- First Name
- Kye
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2022
- Threads
- 2
- Messages
- 35
- Reaction score
- 179
- Location
- Burleson, TX
- Vehicle(s)
- '21 4Dr Badlands Sas, '22 2Dr OBX Sas
- Your Bronco Model
- Badlands
- Thread starter
- #1
Spent 16 days on the road recently in my wife's 4dr Badlands Sas. 5,200 miles, 83 hours in the driver's seat, 12 states, 11 National Parks. Just wanted to share some thoughts about the Bronco, the scenery, and what we did to make a trip with 2 adults, a college student, and a high school student all manageable.
Bronco: '21 Badlands Sas in Cactus Gray, Lux, Vinyl, Tow, Hard top. My wife named it Prickly pear.
Things we've done to it.
Exterior:
Vinyl stripes from @Underground Graphics and locally powder coated beauty rings, tow hooks, and shackles, front clip and lower rockers stealth filmed and the whole thing ceramic coated, DIY mudflaps.
Interior: Bartact grab handles; 67 designs BYOD rail; weathertec floor mats; @Mabett vinyl padded arm rest (a must purchase!), door organizer, and rear cargo mat, bestop bimini shade, DIY cargo shelf with a light I added from Amazon.
Add-ons for the trip:
Rola 600lb capacity cargo carrier with a 2" curt drop receiver and a vinyl all weather cargo bag. Used the drop receiver to get it a little further away from the exhaust and to provide a little access to the rear door without having to take everything off the carrier. Added some rechargeable fans from Amazon to bring some air to the rear for the kids. Added a plug in refrigerator from Amazon to keep things cool for the road trip and provide cup holders for the kids.
We just had the first 5,000 mile oil change a few days before we headed out. Headed from Texas to Mississippi to visit some friends for the weekend and then back for a reload on the Bronco and head north to the Badlands. Spent the night before at the edge of the park in Interior, SD. The next day we took our time on a mostly driving tour through the park east to west for a few hours and then made our way to Rushmore for a quick stop and on to Deadwood. Next day we trekked to Devil's Monument for a nice hike and on to Cody, WY via BigHorn National Forest. With Yellowstone shut down due to flooding we backtracked around the long way through WY to the Tetons for an afternoon of hiking before heading to Jackson. Then off to Salt Lake City the next day for a quick rest and back on the road. Headed south to Bryce Canyon for some nice drives and hikes, did a little forest road driving in the Red Canyon area and then headed towards Zion via Mt. Carmel. Did a full day in Zion the next day including a quick trek over to Kolob Canyon in the afternoon. Did a long haul the next day from St. George, UT to Alpine, AZ with stops at the North Rim GC and Petrified Forest. From there it was off to White Sands and into Carlsbad. The next morning we hiked the caverns and headed further south. A quick stop off at Balmorhea State Park in Texas for a dip in the spring feed pool and then down through Ft. Davis and into Terlingua. The next day we hiked and drop through Big Bend and the Bronco got it's first true workouts in. There were flash floods in the area the day before and some unpaved roads we utilized had a lot of big washouts. Not a problem for pricklypear. We spent the next night in Marathon at the historic Gage Hotel and then back home to DFW.
Driving:
Bronco handled everything well. Normal stuff like road noise, bug catcher of a windshield, stopping for gas way too often. Seats were comfortable enough to keep everyone from complaining during a 2 week road trip. Caught a few new rock chips (even with the mudflaps the Goodyears are just rock magnets). I used eco mostly on the interstate and got around 18 to 19 during those stretches. No slow wheeling was done but I probably put around 100 miles on Baja mode on various forest roads and some of the 4 wheel only roads in Big Bend. 20 mph or less and some of the washboard roads would vibrate a filing out of your teeth. Get it up to 30 or more in Baja and the Bronco just starts to float above and rebound nicely.
Road trip necessities:
The Mabett vinyl center console pad is a must for long road trips. Couldn't imagine the hard plastic for 5,000 miles. The added volume with the door organizers kept the center area free of clutter during the trip. The added fans were an easy addition and made air circulation better for the back seat. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085L71L9R?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details My daughter ordered them while we were headed to Mississippi when she realized the circulation is poor and we installed them before heading up north. The rear center console fridge was also a necessity for the storage and the cupholders. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00U6YTMRM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Bronco: '21 Badlands Sas in Cactus Gray, Lux, Vinyl, Tow, Hard top. My wife named it Prickly pear.
Things we've done to it.
Exterior:
Vinyl stripes from @Underground Graphics and locally powder coated beauty rings, tow hooks, and shackles, front clip and lower rockers stealth filmed and the whole thing ceramic coated, DIY mudflaps.
Interior: Bartact grab handles; 67 designs BYOD rail; weathertec floor mats; @Mabett vinyl padded arm rest (a must purchase!), door organizer, and rear cargo mat, bestop bimini shade, DIY cargo shelf with a light I added from Amazon.
Add-ons for the trip:
Rola 600lb capacity cargo carrier with a 2" curt drop receiver and a vinyl all weather cargo bag. Used the drop receiver to get it a little further away from the exhaust and to provide a little access to the rear door without having to take everything off the carrier. Added some rechargeable fans from Amazon to bring some air to the rear for the kids. Added a plug in refrigerator from Amazon to keep things cool for the road trip and provide cup holders for the kids.
We just had the first 5,000 mile oil change a few days before we headed out. Headed from Texas to Mississippi to visit some friends for the weekend and then back for a reload on the Bronco and head north to the Badlands. Spent the night before at the edge of the park in Interior, SD. The next day we took our time on a mostly driving tour through the park east to west for a few hours and then made our way to Rushmore for a quick stop and on to Deadwood. Next day we trekked to Devil's Monument for a nice hike and on to Cody, WY via BigHorn National Forest. With Yellowstone shut down due to flooding we backtracked around the long way through WY to the Tetons for an afternoon of hiking before heading to Jackson. Then off to Salt Lake City the next day for a quick rest and back on the road. Headed south to Bryce Canyon for some nice drives and hikes, did a little forest road driving in the Red Canyon area and then headed towards Zion via Mt. Carmel. Did a full day in Zion the next day including a quick trek over to Kolob Canyon in the afternoon. Did a long haul the next day from St. George, UT to Alpine, AZ with stops at the North Rim GC and Petrified Forest. From there it was off to White Sands and into Carlsbad. The next morning we hiked the caverns and headed further south. A quick stop off at Balmorhea State Park in Texas for a dip in the spring feed pool and then down through Ft. Davis and into Terlingua. The next day we hiked and drop through Big Bend and the Bronco got it's first true workouts in. There were flash floods in the area the day before and some unpaved roads we utilized had a lot of big washouts. Not a problem for pricklypear. We spent the next night in Marathon at the historic Gage Hotel and then back home to DFW.
Driving:
Bronco handled everything well. Normal stuff like road noise, bug catcher of a windshield, stopping for gas way too often. Seats were comfortable enough to keep everyone from complaining during a 2 week road trip. Caught a few new rock chips (even with the mudflaps the Goodyears are just rock magnets). I used eco mostly on the interstate and got around 18 to 19 during those stretches. No slow wheeling was done but I probably put around 100 miles on Baja mode on various forest roads and some of the 4 wheel only roads in Big Bend. 20 mph or less and some of the washboard roads would vibrate a filing out of your teeth. Get it up to 30 or more in Baja and the Bronco just starts to float above and rebound nicely.
Road trip necessities:
The Mabett vinyl center console pad is a must for long road trips. Couldn't imagine the hard plastic for 5,000 miles. The added volume with the door organizers kept the center area free of clutter during the trip. The added fans were an easy addition and made air circulation better for the back seat. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085L71L9R?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details My daughter ordered them while we were headed to Mississippi when she realized the circulation is poor and we installed them before heading up north. The rear center console fridge was also a necessity for the storage and the cupholders. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00U6YTMRM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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