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37 Days and 2200 Miles later with the 2021 Ford Bronco First Edition

RivianNowPlz

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Hey all,

Update #3 of what will be 4 total updates. For those who messaged me and reached out to connect on this Bronco and heard my thoughts I'm linking my prior 2 posts here:

https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/thre...wner-after-300-miles-back-from-granger.30526/

https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/thre...les-from-granger-former-jeep-jlu-owner.30821/

A lot has happened since my prior update, and again I'm taking the view point of someone who spent 3+ years in a JLU and has a stable of other outdoorsy/off roading/on roading vehicles. So here we go for some more bulleted thoughts!

  • Having just returns from a 320 miles 6 hour round trip journey with my wife and 3 boys I can safely say the following:
    a. 3 across with childseat and 2 boosters is adequate. Not great, but not terrible. Compared to our original journey from Iowa, the Broncos "new" flair has worn off to an extent so the shaded glasses may have come off a bit with regards to road trip comfort.
    b. The seats have really held up with my old man back, I would fidget and need to switch positions often in my Jeep and to be fair also in my Tesla. The Broncos seats are firm, good bolstering for my body, and if I had one complaint it would be thigh support.
    c. This thing sure likes it gas - to be fair, its still cold. But 15.4MPG is what I averaged which is only marginally better than my 15.2 average since acquiring the vehicle. This is quite a bit lower than what I know others are reporting.
    d. You have to yell just as much to talk to your kids in this Bronco as in the Jeep. This makes it a frustrating vehicle for road trips with the family and younger kids who may or may not want to speak up loud enough for you to hear them. This is roughly to be expected, but I was hoping for marginally better over the long haul.
  • The Bronco can tow! I had the OEM factory tow hitch/wiring harness put on and I can report back that my trailer which came in at about 2800 was a planted experience with nothing scary to make mention of with braking/handling/acceleration.
  • The windshield visor should be redesigned to either be more luxurious, or harder like the Jeeps. Because I can't seem to get the Bronco to connect to homelink like all my other vehicles can, I've kept my garage door opener in the vehicle.. well.. this material conforms to presses and over the last few weeks has left a notable imprint that may never fully go away. 1 week later its still visible and likely an imprint forever. Poor design.
  • I have a rattle in my Gen 2 hard top now. It does not bother me as I had one in my Jeep, but unfortunately its the same rattle I've heard in other Gen1 hardtops.
  • The wireless charging pad is completely worthless with any phone. You may as well just leave it plugged in.
  • The Bronco still gets all the fun looks, thumbs up, and pictures that I received over 30+ days ago. Everyones always really excited to see it.
  • I haven't had any issues with the frameless window design or locked windows/handles in the freezing temps.
  • The Bronco is now tied with my old Raptor for full blow confidence in the snow, ice, and blizzard conditions. This thing is a beast, we've gone now multiple weeks with huge snow falls, completely trashed up roads, just overall terrible conditions and the slippery GOAT mode.. WORKS. Wow does it work! Tires definitely show that M/T is for "maximum traction" vs. Mud Terrain as they don't slip and slide like my Nittos.
  • Lack of memory seats is a huge shame when you have 2 people in the household that want to drive it as much as we do.
  • I find it odd that copilot 360 doesn't include lane centering when the "keep your hands on the wheel" notification comes up as much as it does. I can understand not having BlueCruise to an extend, the on road prowess of this vehicle should allow it to have BlueCruise particularly since the new Raptor gets it. Regardless, lane centering hopefully will be included in future models.
  • Nothing has changed for me on the center display - this display should have been full screen, and it will likely be changed in the very next iteration of this Bronco. I never look at the speedo, I default always to the digital display and overall I'm still far more in love with the UI and usability of the screens over Uconnect in my old JLU.
  • The lack of rear cupholders starts to rear it's ugly head on longer trips with the family(3 across). I think an attachment to the molle thing on the back could be a simple solution.
  • I am happy to still say that I default to use Sync 4 over Android Auto for navigation while using android autos side screen for audio controls on Spotify.

Overall, what can I say?! It's a Bronco thats fun as hell, feature rich, utilitarian in design. I would take it 10 times out of 10 times over my old Jeep, I don't find there to be a comparison and seeing this rock crawling youtube videos on the internet with a stock Bronco on 35s leads me to believe that solid front axels, while having some obvious advantages, still can be followed by a Bronco with IFS no problem with a more enjoyable on road experience back to your garage. Cheers everyone.
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Pdshepherd

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Well written thanks
 

JakeC

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Excellent review, from a practical real-world ownership perspective.

Curious if your wife, or kids had any different-than-you perspectives? [go poll them quickly… lol]
 

cigartexan

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  • The windshield visor should be redesigned to either be more luxurious, or harder like the Jeeps. Because I can't seem to get the Bronco to connect to homelink like all my other vehicles can, I've kept my garage door opener in the vehicle.. well.. this material conforms to presses and over the last few weeks has left a notable imprint that may never fully go away. 1 week later its still visible and likely an imprint forever. Poor design.
Nice review!

For the Homelink, you have to press the button you programmed repeatedly until the door opens. Most GD openers are rolling code systems, just keep pressing it, it will eventually set all the codes. Mine took 15 presses before it took.

Another thing, if you have to keep an opener in the Bronco, just hook it on the roof latch above the visor, that's where I have mine as to not imprint the visor.
 

Ice Age

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Excellent review and really impressed with your comments being you have owned many other nice vehicles and can honesty tell us the truths.
 

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RivianNowPlz

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Excellent review, from a practical real-world ownership perspective.

Curious if your wife, or kids had any different-than-you perspectives? [go poll them quickly… lol]
The wife's opinion is pretty basic, she loved her Jeep, the Wrangler was her dream car when we bought it.. all white JLU Rubicon. So from her perspective the thoughts would be.

  • It's not my Jeep
  • It feels more like a big truck than a car/jeep
  • Loves the huge screen
  • Dislikes the height and rock sliders vs side steps (she's 5'6 so not necessarily short but has a hard time hopping in)
  • Loves the radio
  • Loves the proximity key function(I did not have this on our JLU, but she's spoiled by the other vehicles which have it)
  • Likes the exterior looks better on the Jeep. This is subjective, but the JLU was her favorite. She much prefers the interior of the Bronco.
  • Cupholders is a big con for her, but she likes the sturdiness of the clamps in the Bronco compared to the rubber stops in the Jeep.
  • The hydrolic pump for the rear tailgate while a plus for me is a big con for her. She doesn't like to open the gate so wide to its first stop and prefers the unweilding uncontrollable tailgate of the jeep.
  • She admittedly says she feels far more safe in the Bronco than the Jeep. And will freely say if you don't want to white knuckle drive in the winter to get the Bronco.
 

JakeC

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These all seem reasonable and quite valid, in their own way. Can’t wait to see what new trails you’re out to tackle!
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