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2.3 Shaping up to be the better Engine?

Daktari

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Just curious what people think about both the 2.3 and the 2.7 since the Broncos release out into the wild.

I have no first hand experience with driving either engine in the Bronco but I did own the 2.3 in my Ecoboost Mustang. In short it was great in the Mustang.

So I ask this for a couple of reasons. It's seems in a lot of You tube reviews both the 2.3 and the 2.7 get similar 0 to 60 times when testing acceleration. Of course the 2.7 is a little faster but not by much. The reason being even though the 2.7 is more powerful it also weights more which negates the power advantage and makes the front end heavier. So it makes sense.

Another reason I ask is because for some still waiting for their Broncos order to be filled it seems the 2.7 is a major constraint and is the hold up. Switch to the 2.3 and boom your order will be filled faster and your Bronco will get built.

The biggest and most important reason I ask this is because of the recent issues with the 2.7s dieing. I don't know if this is because of the pandemic and Ford had to switch to a different 3rd party supplier for critical parts or what but it seems it's definitely a thing. Plenty of people on this very forum had their 2.7 engines fail. Reliability is pretty dam important when it comes to your engine.

I should note that my Bronco reservation and order is for the 2.7 as of now so I'm not cheerleadering the 2.3 or biased.

So with all this in mind is the 2.3 shaping up to be the better choice for the Bronco?
I'd never be interested in the 4banger on such a big and heavy car and I'm not gonna concern myself with a very small number of failed engines we know of from this pretty small sample of owners on this forum.

I'm out and about with my 2.7 Bronco, enjoying it, gonna step over the first 1000 miles this weekend, I expect it to work and if something fails - what ever that may be - warranty will fix it. Paranoia can stay at home or buy it's own Bronco, no free ride with me, mine is running on smiles only :)
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The Driving Viking

The Driving Viking

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I'd never be interested in the 4banger on such a big and heavy car and I'm not gonna concern myself with a very small number of failed engines we know of from this pretty small sample of owners on this forum.

I'm out and about with my 2.7 Bronco, enjoying it, gonna step over the first 1000 miles this weekend, I expect it to work and if something fails - what ever that may be - warranty will fix it. Paranoia can stay at home or buy it's own Bronco, no free ride with me, mine is running on smiles only :)
Well like it or not high horsepower and torque "4 bangers" are taking over right now. Most make power older V8s only dreamed of. Look at the 2020 to 2022 Mercedes AMG CLA 45 and 45s 382hp USA version and 416hp European version 4 cylinders.

As far as the Ford 2.3 goes it should have the Focus RS tune right from the factory. I'm thinking they purposely detuned it just so they can make money off the Bronco customers in the accessorie department with the $500 to $800 tune from Ford performance coming that gives it 50hp and 60ft lbs of torque up from the standard 93 Octane 300hp and 330tq!!

Be happy they exist because soon everything will be EV and you'll be stuck with a 0 banger!!! 👍🤣
 

ProdigyJKU

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So far there are atleast 4 failed reportef on this forum.

Let's say that 10% of all Bronco owners are members of this forum.

Statistically that means there are likely 10 times amount of failed engines then what we see here.

That seems like a high percentage, considering the lack of miles on Bronco's in the wild so far. Don't forget that ~half the Broncos produced so far have the 2.3s.

I haven't heard of a single 2.3 failure yet.

"40" failed 2.7 engines out of the limited number currently on the road right now sounds quite significant to me.

All hypothetical ofcourse...
 

Moya7

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Ive driven the 2.3 a couple time and I have a 2.7… the 2.3 is fine but not great. It feels peppy but under powered. It feels similar to like the VW Tiguan with the 2.0t. A suv with a motor from a golf. It’s fine but once you get into mountains or passing at speed it feels weak. Peppy but underpowered.
I beg to differ. I drove my 2.3 to Tahoe and back it was amazing. Zoomed up the pass no problem. Ford, make a hybrid Bronco and me and I’d be thrilled.
 

usarms

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The 2.7 Issues don't worry me at all. If the mill craps out the worst thing that will happen is I need roadside assistance. It's under a 5yr/60k warranty so it would be inconvenient but that's it. I drove the dealer mule 2.3 and didn't like it but that's just me. Most folks are perfectly fine with the 2.3. I do think it would be the better engine for a manual trans. I plan on a bunch of cross country trips as soon as it arrives and I just wanted the most power and torque I could get. I also am buying an overland camper to tow around and figured the pinch of extra power and torque might come in handy. The 2.7 generally works fine in other Fords so I am not worried even a little bit by a few reported issues.
 

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I never considered the 2.3. I also never considered a manual. ...
If you look at the stats on here, it is only about 10% of folks who picked a build with the 2.3 automatic. The rest chose 2.7 or were forced into the 2.3 because they wanted a manual. That puts you in the vast majority of people who paid twice the upgrade price Ford charges for the base engine in the F-150 to the 2.7, plus a hefty fee for the automatic. Ford completely misread the wants of the final consumer and under-engined the Bronco.
 

GRAYFOX-SVT

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I just read through this whole thread because I have nothing better to do on a Saturday morning, other than play PS5. First thing is I'm not sure what this constraint is on the 2.7 that keeps getting brought up. I ordered a 2 door 2.7 and had a build date in just over two weeks from the time of ordering. I seriously doubt Ford would give me a VIN and build date for late Jan if there were no engines available to build it with.

I did test drive a 4 door 2.3 big bend non squash. It was ok, but I was not really all that impressed. When I get my 2 door 2.7 at some point I don't think I'll be that impressed with it either ( although more so than the 2.3 because of the additional torque ) My point is that everyone's opinions are very subjective based on their own personal experience. My 04 Terminator Cobra makes 700 to the wheels and 640 TQ, its at over 600 ftlbs of TQ by 3,200 RPM's. With that said there's not a lot that really impresses me and while I did opt for the 2.7 it was not because I thought it was so much faster / better than the 2.3. I just wanted the TT V6 option.

Any issues that do come up with either a 2.7 or 2.3 are covered under warranty and if anyone is worried about long term issues there are extended warranty options so I'm not really sure why some people are so concerned. I'm getting a 2.7 with no concerns or second guessing Others can do as they want but the choice is up to each individual not group think on a forum post to validate what ever decision you go with.
 

thenewjs

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This is not substituting bacon for sausage at the local diner. We are talking a big purchase. For the amount of money spending I rather have what I want that the flashy new thing to show for other dudes. I’m married Bronco or not, I’m getting laid.
 

21BL2DR

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If you look at the stats on here, it is only about 10% of folks who picked a build with the 2.3 automatic. The rest chose 2.7 or were forced into the 2.3 because they wanted a manual. That puts you in the vast majority of people who paid twice the upgrade price Ford charges for the base engine in the F-150 to the 2.7, plus a hefty fee for the automatic. Ford completely misread the wants of the final consumer and under-engined the Bronco.
it was perfect for me. I was one of the lucky ones that got the exact drivetrain I wanted, that works perfectly for my needs and was very reasonably priced for my pocketbook. I didn't buy the 2.7 for performance reasons, I bought it because of my intended use. Having paid over 75K for a super duty the 49k price for my Badlands was very easy to accept. I couldn't be happier.
 

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I originally ordered the 2.7, 2-door, non-sasquatch Big Bend. Due to some still unexplained error, what I received was an Outer Banks with 2.3. (In fact, the entire build is not what I ordered. The colour, trim, options and engine are completely different from my order). Regardless of the colossal screw-up, I took delivery a little more than a week ago.

After driving this Bronco for a short time I can honestly say that not only is the 2.3 adequate, it's actually quite good! Because I received the wrong build I will be driving this one until my new order eventually arrives but now my new order will also have the 2.3.
 

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Peed myself a bit there, thanks.
Here's another irritant for your incontinence ;)

For those of you that need engine advice-

While you can opt for an Outer Banks with Ford's 2.3-liter turbo I-4, our test vehicle was equipped with the $1,895 2.7-liter twin-turbo V-6. MotorTrend contributor Basem Wasef simultaneously happened to be driving a two-door Bronco Outer Banks with the four-cylinder, and he felt that even in the smaller, lighter Bronco model, the little engine is weak sauce. Additionally, the Outer Banks trim only comes with a 10-speed automatic transmission, and since you can't get any manual Bronco with the V-6, the big engine is absolutely the way to go. Unconvinced?
This new Bronco is no lightweight, as it tipped our scales to the tune of 4,828 pounds. To put that in perspective, a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara ("Unlimited" is Jeep-speak for four doors) with a 3.6-liter V-6 weighs 4,391 pounds. There's more than 400 pounds of additional beef on the Ford. Yes, you want the V-6.

You can learn more reading one article from automotive experts than of hundreds of owner/test driver reviews...
 

Tortuga353

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I think the only way to settle this is from the lesson we learned in the oil capacity thread. People that have their Broncos and are still talking to us thread burners need to whip out those 2.3 vs 2.7 dipsticks and we’ll see who’s made of what! 😝
 

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You can learn more reading one article from automotive experts than of hundreds of owner/test driver reviews...
You have to be trolling now. Nobody actual puts that much faith in those hacks.
 

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