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How good OR Bad, will the base Bronco be off-road without Sas and lockers?

BossMann

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If I bought a base it would be for the power plant only. I would immediately look to doing an axle swap, get to full width D60's on 40's. Dedicated trail rig.
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How good OR Bad, will the base Bronco be off-road without Sas and lockers?
I don't have the money I did last year when thinking to get a new Truck and now thinking to get a base, base. I'm sure Ford will have some system to brake a wheel from spinning and with open diffs send power to the opposite wheel but would a system like that be anything more then a Ridgeline off-road ? I also think getting a locker in the back would be serious cash later down the road?

My Reservation is a first night and would hate to give up on it now.
Get the Base and enjoy it. It will be quick on road with the small tires and the 4H & 4L will be capable and fun off road. Manual Base on steel wheels is an instant classic. $29,995 is a bargain! An easy upgrade to aggressive skinny-ish 33's would look awesome, make you smile and enhance off-road ability. Add a rear diff locker later when you've got some cash and you'll have a serious off-road vehicle that will take you to more places than most Sasquatch buyers will ever go! :)

Edit: This config should be built fast and get you enjoying it asap
 

Erock

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I know you said tight budget... but Sasquatch is just another $50 a month over 5 years. I’ve been through the tightest of times as well, when $50 was a huge deal, so I understand... only pointing out that it’s a great package for the cost.
 

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My theory on the base is that Ford put the cheapest tires possible on it to get in out the door. They expect you to change out the tires. If you're getting a base base (like I am) and plan to see trails, you should budget for some 265/75/r16 A/T tires. I'm planning to buy a set of 5 KO2s before taking delivery and installing them as soon as I get home. The wheels are a different story. If you like the look of the steelies, they are often preferred for overlanders, and you should consider keeping them. There are fewer tire options for 16" wheels, but selection is not terribly limited.

Elsewhere, I'm waiting to see exactly how open the open differentials are on the base bronco. If they feature a reasonable TBR, that along with the electronic traction control should provide reasonable traction offroad even with one wheel spinning. If the open differentials on the base are truly open, I'll add a torsen or trutrac LSD down the road (cheaper addition than a locker in all liklihood, can be more useful depending on your needs).

Otherwise, there is not as much as you may think to differ the base from higher trims in terms of offroad capability (the sasquatch is another story). Your base will share many parts in common with a badlands. It will be able to take you to many very cool places (and you'll still probably see a corolla at the end of the trail when you get there).

For my base build, I made sure to add the HD modular bumper and aux switches. These items increase the customizability of the vehicle (mine is $31,000 with these items). You can add a winch easily to the HD bumper. Finally, some aftermarket rock rails/sliders and a compressor under the hood, and you have an excellent overlander/wheeler.
 

BossMann

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Also a base base with 33x14r16 Super Swamper Boggers will go 99% of the places a wildtrack or badlands would with their all terrain tires. Serious tires make thing serious. Hell just buy an extra set to slap on for wheeling trips and daily drive your stockers.

Tires are very important, but extra ground clearance to keep from getting high-centered in rocks is critical. If you are a desert/mud/dirt trail, great tires can get you tons of places. If you are in heavy rocks like Slade, KY, Badlands, IN or Jellico, TN.... give me those same great tires in a 37" size, locked/locked, and we have a hell of a time.

The best tires do have to be dedicate trail tires, for shern.
 

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BrentC

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I've done: Poison Spider, Pritchett Canyon (downhill), Elephant Hill, Black Bear, Poughkeepsie Gulch, the Doll House and countless other named and nameless trails in stock open diff 4x4's with 30" or smaller tires. Any of the major 4x4 passes in SW Colorado are doable in any 4x4 with a low range. Lockers and bigger tires make it less demanding on route selection and driving ability but also give a degree of over confidence that can get you in trouble. With time these trails are getting tougher, torn up by high performance vehicles that like to demonstrate that performance.

Buy what you can afford and enjoy it, all Bronco's will be capable of a good time.
Years ago while mountain biking Poison Spider I watched a group of Land Rovers destroy their rear fenders and racks trying to get out of the sand wash and up a slippery smooth rock. They had lockers from what I could gather. While fun to watch, I also noticed the guys who wisely avoided this obstacle given the wet sand coating on the rock making this a loser’s gambit. They drove around it and carried on.

Totally agree with you on driver skill, judgement and good route selection.

Also, if all y’all haven’t seen it, search for videos of stock vehicles of all makes going up The Escalator, Moab Rim, Pritchett etc. to see how capable even unibody SUVs can be!
 

hemiblas

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You should seriously consider a base, sas though.....A 2.7, auto, sas and aux switches is around $36,500 with the granger 2k off invoice deal. That is a lot of rig for that much money. A mansquatch would be even less.....

I know some have mentioned 35s...but the axles are not as beefy and its been mentioned 33 is as much as you really want to go....

33's and a rear locker....You'll go far!!! Agreed on the AUX switches....... 1500 for 33s, 800 bucks for wheels, 1.5k for a locker. AGain, your almost at a SAS....but you can always do these later when you have money.
 
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Bronco2021RV

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I really wish they just let me get the $750.00 rear locker, that was a very annoying move in my mind and left Jeep with a little to work with on the bottom end. Thanks for the encouragement, I don't have any plans for rock crawling and the 4wd would properly be fine but I'm the guy that thinks what if lol
It’s a good thing to be the person that “thinks what if a lot” . That means your brain works!
 

timhood

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How good OR Bad, will the base Bronco be off-road without Sas and lockers?
I don't have the money I did last year when thinking to get a new Truck and now thinking to get a base, base. I'm sure Ford will have some system to brake a wheel from spinning and with open diffs send power to the opposite wheel but would a system like that be anything more then a Ridgeline off-road ? I also think getting a locker in the back would be serious cash later down the road?

My Reservation is a first night and would hate to give up on it now.
The Bronco Sport made it up Hells' Gate in Moab. I gotta think the base Bronco will be at least as capable.
 

Big Boss

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Love all of the optimism here, but not sure it's realistic to think a base Bronco can do much off road beyond light, dry trails that are relatively flat.

That said, the purpose of the base isn't to "do any off road", The base is a platform to build.

I see in the thread the mention of a winch, etc. A decent winch costs money and requires a plate and a steel bumper and the OP said he doesn't have the money (bless you and a prayer for a turn around of your fortunes)

Here's the thing; off roading is relative to perspective. I know some guys who don't think you're doing anything unless you're out west in Johnson Valley or Baja, whereas to me, that's extreme.

If you just want to go wheel to a campsite (when dry), there's only a few upgrades necessary to that base Bronco and none are cosmetic to make one's sack look bigger.

Upgrading those terrible base level tires to a true off road rubber set up will instantly improve your traction. As long as you stay off the rocks, you should be fine. Small rocks are ok, but nothing serious, remember there are no sliders under the base.

If you want, you can upgrade the wheels also and go up a size or two. 35s are not necessary, but 33s are within reach and will be very capable on a 17" wheel when you air down.

No matter what you do, you WILL need to invest in recovery gear. A shovel, straps (tow and kinetic), bow shackles are cheap, a bottle jack, fire extinguisher, cheap tool set and bag, GMRS radio, first aid kit) All in, this is likely $600, but money spent that can save your life and yes your life is worth $600 and much more, so buy this shit now, bit by bit.

In a couple of years when the OP is back on his feet, he can build up that base into whatever type of rig he wants. Lockers can be added, steal bumpers also, armor, a winch, bigger tires, a lifted quality off road suspension set up can all come later and in phases.

Start from the ground up with suspension before bigger tires and wheels, then continue until you're happy.
This is the kind of info I need haha. I don't plan on doing any rock crawling or extreme trails. Like you mentioned my definition of off road is going to be extremely different from others lol, but this is good info.

The Bronco Sport made it up Hells' Gate in Moab. I gotta think the base Bronco will be at least as capable.
This is what I am curious to see, is how capable non sas Broncos are. I chose OBX because I know it will spend most of its life eating up highway miles but I want to get into more outdoor activities and want to know what it can and can't do before upgrades are necessary
 

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MadMan4BamaNATL

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This is the kind of info I need haha. I don't plan on doing any rock crawling or extreme trails. Like you mentioned my definition of off road is going to be extremely different from others lol, but this is good info.



This is what I am curious to see, is how capable non sas Broncos are. I chose OBX because I know it will spend most of its life eating up highway miles but I want to get into more outdoor activities and want to know what it can and can't do before upgrades are necessary
Smart and practical approach. The OBX trim is a great mix of ability and creature comfort; neither should be discounted.

If you try camping or wheeling, of course you can build on your rig. Even if you don't find it as fun as often, you're giving yourself a solid platform to work with.

Hope you like getting out. I personally hate summer camping; far too many bugs down South. Fall and early Spring when it's cool out is where my fun is when it's dry.

Head over to the gear and camping section for some good discussions about gear options that don't break the bank.
 

timhood

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This is what I am curious to see, is how capable non sas Broncos are. I chose OBX because I know it will spend most of its life eating up highway miles but I want to get into more outdoor activities and want to know what it can and can't do before upgrades are necessary
We've taken our Escape off-road on heavily-rutted roads and such with the stock passenger road tires. The only thing we needed to consider was ground clearance, and that was just a matter of managing the obstacles. If your paths will include rock crawling or piles of rocks, AT tires will perform better and maybe not get so hacked up as easily. If you are going to do high speed runs on graded-but-not-perfect roads, you'll also be fine as long as there aren't things that might give you a flat tire.

I originally had OBX as my choice. I would like to have seen an alternate wheel option for it, as I think it would be perfect with a second set of wheels for off-roading so that the daily drive would be smooth and quiet with long-lasting tires and the off-road adventures would be improved with tires best suited for the purpose. If the Badlands KO2s don't last well or drive well on-road, I may get street tires and wheels for the daily drive.
 

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I always tell the newbs, you'll be amazed at how far open diffs and 33s will take you.

Drive sensibly and with finesse. Skinny pedal and momentum can be your friend, but straight out bashing into an obstacle will break expensive shit.
 

HPNQ420

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...now thinking to get a base, base. I'm sure Ford will have some system to brake a wheel from spinning and with open diffs send power to the opposite wheel but would a system like that be anything more then a Ridgeline off-road ? I also think getting a locker in the back would be serious cash later down the road?
In the 90's I was a platoon sergeant in the USMCR, I had an '88 XJ with 29" tires and limited slip rear, later a '96 Explorer Sport with 30's and limited slip. We used those cars for scouting all over Fort McCoy on off-road trails. They obviously weren't the Rubicon but they weren't forest service roads either. The base Bronco with electronic limited slip will be better than either. Throw a set of 265/75-16 tires on it, and maybe a rear locker and re-gear when the budget allows, and you will be beyond the capabilities of 95% of the 4wd's on the road.
 

rgwinn

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I have seen stock wranglers TJs go over the rubicon with nothing more than better tires, rock rails and the sway bar disconnected manually.

so yes, the Base Bronco will take you many places. And over time, you can upgrade it as needed.
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