First In-Depth Owner’s Review: 2021 Bronco Badlands 4-Door 2.7L

[1975U15]

How Ford is going to make more money on dealer lots? Ford sells their vehicles to dealers at the same price as yours. Dealers will do marks up for sure. But that's not how Ford works.

I'm more than sure that they're doing everything they can to fulfill the reservation orders.

So here’s my .02 on that.

If Ford can’t build 60k reservation orders due to top debacle, they’ll make soft tops. Let’s say the come 20k short on hard tops for MY21. If they replace those 20k with dealer stock soft tops, most of those hard top reservations will hold the line and end up MY22. Not all, bust certainly most.

The dealer stock soft tops are sold to Jane or Joe who don’t have a reservation but know they want a Bronco cuz they saw the neighbor had one

Ford sells more total units and dealers hammer the neighbor trying to keep up with Jones’s. FoMoCo and dealer paradise.

Sponsored

 

[fschael]

I have not seen that. At all. Not even rumors. Would love to see a rumor if you’ve got one!

I'm sure that instrument cluster is the same for all trims and power train.

Do you actually see the tach when you drive?

The reason of this design is to resemble the classic Bronco that didn't had a tach on it. Just speedometer and in top of the steering column is just a black square plastic molding. Almost same thing in your visual line from driver perspective but with the difference that the plastic molding is now a digital screen.

 

[fschael]

So here’s my .02 on that.

If Ford can’t build 60k reservation orders due to top debacle, they’ll make soft tops. Let’s say the come 20k short on hard tops for MY21. If they replace those 20k with dealer stock soft tops, most of those hard top reservations will hold the line and end up MY22. Not all, bust certainly most.

The dealer stock soft tops are sold to Jane or Joe who don’t have a reservation but know they want a Bronco cuz they saw the neighbor had one

Ford sells more total units and dealers hammer the neighbor trying to keep up with Jones’s. FoMoCo and dealer paradise.

So, you're suggesting that Ford should stop the production lines when they don't have any other order to build because almost everybody wants a MIC and don't want to change to soft top (including myself), and put on risk the jobs for those that work in the plant building Broncos and dealers worker that sell them just because you don't want a Jane or Joe to buy an overprice unit without reservation before you getting yours?

I know the waiting it's painful, but what you're suggesting doesn't make any sense.

Get really mad if you see a MIC on dealers lot. I will fully understand that, but I will understand why Ford will be building stock Bronco without MIC to keep the production and the bussiness running.

 

[1975U15]

So, you're suggesting that Ford should stop the production lines when they don't have any other order to build because almost everybody wants a MIC and don't want to change to soft top (including myself), and put on risk the jobs for those that work in the plant building Broncos and dealers worker that sell them just because you don't want a Jane or Joe to buy an overprice unit without reservation before you getting yours?

I know the waiting it's painful, but what you're suggesting doesn't make any sense.

Get really mad if you see a MIC on dealers lot. I will fully understand that, but I will understand why Ford will be building stock Bronco without MIC to keep the production and the bussiness running.

JFC. No dude…. reread my post. Where exactly did I suggest that?? You’re being presumptuous.

You asked how Fords gonna make more money from the previous post. I gave my opinion and answered the question. Relax.

 

[Sergeant Gearhead]

Thanks for answering my question! I'm not the biggest fan of the tachometer's setup, but I'm sure it's easy enough to read and works just fine. Enjoy your Bronco.

-SG

 

[fschael]

JFC. No dude…. reread my post. Where exactly did I suggest that?? You’re being presumptuous.

You asked how Fords gonna make more money from the previous post. I gave my opinion and answered the question. Relax.

You're good!!

JFC. No dude…. reread my post. Where exactly did I suggest that?? You’re being presumptuous.

You asked how Fords gonna make more money from the previous post. I gave my opinion and answered the question. Relax.

You're good. The center of those replies were regarding that Ford doesn't care anymore about fulfill reservation orders because they're going to start building dealers order to make more money. Which I know isn't true.

We just need to understand the reasons behind those decisions to not get more frustrated and try to enjoy while we are waiting for our Bronco.

 

[airishfan]

How Ford is going to make more money on dealer lots? Ford sells their vehicles to dealers at the same price as yours. Dealers will do marks up for sure. But that's not how Ford works.

I'm more than sure that they're doing everything they can to fulfill the reservation orders.

Thats because they can make more Broncos for dealer lots then they can for orders and you dont think the aftermarket company that paid Ford money for the rights for CAD print not on there ass about getting more Broncos out on the streets.

 

[redone17]

@SirBenimen - so nice to see your genuine enjoyment and excitement. Thanks for sharing. I appreciate the roof measurements. If it's not too much to ask - can you get a read on the width at the TOP of the roof? Looks like around 60" where it meets the body. I appreciate your time.

 

[tn3sport]

Great review. Enjoy your ride!

 

[Mattwings]

DRIVABILITY: Comparing this to my 2016 F150 the Bronco with the sasquatch is pretty dang good! It’s obviously noisier but it's really not that much noisier. I do have the hardtop with the sound deadening. I downloaded a Db app on my phone to measure noise levels and according to my phone the Bronco was only 6 Db louder than my F150 at 50mph. Take that for what it's worth but it's not overly noisy.

This thing is torqy! My wife is used to driving a corolla and it was hard for her to feather the gas when taking off. As a passenger It felt kinda jerky at first. She has since got used to the torq and is fine but there was a small adjustment period for her. I myself enjoy the torque and speed. Makes for a fun ride! It corners and handles nicely. Some body roll but not bad. I haven't experienced any “canoeing” or darting thus far and this thing eats Michigan potholes for breakfast.

The little off road driving I did, I used mud and ruts mode. In this mode I noticed it held the gear for longer and revved up to a higher RPM. I was able to shift with the plus and minus buttons on the automatic shifter in this mode to find different gears. The badlands doesn't have a sport mode and according to a forum member the work around is to put it in Baja mode and then shift into 2H instead of 4H. That did work but it does remove traction control and states its for off road use only. Going down a seasonal logging road at good speed it just eats up the holes, bumps, puddles etc… It's incredibly smooth and controlled. It's pretty amazing really.

One of the issues I had was with the G.O.A.T. mode selector dial. It seemed it was bound up on something like a piece of plastic maybe from the moulding process? I had to turn it pretty hard to get it to free up. It's working normally now, but it took me a minute to figure it out as the dial wasn’t working as it should at first.

I tested out the stay bar disconnect and the trail turn assist on an old logging road. All the features worked great but every once in a while during the trail turn assist I would hear a loud pinging noise. Almost like a spring or something being sprung. It didn't sound normal. I went looking through the manual and apparently it’s considered normal and Ford says it's part of the antilock brakes? I don’t know enough to know what all is going on when that feature is activated but it can be startling if you're not expecting it. It was wet sand where I tested this feature out and it states in the manual it's meant for slick conditions. Maybe that's why I was getting the noise? Maybe it wasn't “slick” enough?

Airflow is good in the back seat. I had this question come up a few times. I have the MIC hardtop with sound deadening but I did feel like the cooling was more than adequate. My wife drove with the salesman in front and myself in the back to fill up with gas. While in the back seat I actually thought the hardtop was letting in a draft so I started feeling around the seams for an air leak. It was actually coming from the front cab vents. The AC was on which was quiet enough I didn't notice it was on. So there is good airflow in the entire cab. Will it keep warm enough in the -20’s we sometimes get in northern Michigan? I’ll let you know!

As far as 0-60 mph, drive mode characteristics, or other drivability questions, I am going to wait until the break in period is over. (1000 miles). I’m almost certain the Bronco is detuned from the factory until the break in period is complete to protect the drivetrain. My mustang was that way and I could feel it once the break in period was complete.


FIT AND FINISH: The overall quality of materials is pretty darn good. The MIC hardtop is easy to take off. The back portion does take 2 people to do but it's actually surprising light. I was able to take off the second row myself but it's not recommended. The top fits together nicely and it's easy to re-install. I had the Bronco out in a steady rain and didn't notice anything that would resemble water leakage. I will say that when washing the Bronco there are a ton of nooks and crannies for water to hide, especially in the MIC top. No leaking but it's a PITA to get the vehicle dry after a wash. Water drips out from the top down the side of the vehicle for a long while. A blower might help but I was trying to use a drying towel and it seemed like a losing battle.

I think the seats are really comfortable and the feel of the MGV seats is nice. I opted for the floor liners and while they are good with good coverage they are more flimsy than say weathertech or husky. I got them for the bronco logos and they snap into place in the front and the rear liner is one piece so that's nice. The rear seats fold down easily. The quality of the hard top case that was supplied is actually really high quality. I dont have the door storage case but I imagine it's the same quality and wouldn’t hesitate to buy them. I do like the looks of the interior and I’m loving the big screen of the high package. It's very responsive compared to my syc3 in my F150. Pretty close to smartphone responsiveness. Audio is ok. A tin can kind of sound but they do offer soundbars as an accessory addon. I do not have the upgraded speakers the lux package has but the sound system is probably the thing I dislike the most but overall it's not a big deal for me. The first time I tried closing the hood it was difficult to do. The spring in the latching mechanism wouldn’t allow the hood to fully seat. I ended up dropping the hood from 3 or 4 feet to get it to latch. I couldn’t even push it shut. I thought maybe it was the bumpers and made adjustments to those but that didn’t do it. I ended up opening and closing the hood several times to work the spring a bit and that seemed to work.
It comes with a prop rod not struts. Not a big deal for me but it might be for some others.

OVERALL: I really love this thing. It's good looking, it's very capable on road and a beast off road. It catches eyes everywhere! People are talking to you at stop lights, approaching you as you are parking asking to look at it. The jeep guys and gals are pretending they don't care as you pass them, but you can tell they are looking out of the corner of their eye trying to catch a look. I know Ford could have done a better job rolling these out but I suspect that the unforeseen issues threw a wrench in their plans and the only option was to delay and delay and delay. I'm a Ford sympathizer and optimist. No one wanted the scenario that we’re in, especially Ford. For crying out loud their factory flooded. They took over the MIC production. I truly believe they are doing everything they can to fulfill customer orders and the hiccups in the rollout will eventually be forgotten and the Bronco will be a hit for years to come. Those willing to wait will be rewarded with an excellent vehicle and if you can't wait and want to buy a jeep or tacoma instead that's fine too. I'll be happy to pull you out on the trail!

I’ll be posting photos and short videos on instagram.

I will try to answer questions the best I can and will post updates on Bronco 6G as they come, good or bad.

If you see me out and about just wave or say hi! I plan to have this thing out on the trails throughout the state of Michigan this summer. Silver lake sandunes, drummond island, etc… Do Bronco owners have a “Bronco wave”? Maybe just number 1 ?

Great write up and updates, thanks for feeding the herd!

 

[mbagne]

Is this hard top the "carbonized gray" version??

 

[scuba]

I didn't read all 9 pages, but I'm at the "Austin" Offroadeo and tried Trail Turn Assist 4 times. The loud pinging was present. Conditions were gravel, hard pack dirt, and loose dirt. I don't remember it (or as much) on the loose dirt, but that was also my first one, and I was nervous about punching the gas (which it pretty much requires, as best I can tell). This and trail cruise were the reasons I didn't go manual, so I tested the crap out of them.

 

[MacDonald_Photo]

I just happened to stumble across your BEAUTIFUL BIG RED BRONCO yesterday. One in a million chance that I'm in your town on vacation and my girlfriend says, "wouldn't it be cool if we came across that Bronco up here?" Five minutes later...BOOM

 

[Mahin2021]

This is really happening! 2 real reviews in one day!

yep I am going crazy waiting and truly enjoying the reviews.

Sponsored