2024 Ford Bronco Review: Yes, it's awesome, but ... Autoblog

[Haelous]

Would the hard top owners be honest. Do they not have creeks and leaks?

4-door hard top. No creaks or leaks. Only had it for 13 months and only the front two pieces have been off.

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[DriveAllNight]

Hey, part of the Bronco experience is customization. Can Ford offer up the now hard plastic interior and also an option to have a soft interior that would absolutely help absorb noise - yes and there is a market for both.
Options are great.
Would it still be a Bronco? Yes.
Could they offer a roof that would be more quiet but heavier to take off? Yes. And there would be people who would want this.
Choices are very much part of why people want a Bronco.

People can ignore the short comings of the Bronco because they love it, and you can be compared it to whatever you want, it's subjective, but the reality is, for the cost, it has a lot of sacrifices.

Not sure why people compare it to the first gen Bronco, standards have changed a bit in the industry since the 1960s. That isn't the benchmark, 2024 SUVs and truck offerings are.

 

[Jruta]

Wow. I paid 36k for my base, non-SAS 2 door. And that was a stretch for me. As another poster said- if this were today it’d be off my radar too.

 

[Wark]

When I'm running the hard top it's not so bad, and highways are fine. My aftermarket soft top is a no go on the highway over 55 mph. I'm sure the factory soft top is better, but

I have a hard top, it's loud above 40mph. It's also moved around, for awhile it was in the back, then over the passenger rear window (2dr), now it's like wind in a canyon coming form the gap where the passenger top section joins the rear section. My guess is it's the seals and wind currents rolling across gaps. However, I've also known a couple people who had no issue, so top fitment is probably why.

There are some decent threads on here about improving top fitment. That plus taking some marine grade weatherstripping on the top seals and pipe insulation will significantly improve the interior noise.

At 70 mph with hard top using the NIOSH SLM (sound level meter) app, I am around 70-72 dBA with the phone on the console. It dropped ~ 4 dBA from my original config.

The weatherstripping didn't impact the weathertightness of the top, tested by touchless car wash.

Now when I switch to my aftermarket Rampage Trailview soft top... I stay away from highway as much as is possible. Crosswinds create a ripple resonance across the top over vehicle speed plus windspeed = 65 mph and it's pretty unbearable -- ear plugs / noise cancellation required.

 

[vrtical]

 

[timbits588]

I paid $38000 on December 8, 2022 for my base sas 2.7. I wonder how insurance companies that offer new car replacement will handle it? I recently switched from State Farm after years, because they kept raising the prices. Now have Travellers for $480 less a year...

State Farm has to pay for all of those commercials somehow!

 

[Lowcountry Bronco]

Hey, part of the Bronco experience is customization. Can Ford offer up the now hard plastic interior and also an option to have a soft interior that would absolutely help absorb noise - yes and there is a market for both.
Options are great.
Would it still be a Bronco? Yes.
Could they offer a roof that would be more quiet but heavier to take off? Yes. And there would be people who would want this.
Choices are very much part of why people want a Bronco.

People can ignore the short comings of the Bronco because they love it, and you can be compared it to whatever you want, it's subjective, but the reality is, for the cost, it has a lot of sacrifices.

Not sure why people compare it to the first gen Bronco, standards have changed a bit in the industry since the 1960s. That isn't the benchmark, 2024 SUVs and truck offerings are.

Ford killed off the carpet and cloth interiors, both offer a layer of sound insulation and of course the mod top isn't widespread available. I think all this together is why us HE owners can brag on being the quietest of the bunch.

 

[indio22]

2-door Bronco owner here. I've owned open top 4x4s since 1989, so I'm familiar with the pluses and minuses of such vehicles, including in terms of noise, comfort, etc. I don't find my Bronco a problem with noise while driving, I can talk with passengers fine.

Noise wasn't an issue driving several hours at highway speeds from Iowa (Granger) to Chicago. Although I don't drive 80+ mph in a vehicle like a Bronco, that's not really it's forte, maybe consider a different vehicle if doing a lot of high speed driving.

There is a minor wind noise coming from the passenger side top area of my Bronco. There is probably some small weatherstrip gap, I'll have to do some investigation and fix myself, just not at the level of being a high priority.

Considering people are mentioning a lot of noise, not being able to communicate with passengers, having to wear hearing protection ... I assume due to the multi-part hardtop there are variances/gaps/fittings issues causing this difference in owner experiences? Or soft top owners are experiencing more noise.

No way a removable multi-part hardtop is going to match a regular vehicle in terms of fitment/noise. In my opinion that is an unreasonable expectation. People expecting a regular SUV/car like experience bought the wrong vehicle.

 

[scolumbo]

^^ Exactly my experience. A little wind noise coming from upper passenger top starting around 75 mph, but very tolerable and easy to carry on a conversation. Now my 2-dr soft-top Rubicon? Totally different story.

 

[TX-Dennis]

On my second two door thanks to an accident that totaled the first one. Neither hard top creaked or leaked. There is wind noise at typical Texas highway speed of roughly 80 mph. The first one was much louder at highway speed compared to the newer Wildtrak. The difference may have been due to the factory roof rack which the first one had.

The Wildtrak is almost as quiet as my wife's Lincoln below 65 mph unless it's a very windy day. Above that it becomes louder, but it's by no means unbearable. I can carry on a conversation, speak on the phone and listen to the radio at moderate volume while cruising at 80.

The older Bronco was louder than my son's Jeep Wrangler. The new Wildtrak is not. Both are much less tiring to drive on the highway than the Wrangler.

The instrument panel is not esthetically pleasing, but it's usable and everything works as it should. I'm sure happy with the Bronco. I would definitely buy another. In fact, I did.

 

[Sherminiator]

I've owned nothing but unibody products up till my Bronco-Mostly performance cars-2 Mustang GTs, a Focus SVT and a Taurus SHO, which was my previous ride before the Bronco.

Anyways-noise levels-I get wind noise at 75MPH+ but also have roof racks that cause that. I normally don't drive faster then 75 anyways-gas mileage starts going to crap at higher speeds due to aerodynamics and gearing.

The Bronco is a pure pleasure to drive-its just as nice as the SHO was around town, if not better because its over a foot shorter in OL. The ride and handling is fine (considering the difference between a performance focused setup with low profile 20 inch all season tires and suspension setup), but the SHO does have an edge on the highway-but 98% of my driving is local-doing 60 or less.

The instrument cluster is a non-issue with me...its a modern retro take on the 66 Bronco cluster.

 

[Coldsmoke]

Because they're loud as hell? Convertibles will always be loud, plus a/t tires and brick aero. Why pretend it's not loud on the highway?

I agree. “Loud” is a relative term. If you are buying a 4wd vehicle with a removable top and meaty tires and are expecting the quiet interior of a luxury vehicle, well then, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
In relative terms for the class of vehicle, I think the Bronco is pretty quiet. I had a ‘98 Jeep TJ that was so loud on the highway that you had to shout back and forth with your passenger. Forget playing music on the radio.
Anyway, I’ve driven my Badlands across the country at highway speeds (worse case scenario) and have enjoyed normal conversation levels and the sound system without excessive noise.

 

[PolarVortex]

I wish people would stop whining about interior quality before they give the Bronco a Lexus interior -- yuck!! Some of us like a simple and durable interior over soft touch garbage. There is a reason why the original Jeep Cherokee XJ are so highly sought after, and this is a big reason why. Broncos are loaded with tech like every other vehicle, but at least they kept the interior basic and I for one don't want it changed.

(Microphone drop)

 

[STuff1]

I have owned Jeep Wranglers (and a Gladiator) for over 35 years. A CJ7, YJ, TJ, JK, JL, etc. I have had soft and hard tops on them. With the wrangler the soft top is horribly loud on the highway. It was on my 21 Willys 2 door. I now have ditched Jeep (due to reliability issues with the JL I have had over two vehicles). Anyway, I now own a 2 door 2023 Bronco Wildtrak Sasquatch. Has the hard top, sound deadening material, carpeted floors, etc. At 70 MPH I can EASILY have a conversation with my wife in the passenger seat. Yes, there is some wind noise but it's about 20% higher than my wife's Renegade, which also has wind noise somehow. Much better than the Jeep soft top and even better than my last Wranglers hard top. I have no leaks, no creaks, and no issues (as of yet) with my hard top. I do however have a creaking noise coming from the rear, maybe tailgate. We live very remote, in the woods on 20 acres. Sometimes we have extreme mud in the roads, other times deep snow or even flooding. The first day with the Bronco was raining horribly and we had to go through a very deep section of road, almost up to the doors. No problem. As for the top, so far I have had no issues but I have also never taken it off. I will be doing that in the spring. So far I am extremely pleased with the Bronco vs my various Jeep Wranglers. The drive is astonishingly better, I have more power, more space, more comfort and I get the same gas mileage, which I am now averaging 19.8 MPG running 87 octane on the 2 door WT. No negs for me but I knew there would be noise though it is much quieter than I expected. This isn't a luxury vehicle, it's meant to be a Jeep competitor. No way to have silence with a removable top.

 

[PolarVortex]

I agree. “Loud” is a relative term. If you are buying a 4wd vehicle with a removable top and meaty tires and are expecting the quiet interior of a luxury vehicle, well then, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
In relative terms for the class of vehicle, I think the Bronco is pretty quiet. I had a ‘98 Jeep TJ that was so loud on the highway that you had to shout back and forth with your passenger. Forget playing music on the radio.
Anyway, I’ve driven my Badlands across the country at highway speeds (worse case scenario) and have enjoyed normal conversation levels and the sound system without excessive noise.

Completely agree. I have a softtop and have it at 65mph+ regularly and I find it very tolerable. It's slightly noisy on the highway, but I have my stereo cranked up as part of my regular routine so it doesn't bother me at all. Honestly I feel like it's part of the whole Bronco experience.

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