Drove Bronco Across America: SF to ATL

[Ford Motor Company]

Drove (almost) across the country a few weeks ago (San Francisco to Atlanta). It wasn’t a direct route. I went through lots of beautiful places, including Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Badlands, Mount Rushmore area, etc.

For the record: I have a ‘22 Black Diamond, two-door, 2.3 liter, manual transmission. Its nickname is “Azulejo,” which roughly means bluebird, or could refer to those blue tiles you’ve probably seen but didn’t know the name of. The Bronco was fairly heavily loaded during the drive.

Bronco did pretty well, although it’s definitely not optimized for highway use. Mileage was in the high 20s, but dropped as low as 17 mpg on some tanks. Surprisingly (but not really, when you think about it) mileage was lowest on long highway days, especially in windy conditions. Driving at low speeds got the best mileage by far. Examples would be construction in Chicago with low speeds, maybe 40 mph, even coming to a standstill once in a while, and driving at a leisurely pace through Yellowstone. You’d think stop and go driving would drive mileage down, but that doesn’t hurt mileage nearly as much as the Bronco’s (lack of) aerodynamics.

Indicated mpg from the trip odometer was consistently 0.5 to 1.0 mpg better than actual mpg when measured against the gallons poured into the tank. Or, maybe gas stations are very well calibrated to read high, but not so much that they get in trouble…

Stats are as follows, from gas records, although this includes a small amount of driving before and after the main drive: 3785.8 miles, 187.6 gallons, 20.2 mpg, $774.47 total fuel cost. I did sign up for a discount deal with “76” gas stations, for which I got a $0.25 per gallon discount by giving them my credit card info and buying through their app. This also covered Conoco and Phillips 66 stations.

The Bronco drove extremely well on the highway. And it was super comfortable. I never once felt like I needed to stop because I was sore or stiff. I have my complaints about the Bronco, but comfort is not one of them. This came in handy on the final leg of the drive, Milwaukee to Atlanta, which was over 800 miles.


Now some negative items.

I experienced this when going at high enough speeds and hitting certain bumps.
2 Door Window Rattle/Knock
https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/2-door-window-rattle-knock.56718/

I don’t like that the HVAC system seems to turn on the AC compressor by default when you choose to blow air on the windshield (front defrost). Sometimes I just want a light flow of air, I don’t want to run the AC! Ford should at least turn on the AC light if it does that, but it just does it silently. I’d rather have full manual control, personally. I’m smart enough to know that if I really need to defrost the windshield in a warm situation I need AC to help dry the air as well.

At one point the bright/dim headlight function didn’t work. Pull the lever, push it, nothing. Turned lights off (while driving at night) briefly then quickly back on. Boom, bright/dim works again. Only experienced that once.

Another time, when switching between a podcast and Sirius XM radio, the left side speakers just went quiet. Turned off the radio, then back on, worked fine.

The “play/pause” button in the center stack didn’t work at times. Maybe this was just for the one podcast app I was using (?), because it has worked in other situations. I’ll have to research this one a bit more.

Infotainment locked up from time to time. Appears to get overloaded, particularly when using Google Maps in conjunction with podcasts, phone calls, etc. Seemed to be better when using Waze, for what it’s worth. In any case, it’s certainly useful to learn how to reset the infotainment while driving (press and hold power and forward skip buttons) because you KNOW it will lock up.

Fans seemed to speed up for a while, then go back to normal speed, without ever touching the fan speed setting. Happened for a while one day then I don’t remember it after that.

It appears that Ford electronics kind of suck, if you ask me. Not inspiring for the long haul.

When driving through some extended rain and wet weather I noticed that the gas pedal was a little sticky. I would feel it be a little grabby if I lifted to slow down. Only happened in wet weather. I had never noticed that before, but until a few weeks ago the Bronco had lived in California so there you go.


Finally some pictures. It was hard to narrow them down, and for this forum I chose pictures with the Bronco, of course. There are some beautiful places in this country. The Bronco was a great way to see them.

Yellowstone

Grand Tetons

Grand Tetons again

Somewhere in Wyoming, I think

Devil's Tower

Needles Highway, South Dakota

Needles Highway, South Dakota

Needles Highway, South Dakota

Badlands

Badlands

Those are some stunning photos, Tom! So glad the Ford Bronco could help you create some memories, we hope you continue to enjoy your purchase!

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[Jack D]

Great post and pictures! I appreciate the detailed write-up from a fellow 2-door MT Bronco driver, as I‘m planning a cross-country trek. You did that trip right- taking the scenic route, enjoying nature’s work.

I’ve experienced the same with hi/low headlight dimming- when the vehicle senses what it thinks is an oncoming vehicle, it dims on its own, often before I would. Weird, but I got used to it.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[bloominguez]

Great pics and review. Just a note, it used to be that if you had the defrost on without the air conditioning on the compressor will turn on periodically because it has a feature that removes condensation from the air. thus not putting moisture on your windshield.

Yeah, I get that. But...

1) I'd rather it didn't. I'm capable of making that call myself. Just like I don't want the vehicle turning on lights for me, flipping between bright/dim lights, or turning on windshield wipers. I'm happy doing these things on my own. Just like shifting on my own, it's no trouble.

2) But if it does do that, at least turn on the AC light in the center stack to show that. Bad HMI design, in my opinion (I'm an engineer who works on such things).

 

[mikeeshim]

Sounds like an incredible trip. I did LA to ATL and back during lockdown, obviously not in a Bronco, when gas prices were about $1.509/gal, and it was a memorable but often wonder how much better it would've been in my Bronco. I also mainly stayed on i40 or i10 and didn't go north above the Grand Canyon, but went further south to New Orleans and the southern coast.
Should've gone north by the looks of it.

As for your window rattle, i did what this guy did and it hasn't rattled since. Took me 10 minutes for both doors (2 door here as well). Just remember to remember which rubber seal is forward and rear because although they are the same, the fit is slightly different because they deformed over time due to the curvature of the door. You'll know when you get there.

About the high beams, you might have the auto high beam feature. From high beams off, the first pulll of the stalk will activate auto high beams, 2nd pull will turn them on manually. I leave mine on auto full time.

Hope these help.

 

[bloominguez]

Wow! Great photos and article. I'll keep some of the cons in mind when I take delivery of my own Velocity Blue Bronco. I think everyone who can, should go across the U.S. by car. It's a remarkable country, especially at ground level. You really get a sense of its size and diversity.

I personally drove from Richmond, Virginia to Sacramento, California in my then-new Legend Lime 2005 Mustang GT. Thank you for sharing your journey with everyone here. Are you taking a different route back?

Totally agree, well worth the time to drive it every now and then, or at least once. In the past I've gone back and forth by motorcycle, on some more southerly routes--at much higher speeds, incidentally. Even if not driving across the country, just doing a road trip for a few days is enlightening. You see the country in a different way, and see parts you wouldn't otherwise see. And you get a perspective on just how tough early settlers had it when they made their journeys.

No route back at the moment. I've split time between Atlanta and the SF Bay Area for job reasons for the last 15 years or so. This drive was a repositioning cruise, so to speak, to move a vehicle I bought in California to Atlanta as I'll be spending more time here in Atlanta in the near future.

 

[bloominguez]

I've been to Sturgis a few times and rode my bike all over South Dakota, you can't beat Needles Hwy, Iron Mountain Road and Spearfish Canyon for a Beautiful Ride and Drive

I hit all three of those roads, and 100% agree. They are as good as I've driven/ridden anywhere in the world. For reference, I've driven/ridden (mostly ridden on my VFR and SV) all (to my knowledge) the great roads in North Georgia, Western NC, and Eastern TN (way more than the popular ones you've heard of--in fact we actively ignore many of those to avoid traffic); many great roads in western Virginia, West Virginia, and other southeastern states; roads all over Northern California; some personal favorites in Upper Michigan; and a few in Europe. I was amazed that I hadn't heard of Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road before.

 

[bloominguez]

Those are some stunning photos, Tom! So glad the Ford Bronco could help you create some memories, we hope you continue to enjoy your purchase!

Thanks, I guess. But some comment on the electronics would be appreciated, too.

 

[bloominguez]

Great post and pictures! I appreciate the detailed write-up from a fellow 2-door MT Bronco driver, as I‘m planning a cross-country trek. You did that trip right- taking the scenic route, enjoying nature’s work.

I’ve experienced the same with hi/low headlight dimming- when the vehicle senses what it thinks is an oncoming vehicle, it dims on its own, often before I would. Weird, but I got used to it.

Thanks for sharing.

Not exactly. I deactivated the auto dimming (or at least I think I did, see below). I have no use for that crap, and I'm sick of getting blinded by other vehicles that implement it poorly (i.e. all of them). It just guarantees I'm gonna get unnecessarily blinded every single morning before the sun comes up, as oncoming lights are auto-dimmed too late. Humans can do it better, although few try.

Back to my case: Without any auto dimming enabled, I was unable to brighten the lights, they just stayed dim regardless of my control input. Until I turned the lights completely off then back on.


There is the possibility of user error here, and this is a reminder for myself. I'm going to re-check this setting in my Bronco to see if it was an error on my part.

Usually I just turn the Auto headlights off. Then when I need them, I turn them fully on, past the Auto position on the dial (yes, I turn them on in poor light conditions, so others can see me). It is possible that I was still in the Automatic position, though, and there was enough ambient light for the system to not allow me to flip on the high beams. Then when I turned the lights off and back on I turned them all the way to the non-automatic position, which allowed me to control low/high beam manually.

 

[bloominguez]

Sounds like an incredible trip. I did LA to ATL and back during lockdown, obviously not in a Bronco, when gas prices were about $1.509/gal, and it was a memorable but often wonder how much better it would've been in my Bronco. I also mainly stayed on i40 or i10 and didn't go north above the Grand Canyon, but went further south to New Orleans and the southern coast.
Should've gone north by the looks of it.

As for your window rattle, i did what this guy did and it hasn't rattled since. Took me 10 minutes for both doors (2 door here as well). Just remember to remember which rubber seal is forward and rear because although they are the same, the fit is slightly different because they deformed over time due to the curvature of the door. You'll know when you get there.

About the high beams, you might have the auto high beam feature. From high beams off, the first pulll of the stalk will activate auto high beams, 2nd pull will turn them on manually. I leave mine on auto full time.

Hope these help.

I'll take a look at that video, looks good. Rattle only happened a few times and has never happened at low speed.

Will dig into the high beams, I just talked about that in a previous reply. Although I will definitely not leave them in auto.

 

[Sassy51]

Drove (almost) across the country a few weeks ago (San Francisco to Atlanta). It wasn’t a direct route. I went through lots of beautiful places, including Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Badlands, Mount Rushmore area, etc.

For the record: I have a ‘22 Black Diamond, two-door, 2.3 liter, manual transmission. Its nickname is “Azulejo,” which roughly means bluebird, or could refer to those blue tiles you’ve probably seen but didn’t know the name of. The Bronco was fairly heavily loaded during the drive.

Bronco did pretty well, although it’s definitely not optimized for highway use. Mileage was in the high 20s, but dropped as low as 17 mpg on some tanks. Surprisingly (but not really, when you think about it) mileage was lowest on long highway days, especially in windy conditions. Driving at low speeds got the best mileage by far. Examples would be construction in Chicago with low speeds, maybe 40 mph, even coming to a standstill once in a while, and driving at a leisurely pace through Yellowstone. You’d think stop and go driving would drive mileage down, but that doesn’t hurt mileage nearly as much as the Bronco’s (lack of) aerodynamics.

Indicated mpg from the trip odometer was consistently 0.5 to 1.0 mpg better than actual mpg when measured against the gallons poured into the tank. Or, maybe gas stations are very well calibrated to read high, but not so much that they get in trouble…

Stats are as follows, from gas records, although this includes a small amount of driving before and after the main drive: 3785.8 miles, 187.6 gallons, 20.2 mpg, $774.47 total fuel cost. I did sign up for a discount deal with “76” gas stations, for which I got a $0.25 per gallon discount by giving them my credit card info and buying through their app. This also covered Conoco and Phillips 66 stations.

The Bronco drove extremely well on the highway. And it was super comfortable. I never once felt like I needed to stop because I was sore or stiff. I have my complaints about the Bronco, but comfort is not one of them. This came in handy on the final leg of the drive, Milwaukee to Atlanta, which was over 800 miles.


Now some negative items.

I experienced this when going at high enough speeds and hitting certain bumps.
2 Door Window Rattle/Knock
https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/2-door-window-rattle-knock.56718/

I don’t like that the HVAC system seems to turn on the AC compressor by default when you choose to blow air on the windshield (front defrost). Sometimes I just want a light flow of air, I don’t want to run the AC! Ford should at least turn on the AC light if it does that, but it just does it silently. I’d rather have full manual control, personally. I’m smart enough to know that if I really need to defrost the windshield in a warm situation I need AC to help dry the air as well.

At one point the bright/dim headlight function didn’t work. Pull the lever, push it, nothing. Turned lights off (while driving at night) briefly then quickly back on. Boom, bright/dim works again. Only experienced that once.

Another time, when switching between a podcast and Sirius XM radio, the left side speakers just went quiet. Turned off the radio, then back on, worked fine.

The “play/pause” button in the center stack didn’t work at times. Maybe this was just for the one podcast app I was using (?), because it has worked in other situations. I’ll have to research this one a bit more.

Infotainment locked up from time to time. Appears to get overloaded, particularly when using Google Maps in conjunction with podcasts, phone calls, etc. Seemed to be better when using Waze, for what it’s worth. In any case, it’s certainly useful to learn how to reset the infotainment while driving (press and hold power and forward skip buttons) because you KNOW it will lock up.

Fans seemed to speed up for a while, then go back to normal speed, without ever touching the fan speed setting. Happened for a while one day then I don’t remember it after that.

It appears that Ford electronics kind of suck, if you ask me. Not inspiring for the long haul.

When driving through some extended rain and wet weather I noticed that the gas pedal was a little sticky. I would feel it be a little grabby if I lifted to slow down. Only happened in wet weather. I had never noticed that before, but until a few weeks ago the Bronco had lived in California so there you go.


Finally some pictures. It was hard to narrow them down, and for this forum I chose pictures with the Bronco, of course. There are some beautiful places in this country. The Bronco was a great way to see them.

Yellowstone

Grand Tetons

Grand Tetons again

Somewhere in Wyoming, I think

Devil's Tower

Needles Highway, South Dakota

Needles Highway, South Dakota

Needles Highway, South Dakota

Badlands

Badlands

Nice write up!! NICE STEELIES! can’t wait to do these type trips in my BD Bonkers!!

 

[tourproto]

Indicated mpg from the trip odometer was consistently 0.5 to 1.0 mpg better than actual mpg when measured against the gallons poured into the tank. Or, maybe gas stations are very well calibrated to read high, but not so much that they get in trouble…

I think most B6G members see this. For me it is consistently about 1 mpg high...

The Bronco drove extremely well on the highway. And it was super comfortable. I never once felt like I needed to stop because I was sore or stiff.

I did a trip to Ennis, MT this summer and feel the same way. Super comfortable to drive for long periods of time. I really like the MGV seats.

Now some negative items.

I experienced this when going at high enough speeds and hitting certain bumps.
2 Door Window Rattle/Knock

Knock on wood, I don't have this issue and I also have the 4 door (so more things to rattle). I wonder if your windows aren't properly seated in the doors? Your dealer should fix this under warranty. I didn't have a rattle, but the door "hung up" on the rubber seal when opening the door and they "re-set" the window and all is fine now. Maybe that could help your rattle?

I don’t like that the HVAC system seems to turn on the AC compressor by default when you choose to blow air on the windshield (front defrost). Sometimes I just want a light flow of air, I don’t want to run the AC! Ford should at least turn on the AC light if it does that, but it just does it silently.

I haven't noticed this, I need to pay closer attention. I would be surprised for the Bronco to be running the AC and NOT have the AC light on in the dashboard.

At one point the bright/dim headlight function didn’t work. Pull the lever, push it, nothing.

Definitely no bueno. again never experienced this. I wonder if you have some gremlins in your Bronco?

Another time, when switching between a podcast and Sirius XM radio, the left side speakers just went quiet. Turned off the radio, then back on, worked fine.

The “play/pause” button in the center stack didn’t work at times.

I am definitely thinking gremlins

Infotainment locked up from time to time.

I wonder if this is a Apple vs. Android thing. None of the the infotainment issues have hit me (yet)

It appears that Ford electronics kind of suck, if you ask me. Not inspiring for the long haul.

I don't like electronics in cars at all. Too much to go wrong over time. But the masses want it and automakers stick it in their vehicles. That is why I got the 8 year extended warranty. I fully expect the infotainment to crap out before then.

Great trip and great photos!

 

[Ike89]

Looks amazing Tom! Thanks for sharing that with the forum, I can't wait for the maiden voyage of my bronco when I get it. Depending on the season, I plan to head form West Texas area up to Glacier National Park area.

 

[BJWAHOO]

I think most B6G members see this. For me it is consistently about 1 mpg high...



I did a trip to Ennis, MT this summer and feel the same way. Super comfortable to drive for long periods of time. I really like the MGV seats.



Knock on wood, I don't have this issue and I also have the 4 door (so more things to rattle). I wonder if your windows aren't properly seated in the doors? Your dealer should fix this under warranty. I didn't have a rattle, but the door "hung up" on the rubber seal when opening the door and they "re-set" the window and all is fine now. Maybe that could help your rattle?



I haven't noticed this, I need to pay closer attention. I would be surprised for the Bronco to be running the AC and NOT have the AC light on in the dashboard.



Definitely no bueno. again never experienced this. I wonder if you have some gremlins in your Bronco?



I am definitely thinking gremlins



I wonder if this is a Apple vs. Android thing. None of the the infotainment issues have hit me (yet)



I don't like electronics in cars at all. Too much to go wrong over time. But the masses want it and automakers stick it in their vehicles. That is why I got the 8 year extended warranty. I fully expect the infotainment to crap out before then.

Great trip and great photos!

Care to share what the dealer charged for the 8yr warranty?

 

[tourproto]

Care to share what the dealer charged for the 8yr warranty?

I did what most other folks on B6G did and bought from Flood Ford. They basically sell the 8 years extended warranty at cost

https://www.floodfordesp.com/esp_pl...2=0&Surcharge5=0&Surcharge3=0&Submit=Continue

There are other dealers that also sell at this price.

 

[BigOleBuck]

Another time, when switching between a podcast and Sirius XM radio, the left side speakers just went quiet. Turned off the radio, then back on, worked fine.

just got my bronco and had a similar issue to this while driving recently.

Noticed that randomly, the driver's side speakers just went out, and i was waiting for them to come back in on their own but they didnt, so after a bit I pressed pause/ play again and then they came back in.

Weird to me because I was wondering if it might be bad/ loose wiring, but hitting play/ pause to fix the issue makes me wonder if that could be the case. Perhaps software? Seems like a weird answer to me.

Anybody have anything similar happen or know of a thread where this is covered?

If it is wiring, I want to take it in to have it looked at.

Awesome post, OP!

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