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

2.3BigBend

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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
I am 100% with you. I was so close to buying a base. If the locker was an option, I would have for sure. In reality, a mandatory set of good tires on the base, with traction control, will likely have taken me everywhere I ever tried to go. What I hated was every time I added something, it required me to add more stuff and the price shot up to the next trim level. At one point I was almost going to pull the trigger on a Badlands for $47,500 just to get the 7 speed with the creature comforts I was getting in Big Bend mid package. At the end of the day I had to do what made sense within reason. I did get a locker, but stickered at $40k and not the $31k a base with locker would have been if it was an option. I looked at it like a happy compromise. I had a 2012 Jeep with no locker and I'm telling you, their traction system was amazing. That thing would constantly shift power from a wheel spinning to the other side in 2wd. It was like a electronic version of a torque sensing limited slip. I would hope that Ford's is similar some 9 years later......The aftermarket will be crazy on these things within a year or two. You'll likely see lockers and tru tracs ( front hopefully ).
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MaverickMan

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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.
For sure ground clearance and big tires is the goal. But for a newb starting out 33 boggers will get em anywhere that wont kill em and maybe a couple places that will. You put a newb on a lift with 37s or 40s and youve got youtube gold! :ROFLMAO:
 

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If you truly intend to off-road with it then it's a no brainer. Wave off a year or two, save up the extra $ and get the base-squatch.

The independent front suspension will not be easy or cheap to beef up aftermarket. Sure there will be plenty of products but it won't be as cheap as a Jeep. I have no doubt a base bronco will off-road fairly well but will it off-road well again and again over time with the light front axle? Especially if you add larger tires?

Let Ford work out the first year kinks, then splurge for the squatch for the beefed up axle, tires and not one but two lockers and extra protection. The squatch is a hell of a deal and you will likely make it back in re-sell if money gets tight and you ever need to offload it.

The base tires are really poor as is the ground clearance. Forget about the locker, those two items will be your biggest limiting factor off-road. By the time you get new tires and a lift you are probably half way to squatch price already. Add a locker for the really rough stuff and you are probably 2/3rds to a squatch price. Not to mention the factory warranty, protection and testing done on the squatch that you won't have.

I think you are letting your first day reservation and excitement for a bronco cloud your judgement. I wouldn't settle now and be disappointed later for a vehicle you will likely keep for many years.

Also, don't forget about the used market. Ford is going to soon be flooding the market as gas prices likely continue to shoot up under the current administration. Not to mention Jeep and Toyotas offering and pricing response and any electric offerings. Americans love their new shiny toys. There will be a ton of mall crawlers who bought sight unseen and didnt realize this thing was way smaller than a full size SUV and that it has wind noise. It might not be uncommon at all to find lower trim squatches in the high $20s or low $30s in just a year or two.
 

Old Guy

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Buy it, it will go most all places. People talk now like you need lockers and 35" tires to do anything. Better tires and you can do most anything, aside from rig destroying rock crawling and mud bogs.

Like has been said here before, no matter what you buy, some guy in a Camry has probably been there before you.
 

AZshot

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I don't know if it's been established anywhere, but there needs to be definitions of 4WD levels. Like Class 1-5 rapids for white water.

Every time some says "will my non-sasquatch [or non 33" wheel) Bronco be good 4 wheeling", people answer to the most extreme level situations. But that's not what's being asked, usually. Can you go hunting or camping on snowy mountain forest service roads is the usual vision. Can you get through heavy mud in the SE to get to that waterfall?

My 30 years out West in NM and AZ has taught me that what used to be considered 4wheeling was driving old mining roads, unimproved wilderness roads, and driving through knee deep streams. I did all that in a 2WD B2000, then a 4WD 90s 4runner, and now 20 years in a 2WD F-150.

Today, everything is extreme. So everyone thinks of trying to walk your 4WD up a series of rock steps, down into bottomless canyons filled with boulders, or through water so deep you need a snorkel. That is way extreme - challenging to your vehicle, and at the edge of the capability envelope. When you buy a horse, you don't have to run it in the Kentucky Derby. But someone asks "will the base Bronco be good at 4WD?" and many say no, thinking of world class, extreme 4WD show off stunt driving.

Levels such as:
1 - well travelled dirt road, can be travelled by 2WD trucks or other high clearance vehicles.
2 - Some off camber sections, very steep hills with pea gravel, washouts, or mud puddles up to tire deep.
3. - stream crossings, some slick rock, small, flat boulders, never travelled except by 4WDs
4. - world class difficulty. Large slick rock steps, extreme steep hills, technically challenging obstacles. Only traversed by the most experienced 4WD drivers
 
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BackcountryBirds

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Buy it, it will go most all places. People talk now like you need lockers and 35" tires to do anything. Better tires and you can do most anything, aside from rig destroying rock crawling and mud bogs.

Like has been said here before, no matter what you buy, some guy in a Camry has probably been there before you.
This is all true. But don't underestimate the confidence a true off-roader gives you to try a new trail, get further in the back country, go solo, etc.

In your analogy the camry may have made it there once but it likely won't do it repeatedly without some real wear and tear and heaven forbid it rains, someone cuts some ruts or a tree or boulder falls on the road while you are camping.

And you don't always need a lockers or 35s, you often don't even need 4wd, and for that matter you probably don't even need a bronco.....but sometimes you do need 4wd, and sometimes you do need 35s and lockers....it's time like this you are damn sure glad you have a Bronco and not a Camry.
 

VoltageDrop

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I don't know if it's been established anywhere, but there needs to be definitions of 4WD levels. Like Class 1-5 rapids for white water.

Every time some says "will my non-sasquatch [or non 33" wheel) Bronco be good 4 wheeling", people answer to the most extreme level situations. But that's now what's being asked, usually. Can you go hunting or camping on snowy mountain forest service roads is the usual vision. Can you get through heavy mud in the SE to get to that waterfall?

My 30 years out West in NM and AZ has taught me that what used to be considered 4wheeling was driving old mining roads, unimproved wilderness roads, and driving through knee deep streams. I did all that in a 2WD B2000, then a 4WD 90s 4runner, and now 20 years in a 2WD F-150.

Today, everything is extreme. So everyone thinks of trying to walk your 4WD up a series of rock steps, down into bottomless canyons filled with boulders, or through water so deep you need a snorkel. That is way extreme - challenging to your vehicle, and at the edge of the capability envelope. When you buy a horse, you don't have to run it in the Kentucky Derby. But someone asks "will the base Bronco be good at 4WD?" and many say no, thinking of world class, extreme 4WD show off stunt driving.

Levels such as:
1 - well travelled dirt road, can be travelled by 2WD trucks or other high clearance vehicles.
2 - Some off camber sections, very steep hills with pea gravel, washouts, or mud puddles up to tire deep.
3. - stream crossings, some slick rock, small, flat boulders, never travelled except by 4WDs
4. - world class difficulty. Large slick rock steps, extreme steep hills, technically challenging obstacles. Only traversed by the most experienced 4WD drivers
Hot Springs ORV Park rates their trails like this and I think it's pretty standard.
Ford Bronco How good OR Bad, will the base Bronco be off-road without Sas and lockers? Screenshot_20210504-232052


This is all true. But don't underestimate the confidence a true off-roader gives you to try a new trail, get further in the back country, go solo, etc.

In your analogy the camry may have made it there once but it likely won't do it repeatedly without some real wear and tear and heaven forbid it rains, someone cuts some ruts or a tree or boulder falls on the road while you are camping.

And you don't always need a lockers or 35s, you often don't even need 4wd, and for that matter you probably don't even need a bronco.....but sometimes you do need 4wd, and sometimes you do need 35s and lockers....it's time like this you are damn sure glad you have a Bronco and not a Camry.
This Camry thing cracks me up because 20 years ago I extracted a Camry from a mud hole with my Bronco :LOL: It was an AllTrac AWD version and the guy proudly told me "this Camry will go anywhere that Bronco goes." Hmm, It seems I caught him in a lie 😄
 

Old Guy

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This is all true. But don't underestimate the confidence a true off-roader gives you to try a new trail, get further in the back country, go solo, etc.

In your analogy the camry may have made it there once but it likely won't do it repeatedly without some real wear and tear and heaven forbid it rains, someone cuts some ruts or a tree or boulder falls on the road while you are camping.

And you don't always need a lockers or 35s, you often don't even need 4wd, and for that matter you probably don't even need a bronco.....but sometimes you do need 4wd, and sometimes you do need 35s and lockers....it's time like this you are damn sure glad you have a Bronco and not a Camry.
My point wasn't that Camry is better or equivalent, but that with ingenuity, guys/gals get places with less capable rigs all the time. As to will a Badlands get your more places than a Base model, yes, and also likely to get you into more trouble, as you may be overly secure in its abilities. Accurate assessment of your ability and your rigs ability in my opinion are worth more than the differences between the two models.
 

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Wow ...... I have a lot to learn about the proper way to four wheel and the correct gear a solid rig needs to have in order to go deep into off-roading.

The input and advice offered here is great and backed by a ton of experience and mechanical knowledge. It has helped me define putting together some form of the new Bronco but being realistic as to my budget, needs and true lack of experience four wheelin’

Thanks folks .... very helpful to this oldster “newbie”!
Maybe a Base and learn as I go so that I can build it up through the years...........?
 

Deleted member 20241

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Reality is setting in for me and I'm probably going to have to start heading back into the office three days a week soon. I was one of those who sold their home close to work when Covid hit last year and moved 3 hours away because I only have 2 1/2 years left before retirement. I just calculated 22,000 miles a year average putting on my new Bronco starting this summer, so by the time I retire it will have around 50,000 miles on it, for a 2 1/2-year-old vehicle.

I'm thinking I will tell my dealership to put me on the waiting list for a 2022 model base carbonized grey (drop my badlands with all the sins) and order my Model Y for the commute for the next two and half years. It will be an experience to build up a base and I'm sure I will learn a lot, and it will be fun doing it.
My thoughts are very similar. I am already retired ( and loving it!) , so best of luck in the near future as the two or so years will fly by.
Perhaps a Base for me and watch my own learning curve as to ability and interests as the Ford grows older with me....

All the best ✔🇺🇸
 

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chobit

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Other may have already posted something, but you can find 4x4 rating for ORV which is relatively consistent:
https://www.americantrails.org/reso...ersal-difficulty-rating-system-for-ohv-trails


I don't know if it's been established anywhere, but there needs to be definitions of 4WD levels. Like Class 1-5 rapids for white water.

Every time some says "will my non-sasquatch [or non 33" wheel) Bronco be good 4 wheeling", people answer to the most extreme level situations. But that's now what's being asked, usually. Can you go hunting or camping on snowy mountain forest service roads is the usual vision. Can you get through heavy mud in the SE to get to that waterfall?

My 30 years out West in NM and AZ has taught me that what used to be considered 4wheeling was driving old mining roads, unimproved wilderness roads, and driving through knee deep streams. I did all that in a 2WD B2000, then a 4WD 90s 4runner, and now 20 years in a 2WD F-150.

Today, everything is extreme. So everyone thinks of trying to walk your 4WD up a series of rock steps, down into bottomless canyons filled with boulders, or through water so deep you need a snorkel. That is way extreme - challenging to your vehicle, and at the edge of the capability envelope. When you buy a horse, you don't have to run it in the Kentucky Derby. But someone asks "will the base Bronco be good at 4WD?" and many say no, thinking of world class, extreme 4WD show off stunt driving.

Levels such as:
1 - well travelled dirt road, can be travelled by 2WD trucks or other high clearance vehicles.
2 - Some off camber sections, very steep hills with pea gravel, washouts, or mud puddles up to tire deep.
3. - stream crossings, some slick rock, small, flat boulders, never travelled except by 4WDs
4. - world class difficulty. Large slick rock steps, extreme steep hills, technically challenging obstacles. Only traversed by the most experienced 4WD drivers
 

AZshot

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Thanks, that 10 level Colorado system is good.

I'd guess his Base will handle levels 1-6.
 
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Hooper

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Base will be great, don't sweat it. Just because others will have bells and whistles doesn't mean they all have to. Enjoy it!
 

RBF 1401

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If you don't know if the Base will work for you... Then the answer is likely that it will.

Most people who aren't sure if they need lockers or 35" tires won't be doing anything that requires lockers or 35" tires.

Once you have your Bronco, if you find you want to, you can upgrade it or trade up.

I already do a lot of backcountry camping and know that I don't need 35" tires, but I would like a rear locker.

But I also know I don't really NEED the locker, it's just there have been some forest service roads I want to camp on that have been avoiding because they MIGHT require me to engage a rear locker.

Enjoy your Base Bronco. I'll bet you will absolutely love it!
 

Big Boss

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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.
Thanks I will have to check that out. Right now my definition of going off road will literally be just leaving the pavement hahaha. Spent most of my days at the dragstrip now its time for something new.

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.
That's good input. Like I am not interested in going anywhere extreme, just want to get out and off the pavement.

I do want to upgrade the wheels and tires once my OBX gets built. I am in love with the OEM badlands wheel tire package
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