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Tow capacity will keep me from switching...

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Grand Cherokee?
It’s made by Jeep/Chrysler.....lol. Don’t want that aggravation. :ROFLMAO:
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Todkavonic

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Interesting. Why not a Grand Cherokee? Is it the roof and door thing? Those can tow and go off road quite well.
It's a Jeep thing. :) No, this was a wrangler forum. Like here, some folks want their amazing rock-crawling, trail-rockin', river-fordin' rig to also tow a boat. Perhaps a dedicated, factory towing package would get some attention? That said, I definitely think that there's a misconception (misunderstanding?) that towing is all about the size/torque of the engine.

Nate
 

Jook13

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Look, if they needed to Sacrifice towing to make it a badass offroad monster then I'm glad they did. I don't want a jack of all trades, master of none.
 

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Like many of you, I really was anticipating the new Bronco launch. I was extremely impressed by the engineering and design feats made by Ford. It’s a very good looking rig.

I watched the release getting more and more excited UNTIL I read the towing capacity. This was a really key opportunity to pull away two large segments of buyers(existing pickup owners and current Jeep owners). With both segments, I think towing capacity was a big deciding factor. I live in Florid, and the ability to tow a boat when needed is critical. For that reason, you see a lot of pickup trucks. You also see/hear a ton of Jeep owners wondering why they paid 30-50k for practically no towing capacity.

3500 lbs is NOTHING. It doesn’t even match the Ford Ranger.
Haven't read all the responses here yet, but I'm in exactly this same boat. I can't afford to add many more toys(both financially and space wise). I'm planning to replace my truck very soon, and my hope was that the Bronco would have a decent tow cap to be the replacement. Towing would be maybe 10% of my driving, so while I need something capable, I want something fun like the bronco for the other 90% of it.

I've seen/heard lots saying its because of the wheelbase, but the new 4 door has about a foot longer wheelbase than the 90s bronco did, and that was rated for 7000lbs or more depending on the engine. And the new engines are def capable as they tow more in other vehicles.

And yes I know the way they do the tow rating has changed over the years, but a 2020 Yukon/Tahoe can tow 8000+lbs with the same wheelbase as the new 4 door Bronco. Other SUVs of similar size across different makes can tow in the 7-8000 range. So wheelbase alone def isn't it.

Also seen suspension as a reasoning. Again, last gen broncos towed more with older less capable suspension. And isn't there a lot more adjustability in the newer suspension? Shouldn't there be a way to add a tow mode to all the fancy new adjustable modes? Or even throw in a slightly different suspension as part of a tow package for those that want it(sure it'd give up a lil bit of offroad capability, but still be plenty more capable than most other vehicles).

If there isn't a tow package that gets the bronco to at least 5500-6000lbs, I'll be buying a Jeep Gladiator instead for the 7600lbs tow cap. Willing to take a 1600-2000lb drop in tow rating for a Bronco over the Gladiator, but not more than that. Of course I didn't expect it to beat the Gladiator or match the Ranger, but was hoping for something closer at least. I'd prefer the Bronco, but Gladiator ticks similar boxes with more than the towing capability I need.
 

MaverickMan

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My guess is all they planned on anyone towing was a small camper or a smallish boat. I think it should handle about 1000 to 1500 more just fine. So just put a better reciever on it and go.
 

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MadMan4BamaNATL

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Like many of you, I really was anticipating the new Bronco launch. I was extremely impressed by the engineering and design feats made by Ford. It’s a very good looking rig.

I watched the release getting more and more excited UNTIL I read the towing capacity. This was a really key opportunity to pull away two large segments of buyers(existing pickup owners and current Jeep owners). With both segments, I think towing capacity was a big deciding factor. I live in Florid, and the ability to tow a boat when needed is critical. For that reason, you see a lot of pickup trucks. You also see/hear a ton of Jeep owners wondering why they paid 30-50k for practically no towing capacity.

3500 lbs is NOTHING. It doesn’t even match the Ford Ranger.

I, like most Americans, don’t have the money to plop down 40-50k on multiple vehicles to serve multiple purposes.

I hope someone at Ford will read this and consider it for the future.
Questioning your understanding of automotive engineering and physics. I mean no offense, just making an observation.

An off road vehicle, and what is needed to achieve the dynamic requirements of a vehicle capable of high levels of articulation, speed, payload, optimal break over angle, etc do not directly translate to the needs of a vehicle capable of performing mule duty; that is why we have pickup trucks as you’ve observed.

A proper off road vehicle is desirable with the shortest wheel base, with highest ground clearance possible with the addition of a low speed transfer case as you know.

The gearing requirements for an off road vehicle and that necessary for towing vary quite a bit. Sure there are pickups that manufacturers have defied physics to achieve off roading, but there are compromises made in several areas such as breakover.

Aftermarket aside, as you can upgrade Bronco to tow more if you wish, but there will be compromises there as well. Boats don’t do off road, so you wouldn’t use an off road vehicle to tow a boat is my point, so don’t do that.
 

MadMan4BamaNATL

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Haven't read all the responses here yet, but I'm in exactly this same boat. I can't afford to add many more toys(both financially and space wise). I'm planning to replace my truck very soon, and my hope was that the Bronco would have a decent tow cap to be the replacement. Towing would be maybe 10% of my driving, so while I need something capable, I want something fun like the bronco for the other 90% of it.

I've seen/heard lots saying its because of the wheelbase, but the new 4 door has about a foot longer wheelbase than the 90s bronco did, and that was rated for 7000lbs or more depending on the engine. And the new engines are def capable as they tow more in other vehicles.

And yes I know the way they do the tow rating has changed over the years, but a 2020 Yukon/Tahoe can tow 8000+lbs with the same wheelbase as the new 4 door Bronco. Other SUVs of similar size across different makes can tow in the 7-8000 range. So wheelbase alone def isn't it.

Also seen suspension as a reasoning. Again, last gen broncos towed more with older less capable suspension. And isn't there a lot more adjustability in the newer suspension? Shouldn't there be a way to add a tow mode to all the fancy new adjustable modes? Or even throw in a slightly different suspension as part of a tow package for those that want it(sure it'd give up a lil bit of offroad capability, but still be plenty more capable than most other vehicles).

If there isn't a tow package that gets the bronco to at least 5500-6000lbs, I'll be buying a Jeep Gladiator instead for the 7600lbs tow cap. Willing to take a 1600-2000lb drop in tow rating for a Bronco over the Gladiator, but not more than that. Of course I didn't expect it to beat the Gladiator or match the Ranger, but was hoping for something closer at least. I'd prefer the Bronco, but Gladiator ticks similar boxes with more than the towing capability I need.
Dude, since 1978 Broncos were nothing more than an F-150 with a cab and clear pass through.

This Bronco is not an F-150. If you want a compromised mix of both, get a Raptor.
 

kodiakisland

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I’m guessing some don’t understand what the Bronco is all about. Towing heavy stuff ain’t it.
I’m just glad I’m not in the got a big ass boat but not enough money to tow it crowd. Ford’s got the towing issue solved by several other vehicles. If your priority is dragging lots of weight around, look at one of them.
If your priority is a capable off-road vehicle from the factory, Ford just stepped up to the plate.
 
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Duck

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Unless they are only fitting it with a Class II hitch like I saw in one of the documents... then you are stuck with 3500 regardless of what it can do.
In one of the launch vids, I could swear I heard the narrator say a class 3 hitch is available. Also, towing capacity is hugely dependent on braking capability. For those that have to tow, rear airbags may work to help alleviate the tongue weight sag and increase the overall capacity. That said, you my lose some travel off road.
 

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Dude, since 1978 Broncos were nothing more than an F-150 with a cab and clear pass through.

This Bronco is not an F-150. If you want a compromised mix of both, get a Raptor.
My point is with todays engineering capabilities 5500lbs really isn't that high of a tow capacity, there's sedans that can tow 3500lbs doesn't take a truck or suv for that anymore. So yea I'm hopeful for a Bronco to beat that. There's off road capable suvs that can tow 8000lbs, so making the bronco a lot more capable than those with a decent tow cap thats a bit less should be easy. And I already stated I'd be getting a gladiator as my compromise, raptor isn't a compromise for me. I don't want an f150 at all and glad the bronco is its own thing, but it is still built from a ranger platform with the engines from the ranger and the f150, so at its heart still truck based. And lets face it, regardless of how good it is offroad from the get go, it'll never be good enough for everybody, people be upgrading and swapping parts anyways. Even with all the extra modes, it'll never be perfect for every off road condition so there will always be compromise somewhere on it. I'd love to have something thats actually capable of some off road fun, but I tow a toy hauler with an 800lb bike few times a year on different trips, and even if i downgraded the toy hauler it's unlikely to come in at less than 4000lbs with the bike inside. Currently its at around 5600lbs with bike(4800 empty). And if you think thats a lot of weight, its still one of the lightest toy haulers by far(plenty can weigh 12,000lbs empty). So yea I'd love to be able to tow the camper anywhere in the country, roofless and doorless, unhook once there and hit whatever trails nearby, and spend a few days off road with the bronco or on road with the bike. Forgive me for having more than one hobby. Still holding out to see if the Bronco can manage that, but know the Gladiator can, don't have much need for the bed though.
 

bbostic5

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Think of the Bronco as a tool. You don’t bring a screwdriver to hammer a nail or scissors to mow the lawn. The Bronco was made to excel off road, not tow a bunch of shit.
 

codydb19

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there's sedans that can tow 3500lbs
Not that I want to keep this thread going, and it's not that I don't believe you.. But I'm gonna need to see this list of sedans that can tow 3,500 lbs.
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