9 Day Road Trip in a 4-Door Big Bend Bronco 2.7L -- First Impression Review

[AK SNO RIDER]

Gotta be a way permanently disable it, why would FORD force an owner to press the button every time they get into the truck!!??

Do you understand what auto start/stop is for? It is to help Ford meet epa numbers. They NEED auto start/stop, and you should be thankful for features like that which help keep our beloved ICE vehicles on the road. The feature is nearly unnoticeable in day to day life anyway. People complaining about it are just being crotchety old fucks. It has zero affect on the way your vehicle performs.

And is it really that hard to press a single button every time you get in a vehicle? Eventually it's a habit and you don't even realize you do it, like switching a car into sport mode on startup.

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[Corsair]

Gotta be a way permanently disable it, why would FORD force an owner to press the button every time they get into the truck!!??

Someone who works at the factory stated that there’s a wiring connection at the battery that you can disconnect to disable the feature. I wish I was oblivious enough to my surroundings that this wouldn’t bother me, but I’m sure I’ll have to disable it.

 

[mpeugeot]

Someone who works at the factory stated that there’s a wiring connection at the battery that you can disconnect to disable the feature. I wish I was oblivious enough to my surroundings that this wouldn’t bother me, but I’m sure I’ll have to disable it.

Mission 0. Get Bronco from Dirtnap at MAP
Mission 1. Disable ASS
Mission 2. Enable Baja Mode
Mission 3. De-nerf 2.7/transmission

 

[Drex]

Do you understand what auto start/stop is for? It is to help Ford meet epa numbers. They NEED auto start/stop, and you should be thankful for features like that which help keep our beloved ICE vehicles on the road. The feature is nearly unnoticeable in day to day life anyway. People complaining about it are just being crotchety old fucks. It has zero affect on the way your vehicle performs.

More expensive battery, heavier duty starter, turbo(s) stop getting fresh oil, transmission pump stops (heat soaking fluid, lowering lifespan, requiring excess capacity and heavy duty parts, shorter maintenance intervals), Extra A/C compressor clutch wear (admittedly small) . A bunch of extra cost and weight baked into the package that the final consumer eats just so Ford can cheat on the specific EPA test. I would be shocked if the so called fuel dollars it saves in the real World (if any) is more then the cost of the system. I do not have the extra cost numbers on the heavier duty parts and fluids, however if someone told me it was $350 or more, I would not be surprised. We get to pay extra for a feature everyone hates. So... While I fully embrace being a crochety old fuck, it really is a non-lube pegging from the auto manufacturers to cheat higher MPG numbers on a specific test than useful in the real world at our expense. We were young and thought we knew every thing too back in the day, so we don't hold it against you. We might chuckle a bit, but it is mostly at ourselves remembering our own limited ability to look at the bigger picture.

 

[Snowdogyyz]

Nice! I’m in Clemmons near Winston and we vacation at Holden Beach all the time. Sounds like a great trip!

 

[swooshdave]

I hate to make things dark, but as a nurse in a trauma ICU for 13 years feel I have a duty to say this is just a really bad idea. Please don't do this or give anyone the idea its a good idea.

Do a google search for "atlanto-occipital dislocation" aka internal decapitation and you'll likely be cured of the urge to remove your head rest. Unfortunately I've seen this a number of times over the years and its not pretty.

I can't wait to see what you have to say about people who ride motorcycles.

 

[nminus1]

More expensive battery, heavier duty starter, turbo(s) stop getting fresh oil, transmission pump stops (heat soaking fluid, lowering lifespan, requiring excess capacity and heavy duty parts, shorter maintenance intervals), Extra A/C compressor clutch wear (admittedly small) . A bunch of extra cost and weight baked into the package that the final consumer eats just so Ford can cheat on the specific EPA test. I would be shocked if the so called fuel dollars it saves in the real World (if any) is more then the cost of the system. I do not have the extra cost numbers on the heavier duty parts and fluids, however if someone told me it was $350 or more, I would not be surprised. We get to pay extra for a feature everyone hates. So... While I fully embrace being a crochety old fuck, it really is a non-lube pegging from the auto manufacturers to cheat higher MPG numbers on a specific test than useful in the real world at our expense. We were young and thought we knew every thing too back in the day, so we don't hold it against you. We might chuckle a bit, but it is mostly at ourselves remembering our own limited ability to look at the bigger picture.

Well put. Guess at mid 50's I'm a "crotchety old fuck" too, or just recognize EPA bullshit and don't want any part of that game on my new 50k SUV.

 

[Jabberwock]

I can't wait to see what you have to say about people who ride motorcycles.

Kind of off topic but since you posed the question…
I used to ride dirt bikes when I was younger and I had a lot of fun- I was lucky to have never been seriously injured. I support people doing things they love to do though, even when they are dangerous and would never tell someone not to ride. People that ride tend to be very passionate about it and I get that.

I don’t ride anymore though. Before I became a nurse I was a medic, and used to work extra shifts at a motocross track providing first aid until I witnessed an 18 year old rider I knew well die in front of me on the track. It was very traumatic and effects me til this day.

Riding without a helmet is a different story. I now work in a trauma center that treats a lot of patients from motorcycle accidents in a bordering state without a helmet law. Riding motorcycles is dangerous enough when you take all the proper safely precautions, but people that ride without a helmet are a special kind of stupid. (Or they are young and don’t know any better because their parents are a special kind of stupid .)

There is one upside, and that is these folks contribute a lot of organs for organ donation. (Sometimes you’ll hear trauma/ER nurses and EMS refer to motorcycles as “donorcycles.”)

Seriously though, I support the right to ride on the street without a helmet with one caveat- you have to carry excellent health insurance with a long term care provision so when you end up a vegetable and require 24 hour care for the rest of your life, my tax dollars don’t have to pay for it.

Please be safe out there folks.

 

[mpeugeot]

Seriously though, I support the right to ride on the street without a helmet with one caveat- you have to carry excellent health insurance with a long term care provision so when you end up a vegetable and require 24 hour care for the rest of your life, my tax dollars don’t have to pay for it.

Please be safe out there folks.

And there is the slippery slope, either you have freedom or you don't... rights don't come with caveats.

Edit'd down... too close to politics.

 

[Jabberwock]

And there is the slippery slope, either you have freedom or you don't... rights don't come with caveats.

Edit'd down... too close to politics.

With rights and freedom comes responsibility though. Responsibility would have been a better term than caveat.

 

[gtx_bronc]

Helpful hint: learn to play with your pressure applied to the brake pedal. It is absolutely possible to drive with the Auto S/S in it's normal mode and never have it shut off your engine at a light or stop sign.

This ^^^^ On our expedition i never even turn it off, you can modulate the brake pedal once you are used to it and not have it turn off. That being said, why do people hate this so much?

 

[BullyHayes]

I'm a day (or two or 20) late to this, but it sounds like the auto-stop-start is a disliked feature. I get it, and understand why it exists. I've had this on a Grand Cherokee where it was terrible. And it's on my wife's Escape, where it works so well we don't even notice it. Anyhoo, someone mentioned this earlier, but now the Bronco version is now available. Autostopeliminator sounds like it would do the trick, and I have never used one, but might get one for my next vehicle.


Autostop Eliminator for Broncos

 

[STLRFAN]

Its been a while since I started this post so I thought I would provide a quick update.

It has been about 2 months since we took delivery, 3500 miles, and 1 payment made (59 to go )

I am not going to rehash everything from the start of the post just a couple updates.

Auto Off Feature - Didnt realize this was going to cause such a stir. I am getting used to hitting the start button then the auto off button. I still dont like it but I dont like coffee either so take it for what it is worth.

Head Rest - This caused a bigger stir then the Auto off Feature - Getting used to the head rest position or lack of adjustability.

MIC Top - We are starting to see a little delamination on the leading edge of the middle panel above the driver side rear door. Also since the original post we have now taken the entire top off. There is a little whistle now, I guess once you break the factory seal this is the result. The latch that secures the side of front passenger panel now has a 'creek' to it. No sense to beat a dead horse here on the MIC top since the new tops are on the way. I am scheduled for a new top in October. Will see if any of this is fixed.

MPG's - From pick up to today we are still averaging 21.9 MPG - Down from the 23 first mentioned. I think this is because we went straight from dealer to highway driving. Since the initial trip it has been just about all city driving.

Cargo Area - Knit Picking here - The cargo area side panels is that crappy plastic in the back of all SUVs. Breath on it and it scuffs. From the trip of suit cases in and out, groceries being tossed in and normal usage its taking a little beating. When it comes to my vehicles my Type A kicks in full force and it drives me crazy to see scuff marks on a brand new vehicle. (Thats why all our early broncos are trailer queens, dont want them dirty -- off roaders / crawlers can have a field day with that comment) I may see about head liner fabric or something to cover the plastic, if it wont look like Fido's Tail end.

All in all we are still thrilled with the Bronco.

Hopefully more of you will be driving yours in the near future.
Happy & Safe Broncoing.

 

[STLRFAN]

I did forget to mention one thing that I thought was interesting and is probably in the oweners manual that is not going to get read...

On the dash in the upper let corner of the display is a small bronco logo and the display has a blue color scheme...When you switch your goat mode the bronco logo will change to a leaf (Eco Mode) and the color scheme goes green and so on for the other modes. I think Sport is Red, sand is brown and so on.

I wondered how you knew what mode you were in and there is the answer. I could be the only Dumb Ass that didnt realize this but thought I would pass it along.

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