First impressions of Manual Bronco Badlands & Black Diamond Sasquatch in person. Pleasantly surprised, with couple concerns

[Alfabeast]

Made it to Beach Ford in Virginia Beach to see the Bronco in person for the first time. They had a 4 dr Black Diamond SAS in Antimatter Blue and a 4 dr Badlands in Iconic Silver.

Just walking up to the Bronco for the first time after spending countless hours watching youtube and social media, and constantly reading through this forum. All the hype about this vehicle is real. It 100% lives up to it's reviews in my opinion. It seemed perfectly proportioned and not overwhelming at all. The seats were very comfortable in the front and back. The 12 in screen is enormous. If you are a not a tech person, the 8in seems more than enough in my opinion. We ordered an auto but I did run through the gears on the manual and the length of throw is spot on. I was expecting very long throws but it almost feels like a sports car. It will not feel like a chore to change gears at all for an off road rig. I think what I was most impressed with was the doors. Not having a full frame door makes the whole feel of the vehicle way more open. Easier to take on and off with one person as well. Watched the Bronco nation reps putting the doors back on with the bag still on did not look very difficult.

My big concern was seeing if the Bronco SAS was going to be to big for my gf to daily drive. Great news! it's not at all. The height of the SAS felt lower and easier to get into than my 2013 f150 with a 2in lift and 34.5's. Her opinion of the 35's was that it was just right. She said any bigger would be to much for her, but she liked the SAS much more than the 33's on the badlands right next to it.

Some minor things that I hope are addressed for production.
The upper control arms are mounted to something inside the engine bay and it leaves a massive gap in the fender well for mud/debris to go straight into the engine bay. I didn't get a picture but I remember thinking, this is going to be a firehose of mud going straight into the engine bay if they don't seal this up better. Maybe someone else on the forum who has seen this can provide pictures.

The doors extend out further than the rock rails that ford provides. I will be waiting to find a nice set of rails from the aftermarket that can double as a step and a slider so the doors don't get smashed by people not paying attention.

Other than that, I was blown away by the attention to detail in this vehicle. After spending over an hour examining this thing from the ground up. went to dinner and parked next to a new sahara Jeep. The Jeep looked like it came out of a cereal box compared to the Bronco. (I own an XJ)

Hope this helps with perspective for some.

She's a keeper for sure

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[jswan]

I figured we were all expecting an engine cover eventually?

Either way, people have a memory of clean NA engines... but they’ve been ugly for a while.

I think I agree with everyone on the mess the engine compartment looks on the Bronco, but the nicest, current NA engine compartment is that of the dinosaur Toyota 4 liter V6. Before the arguments, I already stated: DINASOUR of a drivetrain, but you cannot really question the quality, and reliability. Hence the reason they sell the way they do. Bullet proof.
With that, my Bronco order stays in place. For now. I'm a later order, so I can sit back and watch the show before I fully commit!

 

[chrisb]

Thanks for the pictures ? Not intended to be a weird question - but how tall are you both ?

Thanks for the info i go next week here in ca. First thing im going to check is the footwell box,pedal room im getting a manual and thats important to me.
That softtop looks like a shitshow.

I saw the 2.3 and 2.7 today in San Diego, I did notice on the 2.3 that it had a couple threaded holes in the top, maybe for a cover don't know for sure and I didn't see any threaded holes in the 2.7, the 2.3 definitely had more room in the engine bay but I'd hate to work on either one

Hi

I saw the 2.3 and 2.7 today in San Diego, I did notice on the 2.3 that it had a couple threaded holes in the top, maybe for a cover don't know for sure and I didn't see any threaded holes in the 2.7, the 2.3 definitely had more room in the engine bay but I'd hate to work on either one

Hi Norm A., can you tell me where they are in San Diego? Thank you Sir

 

[Lakelife36]

I think I agree with everyone on the mess the engine compartment looks on the Bronco, but the nicest, current NA engine compartment is that of the dinosaur Toyota 4 liter V6. Before the arguments, I already stated: DINASOUR of a drivetrain, but you cannot really question the quality, and reliability. Hence the reason they sell the way they do. Bullet proof.
With that, my Bronco order stays in place. For now. I'm a later order, so I can sit back and watch the show before I fully commit!

I was shocked at how mediocre the 3.5L was compared to the 4.0L when the Tacos switched over. What a disappointment. For reference this comparison was in work trucks so all autos. Might be different with the stick.

 

[Norm A.]

Hi

Hi Norm A., can you tell me where they are in San Diego? Thank you Sir

Not sure now, this was at Kearney Mesa Ford on Friday, from what's been said they are heading North

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