Details & update for 2021 Bronco Badlands with steering rack failure on King of the Hill K2 Trail

[Silver-Bolt]

I wouldn't give up getting this warrantied. Ford markets this vehicles as a capable off-roader. It was doing the same thing as what the engineers were doing at the Rubicon. I know when TFL was off-roading their Ram Rebel "I think it was" they snapped a front axel and Dodge replaced it under warranty, no questions asked. If Ford wants to have the same loyal customers as Jeep; then these are the things they need and SHOULD be fixing. It's not like you were abusing it or jumping it.

Ford's push back will be the lift (altered the steering geometry) and the 37" tires (increased the altered steering geometry and added additional stress and leverage to the steering rack). It is certainly worth a try to elevate the claim above the dealer level but I don't see Ford fixing it. If it were all stock I think it would be tough for Ford to not cover it.

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[Gamecock]

I mean not really. Adding an aftermarket lift changes all of the engineered loads. Would you expect Ford to warranty parts if someone puts a 6in lift on one (which puts the cv's at a super extreme angle)?

I also don't 100% agree with your "Bronco IS NOT the best off roader on the market" statement. Ford specifically targeted the off-road market with the Bronco and they made a GREAT all-around off-road vehicle. Is a stock Rubicon better a rock crawling? Sure. But the Bronco does a lot of off-road things that a Rubicon can't (like going 70mph down a desert trail). I wouldn't say Ford built the "best off roader on the market" but I would say Ford has built one of the best stock all-around off-road vehicles on the market.

I agree....Bronco looks to be the best all around stock off-roader. Rubicon is a 1 trick pony in comparison.....and for people that don't know: Modded Jeeps break things too.

This break is concerning, because TONS of people will be going to 37s, but it happened early and now people can figure out why and what to do to prevent it. Tha;s why I'm not jumping to 37s on day 1, because I want to see what works and what needs to be done to make it really reliable.

 

[telenerd]

Curious what the price is for one rack and everything? If the rack is all stripped I doubt Ford just sells the individual parts. Probably have to buy the whole rack. Try another dealer for warranty if they won’t do it, order parts from Ford. Hopefully the wait isn’t too long.

 

[Boxer4]

#1 I did exactly what’s stamped in the fender wells “lift me baby” and added 2” lift.

Who made the lift package ?
Was 2" enough for non-sasquatch ?

 

[omega145]

I mean not really. Adding an aftermarket lift changes all of the engineered loads. Would you expect Ford to warranty parts if someone puts a 6in lift on one (which puts the cv's at a super extreme angle)?

I also don't 100% agree with your "Bronco IS NOT the best off roader on the market" statement. Ford specifically targeted the off-road market with the Bronco and they made a GREAT all-around off-road vehicle. Is a stock Rubicon better a rock crawling? Sure. But the Bronco does a lot of off-road things that a Rubicon can't (like going 70mph down a desert trail). I wouldn't say Ford built the "best off roader on the market" but I would say Ford has built one of the best stock all-around off-road vehicles on the market.

Must have missed where I said IF it had stock components. The lift and 37"s should void the warranty repair IMO.

GREAT all-around off-road vehicle doesn't equal the Bronco being the "best off roader on the market".

 

[VoltageDrop]

@tmason10 Sorry to hear of your issues on the claim. I'm trying to understand how you got so much tension in the system to cause this type failure. What kind of obstacle were you on, and what was going on when it happened? Also, there were plenty of manufactures at the off road expo that had the tie rods already on their show Broncos getting ready for SEMA. I'd call around to find a pair after you get a new rack..

Based on his up close picture, it looks more like compressive force caused the rod to bend at the narrow part until it broke. Breaking both sides and the rack is impressive, in a bad way.

 

[Raptor911]

fyi … f150 and raptor has the same rack.

How much you want to bet the bronco raptor with 37s has this same rack?

 

[Jdyount]

Must have missed where I said IF it had stock components. The lift and 37"s should void the warranty repair IMO.

GREAT all-around off-road vehicle doesn't equal the Bronco being the "best off roader on the market".

I guess I thought you were saying IF the steering components were stock they should be replaced.

I have to disagree, again, with your "best off-roader" statement because you don't see stock Jeeps on the podium at Baja races. "Off-roader" doesn't just mean rock crawling. There isn't near as large of a gap between a Jeep and Bronco on rock crawling as there is between a Bronco and a Jeep on anything going fast off-road....


Stock Bronco 4-Door Lands a Podium Finish at NORRA MEXICAN 1000 RALLY in BAJA, Putting Built Wild Durability to the Test | Bronco6G - 2021+ Ford Bronco & Bronco Raptor Forum, News, Blog & Owners Community

 

[Raptor911]

The lesson >> you have to pay to play.

imagine you own a company and a customer purchased your product and modified it heavily then broke it then expected you to fix it.

 

[JaxGtc]

I would think that there is a liability issue when Ford wrote "lift me baby". on the fender well.

Maybe it means put me on a garage lift and do routine maintenance...

 

[MSparks909]

fyi … f150 and raptor has the same rack.

There’s a big difference between 37” BFG ATs (Bronco Raptor/F150 Raptor) and 37” Toyo/Nitto/Mickey Thompson/Cooper/Yokohama/Falken tires. 37” BFG ATs weigh 65# and measure 35.5-36” under the weight of most 4 door Jeeps/F150s. True 37s (basically all other manufacturers) weigh anywhere from 76-84# and measure closer to 36-36.5” under those same vehicles. Not saying he wouldn’t have grenaded his rack/tie rods with 37” KO2s but heavy ass 37” Toyo MTs certainly didn’t help the stock parts.

 

[BossMann]

Putting 37" tires on puts a whole lot more twist into those components. No way Ford will warranty them.

...Ford marketed this vehicle with 37's. It's not as much if you can win, it's if a court would hear your argument. That would cost Ford way more money than just fixing it....

 

[bodie_38]

I would keep fighting for the warranty repair. Tag all the usual suspects in a social media post with the video and ask why they won't fix it if you're doing what Ford certainly implied was the intended use.
IF Ford uses the same rack on vehicles it sells with 37" tires (Raptor) and IF the video of the event shows the failure wasn't due to user error, then Ford should eat it. There's probably something wrong with that rack and Ford should want to get it and do a failure analysis on it. Ford should WANT to replace it and analyze that rack so they can fix it before they start sending Bronco Raptors out the door to imminent failure.

 

[targas]

Put the 35's back on and take it back in for warranty work. Get it back and put the 37's back on.

 

[rutherk1]

Thats exactly where my RZR broke. I think its just a weakness where the threads are. I wonder what kind of material that is. The RZR tie rods looked like it was tempered.

That does stink that it broke like that but everything has its limits.

If that hadn't broken, someone else with 44s on theirs would have done something else, broken theirs then said "not beefy enough".

Could have just been the perfect scenario for it to break.

Ive wheeled enough to just know this is what we signed up for. Would this have happened on a solid axle truck. Probably not.

Let me post this again. I was going .5 miles an hour and was getting pulled into a rut and I barely forced the steering wheel where the steering didnt naturally want to go. It doesn't take much to break a tie rod and I bet if my tie rod was 50% or 100% stronger, it still would have broken. It really sucks that you can't replace the ford ones very easily. The RZR one isn't super easy.

Ford (and Polaris) need to take a chapter from CanAm!

I think CanAm makes them intentionally soft

Easy to take off, 5 mins hammering it, trailside with a rock. Good as new. It baffles my mind why companies can't just put a nut on both ends so you can take it off. I mean, just look at how easy it is.

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