A Wrangler Owner/Enthusiast/Builder honest review of the 2021 Bronco -- long...

[Pressurized]

Sorry I am lazy I did not read all nine pages Yet. Do you have a retail shop ? If so any info you can share.

Google his screen name.

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[Raptor911]

Man ... you are lazy .. in his 1st post

For the last 10 years I have been a Jeep enthusiast. Starting with 2 Grand Cherokees (wk2 platform) Which I heavily modified, at least as far as was reasonable at the time. www.wk2project.com.
After that, I jumped in to JL Wranglers both as a hobby and then as a builder.
www.jlrubitron.com The 1st Wrangler Build.
www.thecustomjeepbuilder.com The Passion
www.doetschoffroad.com The Shop

Sorry I am lazy I did not read all nine pages Yet. Do you have a retail shop ? If so any info you can share.

 

[Tech Tim]

are you saying the Bestops are available already? Spring '21 is past.

Sorry, spring of 2022.

That is coming from our sales rep at Bestop.

 

[BOT_ROCKET]

You didn't even mention the fact that Ford was building jeeps long before Jeep was building jeeps.

 

[2021badlands bronco bob]

Man ... you are lazy .. in his 1st post

For the last 10 years I have been a Jeep enthusiast. Starting with 2 Grand Cherokees (wk2 platform) Which I heavily modified, at least as far as was reasonable at the time. www.wk2project.com.
After that, I jumped in to JL Wranglers both as a hobby and then as a builder.
www.jlrubitron.com The 1st Wrangler Build.
www.thecustomjeepbuilder.com The Passion
www.doetschoffroad.com The Shop

Thanks totally missed it. I went right by all the blueprint

 

[ssolypop]

Theres no cliff-notes for this. Read it or pass.

A light read

Great insights. Glad that you like the automatic, it seems to get mixed reviews. Have you found any need or fun for the sta disco?

Most importantly did you catch any jeep guys putting on their sunglasses to sneak a peak at you?

 

[Doetsch Off-Road]

A light read

Great insights. Glad that you like the automatic, it seems to get mixed reviews. Have you found any need or fun for the sta disco?

Most importantly did you catch any jeep guys putting on their sunglasses to sneak a peak at you?

All of the Wrangler guys & gals I went out with were more than a little impressed after the 1st hour or so of wheeling.
With my background I chose to take some of the harder lines that the stock and stockish Jeeps in front of me did not, which caught everyones eye. I certainly put the stock skids to the test and found some other areas that need coverage when doing that, but it was well worth it to put it through the paces.

 

[jsharpe]

Like others, I appreciate the post and the comparisons OP. My dilemma is that while I will definitely not be doing hardcore off-roading most of the time, I do want to be able to build a rig that will be able to complete the most difficult trails. My recent experience at the Jeepers Jamboree (running my 79 CJ7) let a little to be desired in the dependability department, so I have a bronco on order with hopes to build it so I can run the Rubicon and some of the tougher rock trails.

In thinking about my Bronco build, I'm almost convinced that I will need portals in the front or some sort of heavily customized suspension like Loren and Vaughn's Ranger, Fun-Runner. Sounds like $30k to me to get this Bronco where it can hold its own in the rocks. My build in my head is a cross between the Bronco 4600 Ultra-4 build and fun-runner.

I guess with enough money you can make anything a rock crawler, so now I'm more confused than ever it seems. I could keep the CJ, rip the suspension out and start over building a linked up buggy, scrap the Bronco and get a Jeep and drop the money in suspension there (this seems dumb with the CJ at my disposal) or fully commit to the Bronco and say money be damned I want the benefits of IFS and I'm willing to spend $30-40k on suspension to have the ultimate off-roader, dune runner, mall crawler and still drive it to California and run the shit out of the Rubicon with a beer in my hand.

I guess I'm just getting nervous when I hear a seasoned vet throw down the limits of the Bronco and I'm not sure if I'll be happy with a rig that can run MOST of the trails... I want this fucker to be able to run ALL of the trails. comments welcome and I'm sure there are others on here that truly want to build a monster and are nervous about the IFS.

Not to burst your bubble, but there is not such thing as doing ALL the trails. No matter what you build, there will always be a "trail" that's too tough for it . Take a look a some of the pics here and imagine what you would need to do to a Bronco to get through the same routes (sorry I can't bring myself to call them "trails"). IMO it would be better to use the stock or lightly modified Bronco for the more sane stuff and then appreciate the comfortable ride home on the highway. I personally have zero interest in doing any "trails" (in a vehicle) that a Squatched Badlands can't do directly from the factory. Fortunately there are a ton of great places to go that are a perfect match for that.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

I never said the jeep was superior offroad. I said the Rubicon is a better (specifically) rock crawler than the Bronco SAS could possibly be. It's all written fairly clearly, sorry if you don't agree.

You're going to get some grief on this Ford Bronco forum full of guys who tend to not like Wranglers, as American's have totally become all or nothing propositions.

But

The Wrangler with solid axles will absolutely be better at rock crawling than any other option besides a classic Defender 90. This isn't based on either stock, but what you can build them both into.

An IFS consumer build just won't do on the rocks what solids will. Trophy trucks, sure, but who's dropping the $300K plus to make that happen, please stand up.

What a lot of guys don't understand is the cost of raising and making IFS components strong enough to rock crawl. We're talking a stage 6-9 suspension and even then I'd love to see how many parts need to be replaced and as often vs the SFA. The axle alone on an IFS that's necessary would cost a good bit.

Maybe you should elaborate on some of the cost estimates of your builds. Without that point of reference, guys on the forum don't have much point of reference.

 

[privateer35]

Can you go into more detail on your opinion about the audio? I'm on the fence about jumping to lux, and would like the most perspective I can get.

 

[indio22]

”It does drive BIG. If you are coming from a Jeep, a small SUV...this will feel big and wide. Bigger and wider than it really is. 1st time through tight parking lots etc youll be a bit more careful as you learn it."

How much of that was due to the 4-doors? My friend's 4-door JKU is less sporty and agile than my 2-door shorter wheelbase Jeeps.

 

[Doetsch Off-Road]

”It does drive BIG. If you are coming from a Jeep, a small SUV...this will feel big and wide. Bigger and wider than it really is. 1st time through tight parking lots etc youll be a bit more careful as you learn it."

How much of that was due to the 4-doors? My friend's 4-door JKU is less sporty and agile than my 2-door shorter wheelbase Jeeps.

Its a visual issue over the wide flat hood.

 

[Doetsch Off-Road]

Can you go into more detail on your opinion about the audio? I'm on the fence about jumping to lux, and would like the most perspective I can get.

Not much further than I already explained. Its just a poor system. Just as bad if not worse IMO than the stock system in the Wrangler. If you like your music, youll want to opt for the BO (I have not heard it yet) or aftermarket. I was really disappointed in it.

 

[L8apex]

I literally just watched some of the videos with fun-runner a few minutes ago... Getting winched up escalator. But yeah, a really nice build and I don't think that getting close to that will be nearly that expensive. More than an SFA, for sure. But I think fitting 37's or even 38's would be expensive enough and also capable enough to get you where you wanted to be.

Good luck!

Haven’t seen / can’t find that video. Got a link?

 

[Tricky Dick]

Its a visual issue over the wide flat hood.

I could just about swear that hood is as wide as a FSB, and maybe longer.

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