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goatman2

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Nice write up. Good testimony on the power of the 2.3/auto. I could care less about the mileage, 17-18 while doing 75-80 sounds great to me. Better than my Jeep, or my F450, or my motorhome. And we rarely take my wife's Prius out of town. :giggle:
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Dave-O

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Hi All,

Over the holiday weekend I took my family on a road trip from San Diego to Phoenix, total was around 1000 miles consiting of lots of varied condtions (open highway, city, rain, up to 4200ft altitude). We were fully loaded with four people, two dogs, and a family's worth of food, lugage, and Christmas gifts. I'll keep my hot-takes brief so nobody gets bored readng this, but here are a few notible observations (Note - I have a 2.3L/AT 4dr Big Bend, MIC Top, 4.27 rear w/locker, stock except for 285/70R17 Kenda Klever AT2 tires):

1) The near vertical front window is an absolute bug magnet. Plan on lots of cleaning. Bring extra wiper fluid on long trips.

2) Not sure if it's the size/angle of the front window but the windshield wipers seem largley cosmetic in heavy rain. Is RainX still a thing? Does it work?

3) Power to climb/pass/etc. on the highway in the 2.3L/AT is not an issue. Even fully loaded.

4) The wind-noise at highway speed is pretty bad, lots of noise/whistles/etc. from the MIC top for anything over 65 mph. But highway handing is perfect, and road noise was actualy minimal despite running LT all-terrain e-load tires.

5) Here is the big lesson learned though - on the highway wit this set-up, in 10th gear the RPMs sit around 2300 when crusing in the 75-80 mph range. And almost always using at least 2-5 psi boost. It's nice to be in the meat of the powerband, but man it SUCKS for fuel economy. Crusing at 80 on the highway I was lucky to get 18mpg, and often dipped into the 17mpg range. Overal for the trip I averaged about 18mpg. There is a HUGE diference going from 65 to 75-80mph, that jump cost me 2-3mpg.

Since I'll surely spend more time on the highway than off-road with a locked differential, I am wondering if the upgrade to the e-locker was a mistake. However, I also think that 10th gear is a bit short and it was likely optimized for the standard gearing.

All-in-all, it was a great travel partner. Everyone was comfortable and space was adequate.

Oh, and the number of Bronco's seen on the entire trip other than mine? Only one.

Cheers!
Sounds like the fuel economy matches our 2017 V8 F-150 and exceeds that of my 4Runner
 

WhoaNelly

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One more thing: buy the splash guards. I ordered some from Ruxer Ford as soon as I got home. Trust me.
I had mud all over the door handles on my 2-door through the recent rainstorms in the CA Bay Area. I wasn't even off-road, just driving through some backroads with muddy runoffs. Also all the rock chips that are likely to show up soon. Definitely getting mud flaps.

Definitely agree on points #2 and #4 on the original post as well. I actually find the wiper controls a little annoying, and that's besides the effectiveness of the wipers themselves. I'll probably get used to the wind noise quickly since I ride a motorcycle and kinda used to it, but the passengers definitely notice it. I figured a lot of it is due to the roof-rails as well in my case.
 

shimmy825

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I had mud all over the door handles on my 2-door through the recent rainstorms in the CA Bay Area. I wasn't even off-road, just driving through some backroads with muddy runoffs. Also all the rock chips that are likely to show up soon. Definitely getting mud flaps.

Definitely agree on points #2 and #4 on the original post as well. I actually find the wiper controls a little annoying, and that's besides the effectiveness of the wipers themselves. I'll probably get used to the wind noise quickly since I ride a motorcycle and kinda used to it, but the passengers definitely notice it. I figured a lot of it is due to the roof-rails as well in my case.
Has there been a good, reasonably priced option for mudflats?
 

Wanted33

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Sounds like a very nice trip in your new Bronco. I'm guessing the 4.27's was what caused you the lower mpg's at those high rpms. But, I'm also guessing you ordered those to play off road, and they will do the trick for that. Enjoy that Bronco.
 

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Scott1911

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With my Jeeps, I hit the windshield with Rain-X every 2 months. It makes a huge difference in the "bug stickiness". Also, IMHO, the original that you apply like wax is much more effective than the washer fluid version.
 

PWillette

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Since I'll surely spend more time on the highway than off-road with a locked differential, I am wondering if the upgrade to the e-locker was a mistake. However, I also think that 10th gear is a bit short and it was likely optimized for the standard gearing.
The locker shouldn't affect fuel economy when not locked...are you saying that you are running 75-80mph on the highway with the rear locked?
 

WuNgUn

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Driving anything at 80Mph (130Km/h!) Is gonna suck gas.
Doubling your speed uses 4X the power! No way around it. 🤷
I can get 21MPG on my 2.3L squatched 2 door Badlands if I try. But I'm not gonna get anywhere anytime fast! Lol
 

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Mike E

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In my Jeep I recently drove across the mountains of Colorado...75 - 80 mph I averaged 26.8 mpg. The vehicle was fully loaded as well. I was also pushing it going up the mountain passes I was pushing 90 going up Vail Pass. I'm using the Orange RainX it works great during the summer / fall seasons on bugs.

I know the Bronco is not going to get the mpg of the Jeep but that's works for me...I'm looking forward to the bad mpg one of these days.
 

kodiakisland

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2300 rpm is not in the power band for this motor. That's why you noticed it was in boost most of the time. 10th is plenty high. You are pushing a brick through the air, so MPG is going to suck the faster you drive.
I prefer to be around 2600-2800rpm cruising. That is where this engine starts to develop most of it's power and is rarely in boost.
 

Bwaggs83

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I had same experience. I just did Maryland to South Carolina and found I can do 67 with my 2.7 black diamond and it’s fully loaded down with luggage and saw rpm at constant 2,000 and 21.5 mpg.
I noticed the same thing. 65MPH = 21.something MPG. 75-80MPH = 16.5 - 17.0 MPG
Badsquatch 2.7
 

DonM

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I'd check MPG by hand. My electronic nanny MPG is about 1.5 mpg optimistic.
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