Sponsored

FL Trucker

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2015
Threads
25
Messages
95
Reaction score
729
Location
Ft. Lauderdale
Vehicle(s)
F-150 Raptor, Fusion
Your Bronco Model
Undecided
2021 Ford Bronco V-6 Is Quicker than Jeep Wrangler, Four-Cylinder Matchup Goes the Other Way

After taking both available powertrains, including the optional seven-speed manual, to the test track, we know a lot more about how the new Bronco stacks up against the Wrangler.

Source: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a37035509/2021-ford-bronco-vs-jeep-wrangler-performance/

  • We tested a 2021 Ford Bronco First Edition with the twin-turbo V-6 and Sasquatch package, and it was quicker than either V-6 or 2.0T Jeep WranglerRubicons we have tested.
  • We also tested a Black Diamond Bronco with a 2.3-liter inline-four and the optional seven-speed manual, which wasn't as quick as the 2.0T Wrangler.
  • With so many variants, the performance comparisons between the two off-road icons are complicated.

Ford's new Bronco is finally here to take on the Jeep Wrangler for off-road supremacy, and like its rival, it's available in two- and four-door configurations with four- and six-cylinder engine options—and the choice of a manual transmission. We have yet to compare the two off-roaders in a head-to-head test, but after taking two different two-door Broncos to the test track, we can tell you how they compare performance-wise.


ord-bronco-first-edition-web-urbano-016-1626886667.jpg



We've tested two Broncos so far: one was a two-door hardtop 2021 Bronco First Edition with the 330-hp twin-turbocharged 2.7-liter V-6 engine and the Sasquatch off-road package, the other a two-door Black Diamond model with the 300-hp turbocharged 2.3-liter inline-four and seven-speed manual transmission. The First Edition rode on 17-inch wheels and 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT all-terrain tires, and the Black Diamond wore 17-inch wheels with less aggressive 32-inch General Grabber AT/X all-terrain rubber.

broncowranglercompared-1-final-1626886710.png



In our testing, the two-door Bronco Sasquatch reached 60 mph in 6.3 seconds on its way to a 15.0-second quarter mile at 91 mph. But it could be even quicker. The Bronco allows the V-6 to build very little boost with brake torquing, which mutes its off-the-line pounce. And the Sasquatch's shorter axle ratio means that by the time the Bronco hits 60 mph it's in fourth gear. We achieved our best time when we employed second-gear starts to eliminate one of those time-sapping shifts. Starting in first was a couple tenths slower. The four-cylinder Black Diamond model with the manual gearbox needed 7.0 seconds to reach 60 mph, and we achieved the best launch with a clutch dump at around 5000 rpm.

While Jeep initially charged more for the 2.0-liter turbo engine, it now costs less than the Wrangler's naturally aspirated V-6, which makes comparisons with the Bronco's four- and six-cylinder hierarchy more straightforward. Still, it's complicated.

Comparing V-6 to V-6, the Bronco is far quicker than a Wrangler Rubicon with Jeep's 285-hp 3.6-liter V-6, which takes 7.4 seconds to get to 60 mph. But less off-road-focused Wrangler V-6s have gone as quick as 6.7 seconds. The four-cylinder race goes the other way, with a 270-hp four-door Wrangler Sahara 2.0T scooting to 60 mph in 6.4 seconds and a two-door Rubicon 2.0T in 6.5 seconds. Of course, this isn't a perfect comparison, because the Wrangler doesn't offer a manual with the four-cylinder. (Before you get upset that we're mixing two-door and four-door Wranglers, know that we haven't tested a two-door V-6 automatic and remember that the two-door Bronco is much larger than the two-door Wrangler.)

Despite weighing hundreds of pounds more than the Wrangler, the Bronco V-6 is also quicker in 5-to-60 mph acceleration as well as our top-gear 30-to-50 mph and 50-to-70 mph passing tests (the manual-transmission Bronco was much slower in the top-gear tests, which favor automatic transmissions and their automatic downshifts). The Bronco was also quickest through the quarter mile at 15.0 seconds at 91 mph, though the Wrangler Sahara 2.0T was only 0.1 second behind it at 90 mph.


22-ford-bronco-black-diamond-walker-002-1626886807.jpg



Even though the V-6 Bronco narrowly beats either Wrangler variant, the Jeep punches back in a few ways. First, we've coaxed a two-door V-6 manual Wrangler to 60 mph in a Bronco-beating 6.0 seconds. Plus, there are other options, such as the plug-in-hybrid 4xe, which, at 5.5 seconds to 60 mph, beats either of our tested Broncos. Then there's the Wrangler's new V-8, an option that Ford claims that the Bronco will never be offered with. The 470-hp Rubicon 392 promises to drop that 60-mph time down to the mid-4s.


broncowranglercompared-2-finalv2-1627046927.jpg



The Bronco Sasquatch corners and brakes slightly better than the Wrangler Rubicon, too. It required 197 feet to stop from 70 mph compared to the two-door Rubicon's 204 feet and the four-door's 212 feet. The Black Diamond Bronco needed 217 feet to come to a stop from 70 mph. We expected the Black Diamond and its less aggressive all-terrain tires to stop shorter than the extreme off-road Sasquatch, but the two Broncos were tested on different days at different tracks with different road surfaces, which could certainly explain some of the discrepancy. The Sasquatch and both Wranglers mentioned here were tested on the same stretch of track.

We achieved 0.71 g of lateral grip in the Bronco Sasquatch, 0.01 g better than the two-door Wrangler Rubicon and 0.03 g more than the four-door model. The two-door four-cylinder Bronco didn't better the Sasquatch, despite having less aggressive tires, but the Jeep Wrangler Sahara with similarly sized tires cornered at 0.74 g in our test.

Ford is strong out of the gate with the new Bronco, with the V-6 beating comparable Wrangler V-6 or 2.0T, and it's a close matchup in braking and handling at the test track. Look for a full comparison test examining the new off-road rivalry between the Ford Bronco and Jeep Wrangler soon.
Sponsored

 

Philvis77

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Phil
Joined
Jan 18, 2021
Threads
2
Messages
381
Reaction score
1,421
Location
Virginia
Vehicle(s)
2000 Jeep Cherokee
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
I'm not sure I've owned a vehicle that could go 0-60 in under 10-12 seconds. This may be too much power for me! Haha.

My brother's F-150 w/ 2.7l has great pick up and go, so I was hoping for something similar, keeping in mind the Bronco's weight.
 

EvlNvrDys

Banned
Big Bend
Banned
Banned
Joined
May 29, 2019
Threads
18
Messages
4,274
Reaction score
14,061
Location
Hunterdon County, NJ
Vehicle(s)
'84 Bronco, '93 Bronco, '94 Bronco, 2012 Mustang
Your Bronco Model
Big Bend
Clubs
 
Too many words to read (to see if it was mentioned), but is the 2 door Bronco really comparable to a 4 door Wrangler? Maybe I'm missing something 🤷‍♂️ Just seems like why bother.
 

Tdifonzo

Badlands
Well-Known Member
First Name
Thomas
Joined
Jul 21, 2020
Threads
13
Messages
1,439
Reaction score
5,042
Location
Texas
Vehicle(s)
Audi S3
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Clubs
 
0-60 in 6.3 for the 2-door 2.7L is nice! I'm confused how some videos I've seen show it doing it in just over 8 seconds though.
 

IROCnRoll

Badlands
Well-Known Member
First Name
Chris
Joined
Jul 11, 2020
Threads
0
Messages
345
Reaction score
790
Location
Austin, TX
Vehicle(s)
Subaru BRZ
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Clubs
 
Too many words to read (to see if it was mentioned), but is the 2 door Bronco really comparable to a 4 door Wrangler? Maybe I'm missing something 🤷‍♂️ Just seems like why bother.

I think that's the data they had in house. don't think this is meant to be a head to head comparo. Just an fyi to give us an idea of the acceleration of the two vehicles in this segment.
 

Sponsored

Ksjrb03

First Edition
Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2020
Threads
14
Messages
4,206
Reaction score
11,103
Location
Tx
Vehicle(s)
F250
Your Bronco Model
First Edition
Clubs
 
0-60 in 6.3 for the 2-door 2.7L is nice! I'm confused how some videos I've seen show it doing it in just over 8 seconds though.
Because they are the 4 door. And this test cheated a bit by starting in second gear. The article clearly states the Bronco is limited off the line, like I’ve been saying for weeks. They should of included the time without the second gear modification.
 

Scohin

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Scott
Joined
Jul 15, 2020
Threads
4
Messages
987
Reaction score
1,808
Location
Utah
Vehicle(s)
Ford Fusion
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
Clubs
 
Honestly though these numbers are pretty dang close. So even though the Bronco is faster here, it leaves room for error
 

Dads_bronze_bronco

Raptor
Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2020
Threads
6
Messages
4,169
Reaction score
7,455
Location
NC
Vehicle(s)
08 JKUR / x_x 00 TJ x_x
Your Bronco Model
Raptor
Clubs
 
Need a 7MT 2.7 Ford!

(Edit): also a big brake Ford Performance kit …
 
Last edited:

Sponsored

Spooled

Raptor
Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 3, 2020
Threads
21
Messages
1,869
Reaction score
6,741
Location
Republic of Texas
Vehicle(s)
Raptor
Your Bronco Model
Raptor
Clubs
 
The four-cylinder Black Diamond model with the manual gearbox needed 7.0 seconds to reach 60 mph, and we achieved the best launch with a clutch dump at around 5000 rpm.
Ah, the conveniences of testing a vehicle you don't own. I want to see this on video :ROFLMAO:
 

Jr87mustang

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Josh
Joined
Aug 24, 2020
Threads
19
Messages
2,307
Reaction score
6,311
Location
Northern Cali
Vehicle(s)
2019 Ford Expedition, 1987 5.0 GT Convert
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
Clubs
 
So basically we are getting a smaller engine with the liability of turbos and less gas mileage for the same performance or worse? Is that what I am seeing here? I expected both engines to beat the crappy Pentastar in the dirt.
 

Gamecock

Banned
Badlands
Banned
Banned
Joined
Jul 16, 2020
Threads
14
Messages
3,009
Reaction score
10,259
Location
Virginia
Vehicle(s)
2021 Bronco Badlands / Sasquatch
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Because they are the 4 door. And this test cheated a bit by starting in second gear. The article clearly states the Bronco is limited off the line, like I’ve been saying for weeks. They should of included the time without the second gear modification.
How do you start the auto in second?
 

Laminar

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 28, 2020
Threads
5
Messages
969
Reaction score
2,498
Location
Iowa
Vehicle(s)
Cougar
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
0-60 in 6.3 for the 2-door 2.7L is nice! I'm confused how some videos I've seen show it doing it in just over 8 seconds though.
Amateurs in uncontrolled conditions driving like amateurs. I still can't believe how many pages of BS that thread racked up.
 
 


Top