- First Name
- JP
- Joined
- Feb 22, 2023
- Threads
- 8
- Messages
- 38
- Reaction score
- 56
- Location
- Buena Vista, Colorado
- Website
- www.ArkValleyHomes.com
- Vehicle(s)
- 2023 4dr OBX - 2023 F150 Lightning
- Your Bronco Model
- Outer Banks
- Thread starter
- #1
My wife wanted a convertible, so I ended up with a Bronco as a “compromise”.
2023 OBX - 4cyl - Iconic Silver - High Package
My odometer just clicked on 32k miles so I figured it’s probably time to write one of these up. This community has been an amazing resource for me, and hopefully my random info can be of use to someone else at some point.
——-
How it started - March 2023:
Drove it home from Iowa and immediately picked up some Badlands takeoff wheels from another 6g member.
Amazing how much better a set of wheels can make the OBX look.
I quickly learned that the KO2s are terrible in the snow, and combined with a gravel driveway will trash your fenders. No big deal on the snow as we normally run Nokians in the winter, but I quickly spent my ford points on some mud flaps.
Only put mudflaps on the front at first, and then realized that my Mountain bike would get trashed on the rack If I didn’t put them on the rear as well.
Found a set of factory sliders off a 6g member, and after a little work with a grinder they fit perfectly with the OEM mudflaps. I think I took off 3/4” off from the front side of each. (cant remember exactly)
That was all for the first round of changes.
——-
Spring 2023 - Road tripped the Bronco to Key West. It’s no F-150, but was much nicer to drive than my 2017 Frontier.
My Kuat bike rack does not fit with the spare tire, so rather than buy an extender I bought a kuat swing arm. Crazy expensive for what it is, the but the swing arm is an absolute must. If you get one make sure it swings to passenger, same as the rear door.
I have a Meraki Hammock that works great for sleeping in rest stops when i‘m feeling cheap. im 6’3” and i fit just fine, even with a paco pad underneath.
The roof and doors are almost always off, so I purchased some door sill protectors off amazon.
Back in CO, I learned that the trail sights are the perfect for carrying a Phatcat around.
Also excellent for carrying surf boards around
Fall 2023 - Road trip to the Upper Peninsula to ride bikes. Too cloudy and cold up there for my taste, but stellar riding.
I first thought the heated seats were dangerously hot. I was wrong, they’re perfect. Really nice for driving around without doors.
Not many places you can ski and surf the same day with the roof off.
———
Spring 2024 - The Incident
Another uneventful road trip to key west, followed by:
Squall came through while car was parked under the house. Rainwater was forced into places it didn’t belong and fried my BCM, my parking brake, and a handful of connectors. It took 2 dealerships and 3 months To figure out what was wrong with it and finally get it fixed. Ford was remarkably unhelpful though the process, but USAA was phenomenal and got me taken care of. I had to abandon the Bronco in Miami for the summer. So that sucked.
Flew to Miami in August to retrieve it.
For my wife, something about the rain incident seemed to rub off what remained of the ”new car feeling” and she encouraged making some more changes to the Bronco. I didn’t ask twice.
Started by adding a JCR Crusader bumper. Took about 2 hours to install, a 15mm ratcheting wrench was a must. Thew some amazon fogs and light bar in it.
Spent far too long trying to remove the welded nuts from the crash bar mounts….. so that was fun. Turns out it is much easier to remove the non welded nuts…..
Added Badlands suspension takeoffs that I got from another 6g member. Took me two half days in my “Driveway” to get the coil overs swapped. These were supposedly from a 4cyl 4 door, however i’m fairly certain they are were from a 6cyl 4dr. No matter, I already had them so I threw them on hoping the added bumper weight Would help even it out.
Also added sasquatch wheel takeoffs found on the Colorado bronco facebook group.
and lastly a full set of JCR Skids, which i still haven’t finished installing.
I bought the BRONCOVER almost immediately after purchasing the car and It is by far the best accessory I own. The Bronco doesn’t fit in the garage and has no roof/doors a vast majority of the time so a good cover is a must. HIGHLY recommend. It takes about 4 minutes to put on and even less to take off.
And thats that, for now…
Thanks for making it this far! I’ll try and organize this better and add details at some point. If anyone has any questions ask away!
---
9.28.24 Update - Tincup & Hancock Lake
2023 OBX - 4cyl - Iconic Silver - High Package
My odometer just clicked on 32k miles so I figured it’s probably time to write one of these up. This community has been an amazing resource for me, and hopefully my random info can be of use to someone else at some point.
——-
How it started - March 2023:
Drove it home from Iowa and immediately picked up some Badlands takeoff wheels from another 6g member.
Amazing how much better a set of wheels can make the OBX look.
I quickly learned that the KO2s are terrible in the snow, and combined with a gravel driveway will trash your fenders. No big deal on the snow as we normally run Nokians in the winter, but I quickly spent my ford points on some mud flaps.
Only put mudflaps on the front at first, and then realized that my Mountain bike would get trashed on the rack If I didn’t put them on the rear as well.
Found a set of factory sliders off a 6g member, and after a little work with a grinder they fit perfectly with the OEM mudflaps. I think I took off 3/4” off from the front side of each. (cant remember exactly)
That was all for the first round of changes.
——-
Spring 2023 - Road tripped the Bronco to Key West. It’s no F-150, but was much nicer to drive than my 2017 Frontier.
My Kuat bike rack does not fit with the spare tire, so rather than buy an extender I bought a kuat swing arm. Crazy expensive for what it is, the but the swing arm is an absolute must. If you get one make sure it swings to passenger, same as the rear door.
I have a Meraki Hammock that works great for sleeping in rest stops when i‘m feeling cheap. im 6’3” and i fit just fine, even with a paco pad underneath.
The roof and doors are almost always off, so I purchased some door sill protectors off amazon.
Back in CO, I learned that the trail sights are the perfect for carrying a Phatcat around.
Also excellent for carrying surf boards around
Fall 2023 - Road trip to the Upper Peninsula to ride bikes. Too cloudy and cold up there for my taste, but stellar riding.
I first thought the heated seats were dangerously hot. I was wrong, they’re perfect. Really nice for driving around without doors.
Not many places you can ski and surf the same day with the roof off.
———
Spring 2024 - The Incident
Another uneventful road trip to key west, followed by:
Squall came through while car was parked under the house. Rainwater was forced into places it didn’t belong and fried my BCM, my parking brake, and a handful of connectors. It took 2 dealerships and 3 months To figure out what was wrong with it and finally get it fixed. Ford was remarkably unhelpful though the process, but USAA was phenomenal and got me taken care of. I had to abandon the Bronco in Miami for the summer. So that sucked.
Flew to Miami in August to retrieve it.
For my wife, something about the rain incident seemed to rub off what remained of the ”new car feeling” and she encouraged making some more changes to the Bronco. I didn’t ask twice.
Started by adding a JCR Crusader bumper. Took about 2 hours to install, a 15mm ratcheting wrench was a must. Thew some amazon fogs and light bar in it.
Spent far too long trying to remove the welded nuts from the crash bar mounts….. so that was fun. Turns out it is much easier to remove the non welded nuts…..
Added Badlands suspension takeoffs that I got from another 6g member. Took me two half days in my “Driveway” to get the coil overs swapped. These were supposedly from a 4cyl 4 door, however i’m fairly certain they are were from a 6cyl 4dr. No matter, I already had them so I threw them on hoping the added bumper weight Would help even it out.
Also added sasquatch wheel takeoffs found on the Colorado bronco facebook group.
and lastly a full set of JCR Skids, which i still haven’t finished installing.
I bought the BRONCOVER almost immediately after purchasing the car and It is by far the best accessory I own. The Bronco doesn’t fit in the garage and has no roof/doors a vast majority of the time so a good cover is a must. HIGHLY recommend. It takes about 4 minutes to put on and even less to take off.
And thats that, for now…
Thanks for making it this far! I’ll try and organize this better and add details at some point. If anyone has any questions ask away!
---
9.28.24 Update - Tincup & Hancock Lake
Sponsored
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