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Article: Is the 2021 Ford Bronco the Overlander You’ve Been Waiting For?

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Rick Astley

Rick Astley

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So...a large portion of their metrics based on assumptions and/or educated guesses at best?
No, the vast majority of information about the Bronco is based on the author of the article living out of the Overland rig for most of the past 2 years, sorting out it's faults and meticulously going through the strengths and areas of improvement.

Or, taken from somebody who's career is in overlanding with drastically better access to gear/equipment than us keyboard jockeys. But perhaps you can opine on your industry experience on this topic? I'm an accountant so I have to read what others have to say who are in the industry, take some knowledge from that then try things out first hand and get to the conclusion which works best for my needs.
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Well i'm going to give overlanding a go this year with my lifted superduty to see how i like rooftop tents(i've been glamping for years in my fully outfitted toy hauler and offroading with my sidexside time to combine in a smaller easier access setup).So many places i've drove past that couldn't take a 60' long setup into.
 
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Well i'm going to give overlanding a go this year with my lifted superduty to see how i like rooftop tents(i've been glamping for years in my fully outfitted toy hauler and offroading with my sidexside time to combine in a smaller easier access setup).So many places i've drove past that couldn't take a 60' long setup into.
Some day you should try a tent.

Ever had sex while camping? It's F-ing in tents!
 

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That new F150 Tremor will be ready for Overlanding. I’d take that over a Tundra TRDpro all day long.
Honestly I was looking at the Raptor, but seeing the F150 Tremor, I’m probably going to cancel my bronco reservation for it. It has almost everything the bronco has in terms of off-road capability but has the necessary towing and payload that I want. I think tremor with a canopy and set up as an overland vehicle will be in my fleet before the bronco, but I’m still going to buy one down the road.
 

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No, the vast majority of information about the Bronco is based on the author of the article living out of the Overland rig for most of the past 2 years, sorting out it's faults and meticulously going through the strengths and areas of improvement.

Or, taken from somebody who's career is in overlanding with drastically better access to gear/equipment than us keyboard jockeys. But perhaps you can opine on your industry experience on this topic? I'm an accountant so I have to read what others have to say who are in the industry, take some knowledge from that then try things out first hand and get to the conclusion which works best for my needs.
It doesn't take years of experience to realize that the Bronco was scored on many metrics that have not even been published yet. Gas mileage, payload, reliability, etc. So assumptions and/or educated guesses were made. Some of those numbers will be known sooner than later. Others like longevity and reliability will take years to get an accurate gauge on. He hasn't driven one so its true capabilities are unknown to anyone outside of Ford. So eliminating personal bias is impossible. At this point, there is insufficient data to definitely say it is any more or less a suitable base for overlanding than a comparable Wrangler, Toyota, etc.
 
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I am still processing all the info in the charts. I guess I am buying the Bronco for the Cool factor. ie the doors and roof come off and the very capable drive train. The Bronco has a lot of limiting factors for Overlanding. The roof rails can only support 110lbs while driving. Where do you put all your stuff when the interior storage space is smaller then a truck bed. Probably 25% less then a Ranger Truck Bed. Towing capacity is at 3500lbs.
I will have to figure out the weight of some of the roof top tents and what gear can go on the roof. A roof top cage/platform and a full roto moulded cooler would exceed 110lbs. I guess I am sticking with sleeping on the ground.
 
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It doesn't take years of experience to realize that the Bronco was scored on many metrics that have not even been published yet. Gas mileage, payload, reliability, etc. So assumptions and/or educated guesses were made. Some of those numbers will be known sooner than later. Others like longevity and reliability will take years to get an accurate gauge on. He hasn't driven one so its true capabilities are unknown to anyone outside of Ford. So eliminating personal bias is impossible. At this point, there is insufficient data to definitely say it is any more or less a suitable base for overlanding than a comparable Wrangler, Toyota, etc.
The disclaimer to that was quite clear in the article. i'll quote:

"While brand loyalties will likely decide for many people, many others are faced with the options wholistically and it’s to those people I speak to today.

Since my background is in touring/overlanding/fancy camping…whatever you want to call it…I will frame my thoughts around that."
 
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I am still processing all the info in the charts. I guess I am buying the Bronco for the Cool factor. ie the doors and roof come off and the very capable drive train. The Bronco has a lot of limiting factors for Overlanding. The roof rails can only support 110lbs while driving. Where do you put all your stuff when the interior storage space is smaller then a truck bed. Probably 25% less then a Ranger Truck Bed. Towing capacity is at 3500lbs.
I will have to figure out the weight of some of the roof top tents and what gear can go on the roof. A roof top cage/platform and a full roto moulded cooler would exceed 110lbs. I guess I am sticking with sleeping on the ground.
We had about 1,500 lbs of gear in the bed of the Ranger, plus bikes on top. You won't be getting that out of Bronco.

We'll have both vehicles so it isn't a compromise, but if Bronco is your only vehicle, the ability to transport over 4 kegs of beer, camping gear, jockey box and bikes will not be possible.

You'll save a massive amount of dynamic weight by converting a rooftop tent into an actual tent. Time investment will be the same with setup/takedown, and you won't have to be tethered to your parking spot if you're offroad. With the $2,500-3,000 savings you can go quite a few places and have quite a bit of quality gear!

Ford Bronco Article: Is the 2021 Ford Bronco the Overlander You’ve Been Waiting For? RoadTripRanger
 

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Ah Crap Rick, I have a 2011 Ford Ranger. Its just that its a 2.3L 2WD. Not very capable off road. It can carry more then enough gear. I run a T Bar/Bike rack off the hitch. This way I could bring a canoe, SUP, bikes. What I was thinking is to put this setup on the Bronco. The tire on the back get's in the way. I thought this was a good idea or maybe not. Have the tire half the rim width with a skinny tire for the spare. Same height as the other 4. Then you would not be compounding the load on the hitch with it being so far out from the bumper.
 

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I'm just guessing the new term "Overlanding" means "car camping" but more offroad? And perhaps for extended periods of time?
I've done that on a motorcycle 30 years ago, down Baja, across on the ferry to Mazatlán, down to Guadalajara, across copper canyon, up to TX, New Orleans, FL, NC. I had light backpacking gear in the tank bag and two saddle bags, and camped for 2 months in Mexico. Since then I've done a lot of camping in a Mazda B2000, 4Runner, F-150, and on muleback. Plenty in very remote places, like down in Mexico or such. I'm sure the Bronco (reserved one) will be fine for this sort of thing.
 
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I'm just guessing the new term "Overlanding" means "car camping" but more offroad? And perhaps for extended periods of time?
I've done that on a motorcycle 30 years ago, down Baja, across on the ferry to Mazatlán, down to Guadalajara, across copper canyon, up to TX, New Orleans, FL, NC. I had light backpacking gear in the tank bag and two saddle bags, and camped for 2 months in Mexico. Since then I've done a lot of camping in a Mazda B2000, 4Runner, F-150, and on muleback. Plenty in very remote places, like down in Mexico or such. I'm sure the Bronco (reserved one) will be fine for this sort of thing.
"Overlanding" means you spent about $2K on a roof-mounted tent and another $1K on racks/support to hold it so you can save fifty bucks on a regular tent and drive around with a massive folded down tent all over town to virtue signal your ruggedness to gas station employees.
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