. My guess is the lowest seat position makes it the most accessible to anyone to get into it.
 

dgorsett

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I was specifically thinking about it on the drive there. The thing I took note of was the center console between the driver and passenger seats.

When I said I was awestruck and couldn't remember what I was looking at... The best I could compare it to was Ralphie meeting Santa and couldn't get his thoughts together! :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO:
I was in Moab, they left the test drive units open, running and unattended often. I even sat in a 2 dr A51 (my order) and was so damned excited I didn't remember to look at anything specific and can remember nothing...other than I love it!!
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