Thoughts about my Bronco from a Jeep guy!

[RR25HB]

Welcome.

Interesting takes...

The 3.6 jeep motor is a literal steaming pile of garbage. The 2.0t runs circles around it in driveability.

The jeep solid axle story is classic. 99.9% of jeeple never utilize their jeeps on terrain where a solid axle would benefit them. Yet, on road, the downside is massive.

The Bronco has nore headroom, legroom, width/elbowroom and far more cargo space than the wrangler

I'm not a fan of the 2 door or the 2.3, but I'd take that 2.3 over the jeep 3.6 anyday. Neither one is really great though and neither auto tranny is great either. Try driving it in sport mode and see how the tranny feels. For me, it's a night and day difference and just feels like it shifts the way it is supposed to shift. Note: pop it into sport mode and then hit the 2wd button to get out of 4 auto.

Yes, I would note for me, personally, the 2.3 was not enough horses to adequately move the Bronco around. The 2.7 automatic has been a gem for me. I would, however, like smoother shifts for the first 3-4 gears. But, I'm not willing to pull the trigger for the performance calibration upgrade deal yet and consign myself to having to use premium fuel.

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[RR25HB]

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.

... and the original military vehicles were ..... yep ... Fords.

 

[RR25HB]

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.

Maybe I should default to Sport mode, rather than the Normal or Eco (long highway trips) modes I typically use.

 

[not on the rug]

Yes, I would note for me, personally, the 2.3 was not enough horses to adequately move the Bronco around. The 2.7 automatic has been a gem for me. I would, however, like smoother shifts for the first 3-4 gears. But, I'm not willing to pull the trigger for the performance calibration upgrade deal yet and consign myself to having to use premium fuel.

I always use premium fuel regardless. Lucky enough to have 93 here in NJ too. Maybe I'm just sensitive to the way my vehicles perform, but I have run about 5 tanks of regular through my Bronco. 2 intentionally, 1 that my wife filled up when she borrowed the Bronco one day and 2 that the idiot gas attendant put in the truck even though I asked for premium. Every single time the driveability difference was noticeable to me and my Bronco felt sluggish and very underwhelming.

 

[RR25HB]

I always use premium fuel regardless. Lucky enough to have 93 here in NJ too. Maybe I'm just sensitive to the way my vehicles perform, but I have run about 5 tanks of regular through my Bronco. 2 intentionally, 1 that my wife filled up when she borrowed the Bronco one day and 2 that the idiot gas attendant put in the truck even though I asked for premium. Every single time the driveability difference was noticeable to me and my Bronco felt sluggish and very underwhelming.

OK, maybe this old dog will try a new trick. Thanks.

 

[RR25HB]

... and the original military vehicles were ..... yep ... Fords.

 

[AZ_Liberty]

Maybe I should default to Sport mode, rather than the Normal or Eco (long highway trips) modes I typically use.

Highway the mode does not matter. Though sport (or tow in some Fords) will be better for mountain passes.

Eco/Normal/Sport primarily does one thing, it changes the shift points of the transmission.

In Eco it chases higher gears, and is slower to downshift
In Sport, it holds gears longer, and is faster to downshift.
Normal is between the two.

When you are on the freeway, you are already in 10th gear. So the modes basically do nothing, at least if it's flat.

 

[hutchman]

The above pictured "jeep." which was the Ford prototype was not the "original" jeep. The original Government contract calling for a, "Truck, 1/4-Ton, Light Reconnaissance," was issued in June of 1940. The contract had a strict 49 day prototype deadline. The only company to respond to the call for this prototype was American Bantam Company out of Butler, PA. American Bantam succeded in producing the first prototype and delivered it to Camp Holabird, MD as required on September 23, 1940.

The Government liked this prototype but realized that American Bantam was not a large enough company to deliver this vehicle in any amouth near what would be needed. Because of this inability, the Government claimed legal ownership of the prototype, specs, and blueprints and supplied them to both Willys and Ford. They both then submitted their own prototypes for evalutation.

In July of 1941, the Government awarded Willys the primary contract to produce the Willys MB. However, when it became clear how large the total production would become, Ford was awarded a contract in January 1942 to build exact, interchangeable copies of the Willys design. The Ford version was called the GPW.

Total production of standardized jeeps during WWII was 359,459 units for Willys as the MB and 277,896 for the Ford GPW. American Bantam was given a contract to build the Bantam T3 1/4 Ton Cargo trailer and failed financially in the post war years.

Interestingly, Willys applied to trademark the name, "JEEP" on Feb 13, 1943. American Bantam contested the trademark and in 1948, the FTC ruled the Willys could not claim to be the "sole creator" of the Jeep. In June of 1950, Willys secured the official trademark registration for the name "JEEP."

In the Jeep world today, WWII era jeep vehicles are generally refered to as "jeeps" with an un capitalized j. Civilian Jeeps produced following the war are generally refered to as Jeeps with a capital J.

Probably more than you wanted to know.....

 

[Gambitl7]

Get the FP tune and it adds so much to the 2.3. Granted I have a 7MT so not sure how much it helps the auto.

 

[Eldowerks]

Eco/Normal/Sport primarily does one thing, it changes the shift points of the transmission.

In Eco it chases higher gears, and is slower to downshift
In Sport, it holds gears longer, and is faster to downshift.
Normal is between the two.

Also: Eco>Normal>Sport progressively sharper, more immediate throttle response. Less throttle lag.

Turning the GOAT MODE dial to the right three clicks to Sport definitely dials up the fun meter.

 

[RR25HB]

Also: Eco>Normal>Sport progressively sharper, more immediate throttle response. Less throttle lag.

Turning the GOAT MODE dial to the right three clicks to Sport definitely dials up the fun meter.

Is there a way to change the default startup mode to something other than Normal? And Sport can be run in either 2WD or 4WD, yes?

 

[Eldowerks]

Is there a way to change the default startup mode to something other than Normal? And Sport can be run in either 2WD or 4WD, yes?

Sport mode defaults to 4A, but 2WD and 4WD can be selected.

Don’t think FORScan can make Sport the default GOAT. Superchip’s FlashCal+ is looking into it.

 

[calbare]

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.

I saw on youtube (the great purveyor of truth), that I should drive in normal mode for best everyday driving. Isn't sport mode by default in 4wd? If so, should I leave it in 4wd or switch to 2wd? Is sport mode better on the engine?

Note, when I first bought my bronco, I kept it in sport mode, and I got slightly better mileage.

 

[not on the rug]

Also: Eco>Normal>Sport progressively sharper, more immediate throttle response. Less throttle lag.

Turning the GOAT MODE dial to the right three clicks to Sport definitely dials up the fun meter.

It's really the only way to drive the Bronco. In Normal mode the throttle response is so unbelievably muted that the vehicle feels dead. This is useful while running trails. Not useful at all for daily driving on the roads.

 

[not on the rug]

I saw on youtube (the great purveyor of truth), that I should drive in normal mode for best everyday driving. Isn't sport mode by default in 4wd? If so, should I leave it in 4wd or switch to 2wd? Is sport mode better on the engine?

Note, when I first bought my bronco, I kept it in sport mode, and I got slightly better mileage.

I run mine in sport mode and then tap the 2wd button to put it back in rwd. Drives beautifully that way.

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