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How well will Bronco with Sasquatch drive and handle on the streets ?

sbsdevil

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6’5” and drove my wife’s wrangler from MA to AZ three times in two weeks during our move with no issues personally. 2014 sport. It drives like a Cadillac compared to the old 94 YJ I had but at the end of the day is still a solid axle short wheelbase. I think the IFS on the Bronco is going to make it much more easy on the road but once you start lifting it and adding huge mud tires, that comfort level will decrease. If you don’t intend on taking it off road, you may not be super thrilled with the Sasquatch package. Just like Rubicon owners who complain about the ride and tire noise while they’re driving to the mall. Buy for the purpose you intend, not what looks cool and you’ll be a lot happier in the end.
Holy wow! That is like 13,000 miles and 240 hours of driving. One trip to NJ and back to AZ was enough for me (in a passenger car).
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MCG DAWG

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Could you describe what made it so awful? In other words... around town is fine, but road-tripping is a hard pill to swallow?
Over 65-70mph it was work to keep it between the lines. It liked to wander all over the lane. And the ride was very rough. You run over a nickel in an older jeep and you know it. Also at speed wind would have much larger effect on the Jeep than any other car I'd ever driven. It just wasn't an enjoyable "cruise".
 

Bayou_Bronco

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I think we will have to wait and see....but I expect it to drive way better than a Jeep for long trips. I use my lifted FJ with 33s as a point of reference. It was comfortable, and no problem at all on long trips. I drove it regularly for 4-5 hours at a time, and it was a good ride; excellent compared to a Jeep. I attribute that to IFS to a good degree. Now, the Bronco with 35 M/Ts is a different beast, so we will have to wait and see....but I am thinking that it will be a good ride. Anyone have a lifted Ranger with 35 M/Ts with any thoughts?
I agree with you. I really don't expect it to drive much different from my lifted 4Runner on aggressive 33" ATs. I did the trip to and from Louisiana to Colorado for the FJ Summit basically non stop both ways. It was 22 hours each way plus a couple of rest stops and it was a fun and comfortable trip. I think the Bronco even with 35s should very similar.
 

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With IFS and the right gearing, it should ride fine. Probably noisy though.
 

MadMan4BamaNATL

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Lots of good comments mentioned here, so I won't repeat, but just say that the devil is in the various details that will impact ride on an off roader.

What a lot of guys fail to mention, as well as guys fail to ask is "what kind"? The type of suspension (quality) and type and brand of tire will make the ride vary just like in a car.

A lot of guys used to do the cheapest lift possible, some still do. This cost cutting can have minimal but noticeable difference off road, but a very big difference on road.

Think Bronco's Bilstein suspension on the Badlands with Sasquatch could be classified as mid grade, which is good. Ford likely has it set up for on road comfort, so in the middle while they market it as extreme; it's not. The Raptor version will be extreme with overflow reservoir shocks, larger springs, beefed up joints, etc. It'll be easy to wander and maybe springy if I had to guess.

Badlands, even with factory lift will feel much different than a car, but the IFS should give much more control than a solid front axle which is a dog on the road no matter what anyone tries to say. An off roader is often very happy to sacrifice road manners for articulation on a rocky trail.

Tires may be the biggest point of contention here. I absolutely do not believe in saving money on tires. (For reference, I am running Michelin Pilot Sport 4 Summer 19" on my 440i and Pirelli P Zero No season 19" on the wife's X3, both M Sport).

Anyway, mud tires are bad on road, just like ultra high performance summer rubber is bad on roads that aren't smooth or when it gets below 40 degrees. In their element, MTs are perfect! Their element is not the street.

Not sure about these Goodyears, but I know Mickey's feel bad on road, add Generals, and Cooper for sure. BF Goodrich MTs are ok on road and perfect in the dirt and on the rocks; think like wheels with hands.

All of this adds up to letting you know if the vehicle will wander all over (likely), be loud as hell (YES!), and take away any road feel. (for sure!)
 
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MJJ

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I love driving my JL Rubicon around town. just recently took it 2hrs one way up to the lake with the wife. Very comfortable imo. I must be old school.

It doesn’t ride like a Mercedes or an Audi A8, but that is ok.
 

luvtofish

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Pulled this out of the Bronco Suspension Deep dive article that was linked in another thread where they were comparing the Bronco to the Jeep Wrangler. This is a quote from a Ford spokesman:

“The ride on-road as well is very, very good. Even the least critical customer is going to notice the difference just in terms of on-road steering and handling performance...and ride as well,” he said. This should be no surprise, as a solid axle connects both front wheels with a big steel tube, so a bump on one side of the car gets translated to the other, often yielding “head toss” for the occupants.

Loeffler chimed in, and said, when it comes to off-roading, the Bronco will excel, particularly well when speeds get high. “Basically, when you do anything at more speed... we totally nailed that in terms of vehicle performance capability.”

So, it sounds like Ford is happy with the ride, steering, and off-roadiness of the new Bronco. But no way to confirm without a test drive of our own. ?‍♂
 
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Rogues Gambit

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There's a post that quotes a Ford test driver. He said to drive a Ranger Crew Cab to get an "idea" of how the Bronco may be.
I might have a Ram 1500, but it's still a IFS/SRA like the Ranger

I'll definitely like it then, especially when rowing gears
 

MadMan4BamaNATL

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Pulled this out of the Bronco Suspension Deep dive article that was linked in another thread where they were comparing the Bronco to the Jeep Wrangler. This is a quote from a Ford spokesman:

“The ride on-road as well is very, very good. Even the least critical customer is going to notice the difference just in terms of on-road steering and handling performance...and ride as well,” he said. This should be no surprise, as a solid axle connects both front wheels with a big steel tube, so a bump on one side of the car gets translated to the other, often yielding “head toss” for the occupants.

Loeffler chimed in, and said, when it comes to off-roading, the Bronco will excel, particularly well when speeds get high. “Basically, when you do anything at more speed... we totally nailed that in terms of vehicle performance capability.”

So, it sounds like Ford is happy with the ride, steering, and off-roadiness of the new Bronco. But no way to confirm without a test drive of our own. ?‍♂
I get him saying that, but in his statements, there's the rub, "when speeds get high". Unless you're in the desert with minimal washboard tracks, there is no speed gets high off road. Speeds get high on the freeway when traveling to off road, not during. Well, unless you're stupid or have a sponsor paying for your rig; you know, like Ford factory drivers filming a Bronco commercial.

The off road motto is simply stated: As slow as possible and only as fast as necessary. Even on the highway, bombing a Wrangler or this Bronco at 80mph with 35s sitting on a lift is not smart. Sure, you can do it, but should you?

Think about how poorly you normally watch guys drive, now lift that and take away downforce.....
 
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this is why i plan to have 2 sets of wheels/tires. i do that with my fj40, when i travel more then 30 mins i jack her up and swap em out. a world of difference if you have the ability/space/$$
 

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I love driving my JL Rubicon around town. just recently took it 2hrs one way up to the lake with the wife. Very comfortable imo. I must be old school.

It doesn’t ride like a Mercedes or an Audi A8, but that is ok.
I think it's a matter of personal taste. I've been quite surprised by the number of discussions here about high-speed road manners, comfort, cabin noise, etc. Has the broad tent dragged in too many people that are going to be disappointed?

At the end of the day this is a truck. It is not a Mercedes. I want a truck. I hope that Ford doesn't sacrificed too much to make this satisfying to the new broader base. Honestly, I expect that they won't, and that means some are going to be disappointed.

I think most of the people raising these issues really shouldn't be looking for the Sasquatch package. Yea, it may look bad-a$$, but all of this capability comes at a cost. If 90% of your driving is on paved roads and highways, IMO, that cost will not be worth it. Of course, I'm a bit of a masochist, so even if that were my intended use, I might still choose the pain.

If I could get the 2.7 + MT + Squatch, I'd go that route, but for me it'll be BL on 33s (32.7s, actually).
 

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How many of you will mostly drive your Bronco on the streets ? I think all of us, I have never owned a Jeep so my question is.. How do you think this Bronco with Sasquatch will drive and handle on the streets ? Do you like driving your Wrangler around town ? Thanks !
I've owned multiple wranglers all with at least 3 inch lifts and 35 inch tires.


The quality of the lift and 4 wheel offroad proper alignment is very important

Tires are also important... It's why I always get load range C tires. The bfg k02 made for the raptor drives Supreme... A load range d version... Drives like shit.
 

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Could you describe what made it so awful? In other words... around town is fine, but road-tripping is a hard pill to swallow?
Offroad vehicles on highways are often fighting you to steer them to some degree... Tires and load range are important.
 

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Lots of good comments mentioned here, so I won't repeat, but just say that the devil is in the various details that will impact ride on an off roader.

What a lot of guys fail to mention, as well as guys fail to ask is "what kind"? The type of suspension (quality) and type and brand of tire will make the ride vary just like in a car.

A lot of guys used to do the cheapest lift possible, some still do. This cost cutting can have minimal but noticeable difference off road, but a very big difference on road.

Think Bronco's Bilstein suspension on the Badlands with Sasquatch could be classified as mid grade, which is good. Ford likely has it set up for on road comfort, so in the middle while they market it as extreme; it's not. The Raptor version will be extreme with overflow reservoir shocks, larger springs, beefed up joints, etc. It'll be easy to wander and maybe springy if I had to guess.

Badlands, even with factory lift will feel much different than a car, but the IFS should give much more control than a solid front axle which is a dog on the road no matter what anyone tries to say. An off roader is often very happy to sacrifice road manners for articulation on a rocky trail.

Tires may be the biggest point of contention here. I absolutely do not believe in saving money on tires. (For reference, I am running Michelin Pilot Sport 4 Summer 19" on my 440i and Pirelli P Zero No season 19" on the wife's X3, both M Sport).

Anyway, mud tires are bad on road, just like ultra high performance summer rubber is bad on roads that aren't smooth or when it gets below 40 degrees. In their element, MTs are perfect! Their element is not the street.

Not sure about these Goodyears, but I know Mickey's feel bad on road, add Generals, and Cooper for sure. BF Goodrich MTs are ok on road and perfect in the dirt and on the rocks; think like wheels with hands.

All of this adds up to letting you know if the vehicle will wander all over (likely), be loud as hell (YES!), and take away any road feel. (for sure!)
They picked the wrong tires for the bronco.

They literally had bfg make raptor specific bfg k02s.. They are remarkable. Last 60k plus miles, great in all weather and off road and they are probably the best driving AT tire that actually looks good
 

Wanted33

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There are folks that will have trouble with any car on the road. It's quite subjective. I see many here say the Jeep Wrangler's suck on the road, but I'm here to say my 2019 JLU doesn't. We took it across country without any trouble at all. Some don't realize a solid front axle vehicle will drive differently than their Toyota Camry. I expect the Bronco to be a great road vehicle with the IFS even with the 35's. I wouldn't think Ford would have the "Quatch" package if it was a dog on the road.
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