JL vs Bronco (Manual Transmission Opinions)

[AJKitebrder40]

I'm pretty close to delivery of a 2 door Badlands SAS 7MT, and I'm still debating whether I will take delivery or keep my JLUR that I ordered in the meantime once my JK had reached end of life (it was a great vehicle, and I sold while Carvana was crazy).

In any case, I think I've figured out that logistically I can make the 2 door work, it's a good size from the 5 minutes I've sat in one. Unfortunately, I have not been able to test drive a 2 door manual, there's one nearby but......already spoken for.

So.....I love a manual, the JL has it's quirks and can be a bit jumpy in first and second and there's a recall on it right now for an improperly spec'd pressure plate. Everything I've read so far indicates the 7MT in the Bronco is great minus some noises in cold weather (I'm not in cold weather).

Apples to apples - for anyone that's had a JL or JT for that matter manual, how's it compare to the Bronco?

Sponsored

 

[Blackcat]

I have a 22 Bronco with MT and my wife has a 21 JLU Sahara with MT. IMO, the Bronco MT is much smoother than the Sahara. The clutch is a bit firmer in the Bronco and overall, shifting just feels 'tighter' than the Wrangler. Also, the ride quality of my Bronco is much better, even my kids notice it and they're 8 and 11, so there's that. Before my wife got her Wrangler, I was considering replacing my F150 with a Gladiator. Now, seeing how the Wranger rides and shifts, there's no chance I'd buy a Gladiator (as cool as I think they look).

Good luck, both vehicles are fun and do have their quirks, but I'd go with a Bronco 10 times out of 10.

 

[AJKitebrder40]

I have a 22 Bronco with MT and my wife has a 21 JLU Sahara with MT. IMO, the Bronco MT is much smoother than the Sahara. The clutch is a bit firmer in the Bronco and overall, shifting just feels 'tighter' than the Wrangler. Also, the ride quality of my Bronco is much better, even my kids notice it and they're 8 and 11, so there's that. Before my wife got her Wrangler, I was considering replacing my F150 with a Gladiator. Now, seeing how the Wranger rides and shifts, there's no chance I'd buy a Gladiator (as cool as I think they look).

Good luck, both vehicles are fun and do have their quirks, but I'd go with a Bronco 10 times out of 10.

The smoothness/road manners of the JL don't really bother me, honestly it's far superior to my JK and the XJ I had before it. The manual, however, not the greatest IMO. I hopefully/or I will try to give it a solid test drive before deciding, a solid hour of driving in different conditions. It should be at the dealer this coming week.

 

[Blksn955.o]

I dont have a jeep reference but I can say the bronco manual is far more like a car manual than a truck manual as far as throw, travel feel, shifter placement and clutch weight.

Far less truck like than any truck manual I have ever driven (1 ton diesels all the down to manual mini trucks).

 

[Hot cheetos]

Where are you located? Maybe you could drive a members manual bronco since they are hard to come by. I ordered mine without ever trying it out because I didn't care, if it was bad I would have replaced the clutch, shifter, or whatever to make myself happier. As long as it was a manual that was all I really cared about. Would not have ordered a Bronco at all if they only offered autos. I am very happy with the transmission. It honestly feels better than the stock shifter did in my 2004 GTO before I replaced that shifter. I do wish the shift knob had some more weight to it, but that can easily be fixed.

The transmission noise is annoying, but hopefully will have a fix eventually. I believe some people say it gets worse until it is no longer just a cold weather issue. My noise started immediately and has gotten slightly worse, but does not make noise once it warms up (yet anyway)

 

[MtnRanger]

I have a stick shift gladiator and I test drove a manual badlands for an hour at a ford off-road event. The gladiator manual has no power until 3krpm but it’s still the most fun vehicle I had up to 50mph on local roads and twisties. The MT badlands seem more responsive and it was fun to drive off-road but I like the shifts in the JT more. The shifter in the badlands was too soft like a car and makes a metal clunk sound at the end of a throw.

 

[AJKitebrder40]

Where are you located? Maybe you could drive a members manual bronco since they are hard to come by. I ordered mine without ever trying it out because I didn't care, if it was bad I would have replaced the clutch, shifter, or whatever to make myself happier. As long as it was a manual that was all I really cared about. Would not have ordered a Bronco at all if they only offered autos. I am very happy with the transmission. It honestly feels better than the stock shifter did in my 2004 GTO before I replaced that shifter. I do wish the shift knob had some more weight to it, but that can easily be fixed.

The transmission noise is annoying, but hopefully will have a fix eventually. I believe some people say it gets worse until it is no longer just a cold weather issue. My noise started immediately and has gotten slightly worse, but does not make noise once it warms up (yet anyway)

Charleston, SC - yeah, metal clanking going into gear is not exactly reassuring.

 

[ProdigyJKU]

I LOVE my 7sp BD, the trans and clutch are so much more refined compared to the MT in my JK. I live outside Detroit and have never heard any noise from the transmission, even at 0°F.

I do feel the JK clutch has a little more holding power, way heavy pedal though.

 

[Hot cheetos]

Charleston, SC - yeah, metal clanking going into gear is not exactly reassuring.

Bummer, I am in Illinois, but I am sure there is someone on here local to you that will let you take it for a spin

 

[Lèòn]

Love my Manual 2dr, it's easy enough to teach my sister and friends on, plus I've driven almost 30k miles (29.7xx) driving all 5 boroughs and to and from florida

Jeep, I felt like a new jack driving it, couldn't figure out the engagement point at all, and I've driven tons of manuals (learned by going to dealers and test driving all their cars). Maybe a Hemi Swap would have fixed it

 

[AJKitebrder40]

Test drove it yesterday, I can report back on this - I prefer the Bronco over the JL on manual transmission. Clutch engages much better, smoother once you get used to the shorter/stiffer clutch. Now I'm just figuring out if I'm going to switch to it from the JL.

 

[BroncoAZ]

Make the switch, the 2 door Badlands 7MT is by build and I’m really happy with it. I recently drive a 2013 Jeep Wrangler Moab with the manual, it was like a time machine to suckland with a heavy clutch and seemingly overgeared first gear.

 

[Stlrfan152]

I had a sport jlu and i really didnt like the gearing of the manual, I always wanted to drive a manual rubicon i feel like the 4.10s would help. My bronco manual has been broken for 10 weeks, but when it worked i really liked it.

 

[Dads_bronze_bronco]

I'm pretty close to delivery of a 2 door Badlands SAS 7MT, and I'm still debating whether I will take delivery or keep my JLUR that I ordered in the meantime once my JK had reached end of life (it was a great vehicle, and I sold while Carvana was crazy).

In any case, I think I've figured out that logistically I can make the 2 door work, it's a good size from the 5 minutes I've sat in one. Unfortunately, I have not been able to test drive a 2 door manual, there's one nearby but......already spoken for.

So.....I love a manual, the JL has it's quirks and can be a bit jumpy in first and second and there's a recall on it right now for an improperly spec'd pressure plate. Everything I've read so far indicates the 7MT in the Bronco is great minus some noises in cold weather (I'm not in cold weather).

Apples to apples - for anyone that's had a JL or JT for that matter manual, how's it compare to the Bronco?

I have no idea what the clutch or shifter on the JL is like compared tho the JK. What I can tell you is the clutch on the Bronco releases and engages very close to the floor (like the first quarter) and has very little feel to the release or engagement. (Edit): My JK engaged more gradually, and while a heavier effort, you could definitley feel the engagement and release. On the other hand the Bronco does automatically feather the gas when the clutch engages.

As for the actual shifter itself, the forward pattern is the same as the JK, with the same spring centering to the 3-4 gate. I love the crawler gear. The primary difference to the Jk NSG 370 is cable vs mechanical linkage. On the one hand I prefer the “feel” of mechanical, but the JK lever notoriously shook around a lot off road and would pop out of gear (at least until I replaced the shift lever with a B&M). Cable fixes that. Since the JL shifter is cable, I am imagining the “feel” will be pretty similar.

I will tell you, I loved my JKUR, but the Bronco is so much better behaved, and feels more spacious where the driver sits. It is missing a handbrake or well placed ebrake, and the tach is just stupid.

I ended up with a 10AT BRaptor golden ticket, but if Ford ever ups the towing capacity to where the BRaptor is, my next Bronco will be a 7MT two door. My original order was a two door 7MT Badlands.

 

[AJKitebrder40]

Update to this thread - so.....I can pretty safely say that there are two things that have convinced me to switch from the JL to the Bronco:

Main Reason: I can get away with a 2 door and still fit everything pretty safely in it. I always wanted a 2 door, and when the Bronco 2 door came out I really liked the dimensions and it seemed just more symmetrical than the JL.

Second Reason: The manual transmission overall is far and away superior to the JL. I honestly liked the JK manual a bit better than the JL. The JL clutch seems vague whereas the Bronco is a quicker throw with better feedback. The gearing in the JL, especially the Rubicon just seemed off, I thought it was just me, but I've had friends who've driven manuals all their life and they basically reiterated what I was thinking it's just strangely gear especially 1st and 2nd. The Bronco is super smooth in comparision.

Now.....they both have their issues (JL - full recall on undersized pressure plate, I've actually had the software kick in on mine when it got overheated in a 15 point turn on a very tight trail, long story; Bronco - scraping), but so far, so good for me.

Sponsored