My KOH Ride & Impressions - from a Jeep, Ranger Rover and Bronco owner

[andrusoid]

Same. As an older Series LR owner, I consider the new Bronco more of the successor to the Defender/Series. The top no longer even comes off the new "Defender".

You betcha, I was sorely tempted recently by a white with black two-tone 95 defender that was in the Base price range. Might have bought it but it was 2WD. (Why? We'll never know. Snif!)

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[Vigor]

Appearance

• The 2 door proportions are perfect and it is really stunning in person. The 4 door proportion seem a little off to me. I'm sure that will piss off a bunch of you.
• The dash is one big expanse of hard plastic. For the life of me I don't understand why they couldn't do something better then that. In fact this is really my only complaint with the entire truck.

First bullet- that was a 4 door on 33s right? Do you think you'd feel the same it was a 4 door on 35s?


Second bullet - I wonder if the high or lux package improves the dash materials. Was the vehicle you rode in considered high package?

I really don't mind the "plastic" dash but if you do, then this may alleviate the problem.
https://www.covercraft.com/us/en/product/carhartt-ltd-edition-custom-dash-cover.DMLC

 

[Vigor]

Anyone ask them to crank the stereo on that first edition by chance? Wondering how decent the lux speakers are

And more importantly adjust the eq. Need to see what that sub can do so turn up the bass

 

[andrusoid]

In the photo's I really like the 'plainness" of the dash, so it may be a bonus for some of us.

Thanks for the review, great info, all these reviews make me feel a little better about buying a car I've never seen in person...

just wish we could've got the concepts dash.

Agreed on the plainitude of the dash. Don't think I've seen the concept. Did see the Rock driving the older "Mercedes" Bronco concept about 14 minutes into the 2018 movie Rampage. Neat, but too posh. For the champagne and caviar set. (I do eat a lot of Ikura, but that's different, plus, you can fish with it).

 

[andrusoid]

Thanks for that write up! Really appreciate all you lucky ones out there sharing your thoughts. I really must say though, I'm not inclined to trust the spare out on the rear gate.

Best setup was on my red/white '89 with a swing away rear tire carrier.

 

[andrusoid]

That hard plastic dash will look exactly the same 12 years from now.

Look at a 12 year old Mercedes/Range Rover dash... and then look at the leather, cracks, sinks, discoloration guaranteed

Ah, nice to see an FJ put to proper use. I've always loved it madly, but I just don't fit into the danged things. Not too tall, just too caveman.

 

[andrusoid]

Thanks for the perspective!



Wait... we have to sleep in our Broncos?

Well, I'm 5'6 and pulling the rear seats out, so, we'll see.

 

[andrusoid]

I love the reference to unobtainium. Well done!

It's from the 50's. I had a boss in the late 80's that would use that from time to time. Also did imitations of Bill Murphy imitating Arnold Schwarzenegger.

 

[andrusoid]

I really find the 2 door/4 door arguments entertaining.

Can’t you people without a family or friends be happy they offered a 2 door for you?

Thrilled personally. Would not buy the 4 door for any reason. The "Longboard" 2 door on 4 door chassis is interesting, but too long. Good for towing maybe.

Now, if GM would just start making a two-door Tahoe again. I nearly puked when they brought out the new "Blazer". Shame, GM, shame!

 

[bsb78]

I don’t understand why 2 door vs 4 door is still a topic for debate.

Really harkens back to the SFA debates of old.

Please don’t ban me, just stating the facts.

 

[Thrasher78]

Did you perhaps ride in a different vehicle as well? Curious on comfort between the MGV and cloth.

Didn't get to ride in one with MGV but they had a badlands there Sunday before the rest came in mid week. Badlands interior vs first edition was a big reason why we went to look at KOH. Preproduction so they where hesitant to open doors and let me and my wife look inside .. but after they purposely tempered our expectations we got to look inside as feel the material . Interior looked good , don't confuse MGV for leather but think anyone getting MGV will be happy and won't be disappointed unless chasing a premium interior. But if that's the case MGV wouldn't even be considered. Softer then I would have thought, kinda had a heathered look. I think people just need to prioritize what they want in there rig.

I am curious about longevity. I have never had a boat so I don't have any experience with MGV long term. Is anyone concerned with cracking over time ?

 

[5280Bronco]

Thanks for the review ,confirmed some stuff for me too manual all the way,that 35 is going to need a bumper mounted tire carrier, ford is gonna sell twice as many baja mode equipped broncos to folks that will never need them,and the four dr is an ugly donkey thats gonna need 40s to not look like a flex.

Personally, I can't wait for my ugly donkey.

 

[Gamecock]

I am curious about longevity. I have never had a boat so I don't have any experience with MGV long term. Is anyone concerned with cracking over time ?

There is a reason $500k+ boats use MGV and not leather or cloth...

 

[67BroncoG1]

If one adds a 1 or 2 inch lift and 37s, will the 4 door look better?

Yes, I think it would help a lot.

So the manual has decent control too?

What did you think of the manual as the driver drove it? Anything stick out to you?

My JK tailgate does that too. You’d think some well placed rubber would eliminate a lot of it.

The driver was an Baja 1000 racer and clearly very good at what he does. He managed the gear changes well and demonstrated the hill hold when he hanged to the crawl gear on a very steep climb.

I don't like hearing about that rattling tailgate..

Did you get to see the 360 degree camera?

It either didn't have the 360 cameras or he just didn't use them. I have that feature on my Rover and never use it but I don't rock crawl the rover. No real need for it on desert trails.

I am assuming the engine in the truck you rode in was the smaller engine of the two, is that right? Did it have the larger screen? Would you think the tailgate rattle would be noticeable non off road (Sasquatch) ?

Yes it is was the smaller engine and the smaller screen. This bronco was a non squatch badlands on 33" tires. That tailgate is going to rattle off road with any wheel mounted to it. It won't rattle on the street.

Thanks for the great info and insight. I have one observation and one question.

That stability controlled braking is tied to the GOAT modes, with it functioning differently in Baja than Rock Crawl (for example). So while engaging lockers and sway bar disconnect automatically by mode may be simply helpful to novices, there are other aspects of the modes like stability control (and shift points for the automatic) that are still very useful to even veteran drivers.


Is that concern based on something you experienced at KOH, or is that just based on past experience with other vinyl?

It was about 65 degrees out when I got a ride and I was wearing jeans. My opinion is based on 54 years with boats and open top cars in the warm southern California weather.

 

[67BroncoG1]

Thanks for sharing. And good to hear it from someone having prior trail experience in other 4x4s. What was your impression of the driver shifting, running through the gears, and taking it in/out of the crawler gear?

The throws on the manual seemed to be on the shorter side and appeared smooth. The driver used the crawl gear several times and came to a stop before selecting it. He didn't seem to just downshift into it.

If the plastic interior of the badlands bothers you that much, you might want to reconsider your choice of BaseSquatch. From the pictures we’ve seen it looks extremely cheap in comparison.

I'm keeping my fullsize Range Rover HSE for long trips, skiing, and daily driving. The bronco is just going to be used as a toy. Ultimately even the Lux interior isn't what I want in a daily driver. Once you get used to the extremely comfortable and vault like quite of a modern fullsize Range Rover it is hard to go back. It also isn't fair to compare the interior of a $110k car with that of a $60k car. That is why I just went with the base interior. It's a trail toy for me.

what does he mean by the tailgate was rattling? that was the noise everyone heard? rattling around on the peg/camera thing?

I road in a soft top with the top down so I didn't hear the hardtop rattle the others have reported. I could physically see the tailgate banging around on the latch side. It was clear where the sound was coming from.

That hard plastic dash will look exactly the same 12 years from now.

Look at a 12 year old Mercedes/Range Rover dash... and then look at the leather, cracks, sinks, discoloration guaranteed

I respectfully disagree. Very few modern dashes crack like they did back in the 80's and 90's.

Thank you for this review. I have been going back and forth on the engine. I have always bought the largest engine available on any purchase, lesson from the old man. But I have to admit the Bronco is actually my wife's not mine and she has a slower pace then me. Any other SUV's you would compare the acceleration and power to for reference?

It isn't the sort of truck that you are going to drag race off of spotlights and it doesn't have much of a tow rating. Keep in mind that the turbos will keep it making the same power at altitude. For me the 4 cylinder is plenty powerful. Off road is all about gearing and they have that setup well.

The guy who posted yesterday said the Baja mode was a must. Today you're saying the GOAT modes are for novices. I'd more inclined to not need GOAT modes because I am a capable driver and I have never really used any off road modes on any 4wd vehicle I've driven. The problem is I cannot understand how I could simulate Baja mode because (from what I understand) the computer keeps the engine revved and the turbos up. I don't know how to do this without the computer doing it for me. I've been thinking about going basesquatch as well but the baja mode comment from yesterday has me reconsidering back to my original badlands build.

How hard are you going to flog it in the desert? I would never drive a production car as hard as the ride I was on. It was impressive to see it done but I don't want to do that to something I own. I would be going 30 mph and not 60 mph on those trails. I'm sure the stability control help plenty but are you really going to push it that hard?

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