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Conventional Wisdom — Bronco Engines Are Detuned for Break-in — True or False?

zyglyrox

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New Corvette’s lock you out of the RPMs until you hit 500 miles. Things need to settle in. But I’ve never been nice to our vehicles, I redlined my old WRX STi out the dealer lot. It ran fine without problems for 70k.

Our Bronco Sport definitely has better mileage after 1,500 miles than it did our first week. Computers take time to learn your environment and habits.
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ZackDanger

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Actually, neither of those documents say that explicitly. That’s just how you interpreted the text, which is a good example of how conventional wisdom develops and propagates.

For the record, this is exactly what those two source documents that you referenced say about the subject…

Bronco Nation article:

2A69A071-69E1-4C55-9DAA-C66E2B34C558.jpeg


Owner’s Manual:

C177FA77-80EA-4E96-B2FB-B73141F2C9B2.jpeg
Thank you.

I love me some sources.

This reminds me of the allocation formula. It was incredible how many people read things that weren’t actually there… and then the people that blindly repeated the interpretation because that’s what they heard it said.
 

Stitches1974

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New Corvette’s lock you out of the RPMs until you hit 500 miles. Things need to settle in. But I’ve never been nice to our vehicles, I redlined my old WRX STi out the dealer lot. It ran fine without problems for 70k.

Our Bronco Sport definitely has better mileage after 1,500 miles than it did our first week. Computers take time to learn your environment and habits.
And they published it. Ford has not published anything about it.

" The C8 Corvette reduces torque 25 to 30 percent in first and second gears for the first 500 miles, responded Juechter. The reduction in torque helps reduce undesirable break-in wear, which could be detrimental down the road. The C8’s torque reduction is just an extension of the variable redline introduced "

https://www.motor1.com/news/392254/2020-corvette-c8-less-torque/
 

MadMan4BamaNATL

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@Razorbak86 Have read this so much on here, guess I've just accepted it.

Of course, if the vehicle were de-tuned, why would Ford need to provide instructions on taking it a little easy during the first 1000? So good question to ask if anyone has proof of this.

I can say this for BMW, but not sure if Ford does the same, but for the first 1000 miles a BMW isn't de-tuned, but the computers that control the engine and transmission are calibrating to the inputs of the driver. Meaning, the car adjusts to how you drive. Some are fast off the start, others wait until into the power band, etc. So, for these first 1000 miles, the cars feel a little jerky at times and the tranny feels as though it's gear shopping.

I've experienced the above in several new BMWs and things do "level out" after the vehicle is broken in so to speak.

Not sure I would call what's going on in Bimmers a de-tune unless someone says this is exactly what it does mean.
 
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Many of us on this website are very familiar with the Ford Ecoboost engines and the power they put out especially in a Truck platform. The 2.7 in the F150 has always been well known for its power and performance and has been validated by many organizations who test Trucks. The 2.7 F150 has always Tested as one of the fastest 1/2 Tons on the market. So when I read a review that states they were disappointed with the performance of the 2.7 Bronco I have to scratch my head. We have all seen the videos (before the retail deliveries started)where professional type people were impressed with the 2.7 and it's BIG motor performance. Something doesn't add up. I will wait and test it my self. :unsure:
 

1979

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Mattwings

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So after two weeks and 1100 miles I have a take on this.

#1 I have no idea if Ford limits power output. I have mentioned in other posts that my 2.7s have slowly improved mileage, that becomes very noticeable about 10k. It was in the range of 7% or so, 19 to about 20.5 “long term combined” MPG on my last 2.7 F150.

#2 After having done some impromptu drag racing with a 2020 FX4 Ranger and getting smoked In every scenario (dirt, 2wd, 4A, pavement 2wd) and doing some full throttle 0-60 runs on back roads, alternating between trying to spool up the turbos and launch or just starting from idle, that Ford is significantly limiting toque “off the line.” My Bronco will not exceed 1900 RPM or spin the tires full throttle, when releasing the brakes. By the end of 1st the tires will break traction slightly on pavement, then the motor stays in the rev range and accelerates with authority 2nd gear and beyond. 2nd and 3rd are also very short, which slows 0-60 a bit as well.

#3 The Bronco seems to respond more noticeably to premium. I could never sense a difference in my last 3 F150s. The Bronco seems to really change the character of the engine. No instruments to confirm the performance difference, so it could be completely imaginary.

#4 The transmission continues to evolve and match my driving. The 2.7 in every “normal” driving scenario has been really solid. Passing, quick acceleration to get into or out of traffic flow is really good and in typical driving, it’s just in the background.

Why is it tuned so soft off the line? No clue. My guess? Drivetrain longevity. It can probably be tuned out in the ECM. The motor feels great in pretty much every scenario except “off the line" performance. It wouldn’t likely come up with testers until the 0-60 instrumented tests. As many have also mentioned, the Bronco, particularly in Badlands trim, is very heavy. In the drag race I mentioned, with 3 passengers in my Bronco vs 1 in the Ranger, we estimated roughly 900 lbs. of weight difference. Ford has a long, long history of making vehicles heavier than initially anticipated 🧐
 
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if true it's a minor additional de-tune. probbly a little less timing while the knock sensors and emission system calibrate.
most 3.5L TT engines live their entire life de-tuned to protect the drive line.
aftermarket "tuners" laud the horsepower they create while all they're doing is defeating the built in de-tuning.
 

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Cencal Bronco

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Our rigs “feel” like they “wake up” after 1500 miles… but that could simply be driver adjustment as he/she learns how to throttle the rig.
My thoughts exactly. The car doesn’t change, the driver does…
 

AZ_Liberty

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No. The break-in period is basically for the auto-magic transmission to learn it's shift points.

My wife's F-150 shifts much better after 2000 miles than when we bought it a few months ago. Better= downshifts more aggressively. The shift lag was really bad at first. (or maybe I'm getting used to it?)

I'm buying a stick, and plan to flog it from the get go.
 

Big ragu

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There have to be a ton of Ecoboost owners on here. Has anyone noticed a performance bump in their F-150s after 1000 miles?
2.7 F150 after its break in had no noticeable bump in power. It did however respond quicker and i believe that was the adaptive transmission. The 2.7 was the fastest truck ive ever owned. I get a new truck every year through work and i had a 5.7 hemi v8 before my 2.7 ford. The ford smokes that v8 every day of the week.
 

BD1

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Thank you.

I love me some sources.

This reminds me of the allocation formula. It was incredible how many people read things that weren’t actually there… and then the people that blindly repeated the interpretation because that’s what they heard it said.
Great point.

This phenomenon occurs everywhere now (news, politics, etc.) and is greatly amplified by the internet vs pre-internet (where it still existed). And you might think some entities take advantage of this phenomenon to push their agenda.
 

AZ_Liberty

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"gear shopping"...

I like that phrase. Whenever I drive my Dad's eco-boost it's always hunting for the right gear, and really lags on the downshift unless I use Sport Mode or simply lock out the higher gears. His new one is the 3.5, but his 2.7 did the same. Drove me nuts. Thought it was turbo-lag at first, but it was just really lazy downshifting.

When we first got my wife's F-150 in April, it would shift into 10th gear at 45 miles per hour. Dumb. Now it behaves better and usually will dwell in 8 or 9. So the adaptive transmission does learn something over time.
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