Thoughts about my Bronco from a Jeep guy!

[Desmolicious]

So do you still have any Jeeps? I'll have to say, if I had to choose between my Bronco and my 392, it would be tough. I think the 392 would win. I just can't give up that crappy mpg.

It takes a lot to resist getting a CJ. It's the only run I've never owned (other than old military).

We're also still waiting on the bronco pics.

I read that the 392 Wrangler suffers from fuel starvation/stalling when going down a steep incline w less than half a tank of gas.
Is that an actual thing or internet BS?

Sponsored

 

[hutchman]

So do you still have any Jeeps? I'll have to say, if I had to choose between my Bronco and my 392, it would be tough. I think the 392 would win. I just can't give up that crappy mpg.

It takes a lot to resist getting a CJ. It's the only run I've never owned (other than old military).

We're also still waiting on the bronco pics.

I do not. My last one was a YJ that was giving me some drivability issues so I parked it. Someone wanted it worse than I did and it went away. A few pic incoming.

 

[AZ_Liberty]

Yes, boost kills mpg but so does rpm. It is kind of an balancing act.

Yeah, but boost kills it faster.

Just like 5th gear gets better MPG in the freeway than 6th. 6th is geared so low (high?) that the CPU pulls boost just to maintain speed.

 

[MEDISN]

I was open to either (4-door Rubicon vs 4-door Sasquatch). Mrs. MEDISN drove both back to back and chose Bronco hands-down. More livable on the road by far. I had a V6 Pentastar Wrangler, the power wasn't bad. Huge improvement with the Bronco 2.7 V6 especially 30-to-50 mph and 50-to-70 range where the Jeep struggled. The turbo's on the Bronco just puuuuuullll. With the Ford Performance Tune, it is really fun to drive. Enjoy your ride!

 

[stampede1]

If you want the best MPG, keep it out of Eco mode and keep it out of Normal mode.

Turbo Fords get their best mileage in Sport mode. This sounds non-intuitive, but Sport mode remaps the transmission shift points, keeping gears lower under acceleration. Lower gears = more torque with less boost, and boost is what kills your MPG.

Sport also prevents the transmission from skip shifting, if you care.

I don't have this issue with my Bronco, since I row my own gears, but the F-150 easily gets 2 mpg better mileage in Sport.

Is it your opinion only or is there something objective such as a study to back up your claim about Sport mode being more economical than running in Eco mode? Not disagreeing so much as just wondering about the source reliability.

 

[stampede1]

Other than old mustangs and vettes, not into cars that much. Part of the 392 is a bit of the absurdity of having a v8 in an off road suv.

haven‘t experienced that myself, but very well could be true for some.

If you follow Trail Recon, who is a complete jeep guy all the way, you can view his video on getting rid of his 392 for exactly that reason especially after jeep could not remedy the problem, so yeah, it's a thing. Pretty embarassing for jeep to sell a 392 rubicon for whatever the going price is and it can't even do a downhill drive without malfunctioning.

 

[AZ_Liberty]

Is it your opinion only or is there something objective such as a study to back up your claim about Sport mode being more economical than running in Eco mode? Not disagreeing so much as just wondering about the source reliability.

Put it in sport mode (automatic) and watch the boost gauge. I observe a good 2 mpg better in Sport in city traffic. On the freeway, the mode of course does nothing. Most of the folks on the F-150 forums do as well.

It's been true for every eco-boost I have owned with an automatic transmission.

My Bronco is a stick, so the mode has zero effect on MPG.

 

[Charlie Mike]

I owned a Jeep for 13 years and enjoyed my time with it. It took me all over the US and built some core memories on and off road.

I will say that once the 3.6 started having issues, it turned into a money pit. It seemed like every other month there was something that needed repaired/replaced (not all engine related). At the time, the running joke was that Jeep stood for "Just Empty Every Pocket".

Now for me this was two fold. I spent an incredible amount of time and money over the years modifying it. After 60(ish)k is when I started experiencing the issues, starting with a water pump failure. After that it snowballed until 125(ish)k. I eventually traded it in for an F150 Lariat FX4.

The main reason for getting rid of the jeep was a move from Georgia to Washington. I didn't trust that it would make it, and it averaged around 10 miles per gallon. Originally I was waiting for the Gladiator to hit the dealerships. But in the end I couldn't wait for them to hit the market and ended up with the F150.

Now brings me to how I ended up with my Bronco. I spent about a month researching and narrowing down what I actually wanted in my next vehicle. The conclusion was offroad capability and most of all fun. I ended up with a list consisting of the Jeep JL/JT Rubicons, Ineos Grenadier, and the Ford Bronco.

I test drove the Grenadier first and boy was that an experience. I didn't feel user-friendly and my wife absolutely hated it. She didn't like how utilitarian it felt inside. I on the other hand felt like I was sitting in a cockpit and loved it. What ultimately drove me away was the limited number of "authorzed" service and repair facilities near me (3+ hours away).

Next was the Bronco. I didn't know much about them other than being drawn to the eruption green and the sasquatch package. I test drive a new 25 Outerbanks SAS and instantly fell in love with it. Then I test drove the 25 Badlands non SAS. Both were eruption green. I ended up with the Outerbanks and the rest was history.

 

[crzyhawk]

If you follow Trail Recon, who is a complete jeep guy all the way, you can view his video on getting rid of his 392 for exactly that reason especially after jeep could not remedy the problem, so yeah, it's a thing. Pretty embarassing for jeep to sell a 392 rubicon for whatever the going price is and it can't even do a downhill drive without malfunctioning.

I enjoy his content, but as you point out he's a HUGE Jeep homer. When he sold his Bronco, he brought up the fact that he just didn't trust it. After all the problems with his 392, came issues before a trip to Alaska in his gladiator, and then he released a video 2 weeks or so...same gladiator's lost a cam again.

His jeeps keep letting him down on big trips, but the Bronco was what wasn't trustworthy because the soft top sucked. mmhmm

 

[Eldowerks]

Jeep never had a dead pedal, and the one in the Bronco contributes to a much more comfortable driving experience.

First Jeep I’ve driven since driving a straight fender Willy’s 50 years ago was a new Jeep Wrangler 4 door hard top rental to drive from the Grand Junction airport to Moab for the OffRoadeo.
I was shocked that it didn’t have a dead pedal, a common sense feature so simple and cheap and yet so comfortable both on and off road. Especially off-road for overall posture support on rough trails.

On the highway, I thought the Wrangler’s steering and suspension felt uncomfortably spongy compared to my Badlands.

I will admit that the hardtop Wrangler seemed to have less wind noise than my MIC hard top Badlands.

I’m only 6’4” and spent a week and 1100 miles in a 2026 rubicon and if I had to drive another mile with the unmovable rearview mirror right in me line of sight blocking 1/2 the windshield I’d have gone nuts.

I’m 6’3” him and the low-hanging rearview mirror with lack of adjustability bothered the hell out of me too until I went online and discovered if you force it, you can roll the whole mirror over 180° which buys you another maybe 3/4 of an inch of clearance, although still not enough. (Just be careful how much you force it rotating it upside down or it may pop off, don’t ask me how I know; it’s a real beotch to put back on.)

Turbo Fords get their best mileage in Sport mode. This sounds non-intuitive, but Sport mode remaps the transmission shift points, keeping gears lower under acceleration. Lower gears = more torque with less boost, and boost is what kills your MPG.

IMHO, Eco Mode just kills throttle response off the line plus the up-shifting 1-2-3 is so quick it makes the Bronco feel like it’s hesitating. If you make up for it by using a heavier foot, that defeats the whole MPG benefit.
Normal is an improvement.
Ah but Sport Mode is the sweet mode where the Bronco comes to life in terms of throttle response and shifting.
And I don’t see a whole lot of MPG difference between Normal and Sport.

 

[Sitruc_btb]

ONE OF US.
ONE OF US.

Welcome to the club, and great write up. Man I'm 6'2" and I struggle sitting in a wrangler. Glad you're enjoying it though. They're fun rigs.

 

[hutchman]

A picture of the Bronco:

Not much to say other than it's a base, Sasquatch, with an auto. I like it just the wayt it is and since I will not be using it on any hardcore trailes, it should work as it sits. However, I have installed a stubby antenna and a set of DV8 side steps for my wife. Other than that I probably won;t do much else on the exterior. Inside I have removed one back seat to facilitate carrying my walker with me wherever I go.

As most of you are probably aware, we are having a bad fire season this year in the west. Last week and friend and I were up in the woods and saw this:

There is a deep valley on the other side of my hood and the trees. 6 years ago I took the following image from the same location and it shows just how bad the smake was that day in the valley:

And here is a picture a little while later that day of yours truly enjoying a sandwich!

It was a great day and this Bronco is the perfect vehicle for me at this point in my life.

And thanks for all the comments and thoughts.........

 

[telenerd]

Nice Bronco. I bet you end up modifying it for those harder trails. Just stock the broncos can get through some rowdy trails. I was surprised how well my Bronco did at Moab and difficult trails down in Colorado.

 

[Iowa Hawkeye]

Good looking Bronco, I'm 6-4 and always wanted a Jeep, would test drive one every couple years thinking they would redesign the leg room, the salesman just kept saying it's a Jeep thing, it's a jeep thing! Screw that!

 

[DBX2]

Congrats on picking up a Bronco! I got mine about 4 weeks ago. Also a Jeep fan.

I have two TJ's. An 06 LJ is my trail rig. Also have an 04 TJ that I bought for my kids to drive, mostly stock. Before getting the LJ, I had a 2012 JKU. I ended up wanting a dedicated trail rig, so traded the '12 for the '06 and then bought a separate DD.

My last DD was a 2012 Ram 1500 that I didn't keep for long, not a fan of e-torque to say the least. I'm 6' and have had trouble getting comfortable in vehicles before. One problem I didn't have with the Ram.

My two choices when looking for a new DD were the JLU Willy's and the Bronco. My wife was adamantly opposed to 'a third Jeep' even though the 04 wasn't really for me. After looking into it, decided that the 2.7 and IFS would make a better DD. Wife was happy that it isn't 'another Jeep'. Though to me, it's similar. We're both happy it's not another Stellantis vehicle.

Been there with Jeeps - lots 2 door Wranglers. Love to hate 'em; Hate to love 'em. Agree with the historic significance Jeeps hold. All were daily drivers in addition to fun vehicles. Now on our 2nd 2 door Bronco and I'll never get the wife out of it. No comparison. Congratulations and many happyt, adventurous miles!

Sponsored