7MT Club

[LT. DAN ICE CREAM!!!]

I'm loving every second of my BL 7 speed. I bought my Bronco having never driven a manual before, and I took to it like a duck to water.

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[PNWAdventurer]

I'm have about 2800 miles in my Badlands with 33". 1st might be a touch short but nothing you don't adapt to quickly. Personally, I haven't seen a need to start out in second. The couple times I've done it the Bronco wasn't nearly as happy. Requires much more throttle input. Now 3rd gear starts in 4L on flat terrain, butter.

 

[Shoresy]

Many comments on first being really short. Anyone played with starting out in second?
Last time I suggested this in another thread all the clutch-wear-worriers came out of the woodwork…….I’ve driven MTs since the 60s and have, for various reasons, started off in second from time to time and I’ve not experienced clutch wear issues. Done correctly starting in second doesn’t slip the clutch.

Looking forward to trying it myself…if/when my Bronco arrives.

It’s a thought, but haven’t tried it… I think that 2nd is just a little too big of a leap. Maybe if you were pointing downhill a bit… give it a go !

 

[Kirk59]

I’m still waiting on my BL EG 7MT to be delivered, so I was hoping to live vicariously through others while I wait. Anyone have any informative tales to spin about their three pedal Bronco? Anyone take it off-road yet? Any rock crawling? Anyone use the “Crank in Gear” feature?

Due to extreme rock crawling and 40” tires filled with water, here is “BroncBusters” clutch!

 

[Kirk59]

Due to extreme rock crawling and 40” tires filled with water, here is “BroncBusters” clutch!

 

[hellahella]

I have BL with optional beadlocks. So it’s got the 4.70 gears. First and second are short, but I’m not racing it. Just hit 1000 miles, so trying to keep rpm below 3k, so shift to 3rd happens around 25. 3-5 pull nice and get good help from turbo even as low as 2krpm.

on the trail, all I can say is wow. 4L with crawler gear and the 4.70s,it just says, let’s go on steep and technical. No need to touch the clutch , just walk it up the grade at 1mph, 1000rpm. 2@2k, etc.

Crank in gear is handy, stalled one time when I neglected to turn on lockers. One locks were on, just crank it and go. The clutch is very forgiving, but when you’re in a compromising position (stuck on a hill, foot mashing the brake, trying to figure out the right line, etc)not having to think about clutch is nice. Even could left foot brake and right foot on gas to get er moving!

almoat too much for words, it’s fantastic!

Good to know you've tried left foot breaking! That's one thing I didn't get to try during the Drive event. All the questions I had went out the door once I started the engine lol

 

[Shoresy]

Due to extreme rock crawling and 40” tires filled with water, here is “BroncBusters” clutch!

That has been well loved!

 

[AlpineDescent]

Due to extreme rock crawling and 40” tires filled with water, here is “BroncBusters” clutch!

Find the weakest link.

 

[Chuck_Ruck]

Stock BL w/ 4.70:1 & 33s
Never down shift to 1st gear, only use it from a dead stop.
1 - 2 shift is quick on the engine wind up
2 - 3 shift is 2x as long of a wind up.
3rd gead is where is has the leg room to start to pull, you really feel the torque at the top of the RPM range.
3 - 4 shift is smooth and you can actually work with some boost.
5th gear is a great operating gear, plenty on range of speed and powerband.
6th is kind of unimpressive, like over drive.

Crawler gear, by its self, is slightly less than 1st. Couple that with 4L and this thing is a tank as long as your tires can purchase traction.
Idle- <1mph
1k- 1mph
2k- 2mph
3k- 3mph
You get the point...
I wish I had access to steeper grades just to test this prowess. Scott peak by my house is a humvee training trail on Ft Huachuca. I saw 22° on the incline, never gave my Badlands any issue. If anything I still could gain speed going up the pea gravel.

 

[Shoresy]

Has anyone tried Baja mode?
I can feel the steering get firmer. The throttle, however, seems less aggressive as opposed to more…

 

[wrbix]

Has anyone tried Baja mode?
I can feel the steering get firmer. The throttle, however, seems less aggressive as opposed to more…

Would also like to hear impressions of throttle mapping w MT between modes.
As an example my Audi in Sport mode seems to maintain RPM just a bit between shifts leading IMHO to smoother acceleration……yeah, yeah about to hear from the “rev hang” naysayers…..don’t bother.

 

[NorthShoreBronco]

Posted the review in it's own thread.

https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/thre...ew-with-35-mud-terrains-and-2-3-engine.33718/

 

[Dusty]

He's a member here. @Dusty
Their youtube channel .... https://www.youtube.com/c/horsinaround

They start out with a bone stock , no option Base and started "benchmarking" its capabilities and aftermarket add-ons as they go.
So far, i think they have only added a lift and 35's.

Summary: He's an experienced offroader and thus far he is impressed with the Bronco's capabilities, short of the 30" donuts...

Thanks for the plug @HoosierDaddy! Yeah we have discussed the merits of the 7-speed manual at-length in several of our videos, plus put it to the test in a variety of terrain and abuse. In our most recent one, posted last night, we talked about it's suitability for long road trips.

I'm a fan of this transmission so far. I've been impressed with its performance, though I do not think it's "perfect". Here are a few of my thoughts on it:

• I currently run 35's with the stock 4.46 gearing, and it's adequate. I fell like 33's would be the sweet spot, while 4.7 gears would be the sweet spot for 35's. First gear is just slightly under-geared on take-off. But like others have said, when I had the stock pizza cutters, it was way over-geared in first.
• 6th gear is less useful with 35's and 4.46. It works OK as a highway gear on flat ground, but unless you're going 80+ you're not deep enough into the power band to maintain speed if you start going uphill. Yeah, just downshift, you say. And you're right. But it's still not at it's happiest in 6th gear at normal highway speed. With 33's (or 4.7 gears on 35's) it would probably be just right.
• Neither of the above is enough of an annoyance to make me want to re-gear. You adapt and get used to it.
• The auto re-start feature is really cool. I stall it out more than most because I take it off-road quite a bit, and you're more likely to stall it out when working through a boulder field than driving across a parking lot. I like that the Bronco just does that automatically. Bonus is when it flashes "Bronco Saved" on the screen when it does it.
• I recommend getting Ford's pre-paid maintenance plan if you get the manual transmission. In addition to paying for regular service intervals, it covers clutch and brake service any time, regardless of intervals. This is especially important if you off-road it, which can be hard on clutches. I beat on mine a little harder because I have that peace of mind that if I fry the clutch they will replace it.
• Sometimes the clutch linkage sounds a little rattly. Not sure if something's loose or what's going on down there.
• Perhaps the most annoying thing about this transmission is the stiff detent between 4th and 5th gear. Shifting is smooth up through 4th. When you go to shift to 5th it takes more "push" to slide it over into the 5/6 column. Because of this, sometimes you'll miss the shift and stick it back down into 3rd by accident. I've also accidentally shifted back down to 4th when trying to go from 5th to 6th, because that detent wants to push the lever back over to the 3rd/4th column as you're moving it down to 6th from 5th. It's something you get used to the more you drive it, but closing in on 10,000 miles now I still occasionally miss that gear if I'm not paying attention.
• Crawler gear is amazing. It's low enough that the 2.3L engine can drag the weight of the Bronco up just about any incline as long as the tires can keep traction.
• I live in Southern California and commute on probably the busiest freeways in the country, which frequently deteriorates to stop-and-go or a crawl at a snail's pace. This is when Crawler gear becomes useful on the highway LOL.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Perhaps the most annoying thing about this transmission is the stiff detent between 4th and 5th gear. Shifting is smooth up through 4th. When you go to shift to 5th it takes more "push" to slide it over into the 5/6 column. Because of this, sometimes you'll miss the shift and stick it back down into 3rd by accident. I've also accidentally shifted back down to 4th when trying to go from 5th to 6th, because that detent wants to push the lever back over to the 3rd/4th column as you're moving it down to 6th from 5th. It's something you get used to the more you drive it, but closing in on 10,000 miles now I still occasionally miss that gear if I'm not paying attention.

Ah ha!
I've noticed the missed shift issues also, but didn't really stop to analyze why it was happening. I'm 6.5k miles in...
But yes, exact same symptoms, but I'm getting a better feel for it now also.

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