New here, BS owner thinking of upgrading.

[Bushwhacker]

I'm sure the OP is a swell guy but the whole post is funny to me. He said he "put on 245/55/17 (30's)... and still only has 9 inches of ground clearance. Who the hell even measures that when you have sedan tires on? It's funny he stuck a tape up to 245's like they're a big tire. Then he wants to talk about the mushy ride of a HOSS 3.0 Wildtrak. You were actually trying to offroad in a vehicle one step above a minivan. The whole post is silly.

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[Southern Girl]

He said "features and capabilities" . The Badlands is the highest trim in the Sport lineup. To match "features" he may believe he needs the Badlands Bronco.

But, the Bronco is not line by line the same as the Sport lineup.

In the Sport line to get the best wheel and tire package, or skid plates or lockers you have to get the Badlands. So that may be his thinking.

Please try to be helpful next time.

He literally said he had to take the full size obx back and go get his bs to go where he wanted. Perhaps you missed that part of his post.

No need to be snarky. I don't play that game, bless your heart.

 

[JerryC]

He literally said he had to take the full size obx back and go get his bs to go where he wanted. Perhaps you missed that part of his post.

No need to be snarky. I don't play that game, bless your heart.

Snarky, me?
Bless your heart. I am from the south as well

If you don't know what a Badlands Sport can do, you may want to go find out before you talk them down.

The AWD system is far better than the one in the unlocked versions of the Bronco. The rear diff can send full power to one wheel without locking the opposite wheel or it can lock the rear wheels as needed. The stock tires on the BL Sport are better snow tires than those on the OB Bronco as well, Falken WildPeak AT3 (three peak rated) vs Bridgestone Dueler. No surprise it would do much better in snow than the OB Bronco.

 

[Southern Girl]

Snarky, me?
Bless your heart. I am from the south as well

If you don't know what a Badlands Sport can do, you may want to go find out before you talk them down.

The AWD system is far better than the one in the unlocked versions of the Bronco. The rear diff can send full power to one wheel without locking the opposite wheel or it can lock the rear wheels as needed. The stock tires on the BL Sport are better snow tires than those on the OB Bronco as well, Falken WildPeak AT3 (three peak rated) vs Bridgestone Dueler. No surprise it would do much better in snow than the OB Bronco.

Dude, you're in the wrong forum.

One of these things is not like the other:

 

[Low Range in Nova Scotia]

I'll ignore the negative comments but will say, if you seriously think a base bronco with 3.73 open diffs will out perform a badlands BS (bronco sport! lol) then you have not driven both. period. The BS is more capable with locking diffs, etc. but doesn't have the clearance.

But, I'm not here to argue what's better. In fact, after a few days of driving 9 bronco's now, some base, some higher but no badlands bronco or any ones with a Saquach pakage, I now know exactly what I want...and I found one. Problem is, it's in Calgary Alberta and I'm in NS. They won't ship, dealers here want nothing to do with it...so it's drive across Canada to give them my trade in, or ship a vehicle each way, or order a new one....
All the orders are filled for 23, could order and "see" if it is picked up but will be minimum 8-10 months out...
Could go to Ontario to visit my kid and pick up a big bend with sas pack but its grey or silver or some ugly colour and they want $64,000

So instead.....I was parked at the dealership and noticed a BS sitting higher than mine. Well, I have smaller winter tires on, but..It has a Rough Country lift kit installed from the factory! So, for $1000 I ordered it and I'll see if that is the limitation like I think.
I'm not much on "opinions" to make a call, I like facts or proof. So, I'll lift it and see how well it performs on the trails. If it doesn't work as well as I want, I'll be back in a few months saying I was wrong or that while it does out perform everything up to a badlands full size..I need that last bit of capability.

Anyway, thanks for the responses, I'll get this lifted and then make a better informed decision.

 

[shoelessjoe]

LOL, I was lost as hell until I figured out BS = Bronco Sport!!!

Did you look at Base Sasquatch with a manual???
The suspension is different than the Wildtrak, same 35's though.
If the 35's are a concern, just sell them and install 33's.

Wildtrak has Sasquatch stock.

 

[omi205]

No offense. But the Bronco Sport (BS) is not comparable to a Bronco Badlands. I dont think the BS is comparable to any Bronco, if you had to pick it a Bronco to get close, it would probably be the base/big bend.

 

[acarzt]

I'll ignore the negative comments but will say, if you seriously think a base bronco with 3.73 open diffs will out perform a badlands BS (bronco sport! lol) then you have not driven both. period. The BS is more capable with locking diffs, etc. but doesn't have the clearance.

But, I'm not here to argue what's better. In fact, after a few days of driving 9 bronco's now, some base, some higher but no badlands bronco or any ones with a Saquach pakage, I now know exactly what I want...and I found one. Problem is, it's in Calgary Alberta and I'm in NS. They won't ship, dealers here want nothing to do with it...so it's drive across Canada to give them my trade in, or ship a vehicle each way, or order a new one....
All the orders are filled for 23, could order and "see" if it is picked up but will be minimum 8-10 months out...
Could go to Ontario to visit my kid and pick up a big bend with sas pack but its grey or silver or some ugly colour and they want $64,000

So instead.....I was parked at the dealership and noticed a BS sitting higher than mine. Well, I have smaller winter tires on, but..It has a Rough Country lift kit installed from the factory! So, for $1000 I ordered it and I'll see if that is the limitation like I think.
I'm not much on "opinions" to make a call, I like facts or proof. So, I'll lift it and see how well it performs on the trails. If it doesn't work as well as I want, I'll be back in a few months saying I was wrong or that while it does out perform everything up to a badlands full size..I need that last bit of capability.

Anyway, thanks for the responses, I'll get this lifted and then make a better informed decision.

You could also just sell your BS local, take a 1 way rental and drive your new Bronco back.

I test drove both the BS and Bronco before getting my Badlands.

I considered getting the BS and modding it to be more capable, but figured the aftermarket wasn't going to be there. And after driving a BL SAS I conceded that I'm just not ever going to get a BS anywhere close to that level of capability. Then there is the massive aftermarket support that would enable me to push it even further if I choose to.

That being said, you don't HAVE to get a BL, you can get any other Bronco with the Sasquatch package. Just gotta figure out which features (beyond the suspension and lockers) are must haves for you.

 

[Low Range in Nova Scotia]

I agree a full size sas would be awesome and certainly more capable, we’ll see if what I do will require it. I can’t go mountain climbing with it if she’s around so I only need a certain level. Locking diffs with clearance and comforts for the wife.

 

[Butzy]

Funny the word "capable" carries so much weight in bronco world. Any vehicle with a locked rear diff is going to be a better snowy hill climber than one with an open diff and shitty tires. What makes a vehicle capable? Upgradability? Better tires? I won't dog on the Bronco sports but I also won't own one for various reasons. In a nutshell, the bronco sport badlands is more "capable" of climbing a snow covered hill than a factory equipped full size obx without sasquatch.

 

[Low Range in Nova Scotia]

I also towed a wrangler with open diffs out of 2’ of mud and water. Capable to me means locked diffs and clearance. The BS crawl ratio is lower than the rangers high, but not quite as low as rangers low.
Again, thanks for the opinions, but I already know what both will do. Now to prove what I’m saying to myself. If others learn, awesome, but not concerning to me.

 

[Low Range in Nova Scotia]

So, I did the lift and have 10" under the lowest point (the front cross member) For comparison, I also have a 02 explorer on 33's that has....10" at it's lowest point! I also have a 06 ranger on 33's with the torsion bars turned up, clearance? 10.5"!
Here's the lift video, I know it's not a full size but I think for the easy off roading the wife wants to do, it might be enough. I still want a full size but really, this thing is capable enough that it will do more than the wife will allow! lol!!!

EDIT: Deleted video because I screwed it up. Fixed it and reposted on the next page.

 

[Bugkillah]

So, I did the lift and have 10" under the lowest point (the front cross member) For comparison, I also have a 02 explorer on 33's that has....10" at it's lowest point! I also have a 06 ranger on 33's with the torsion bars turned up, clearance? 10.5"!
Here's the lift video, I know it's not a full size but I think for the easy off roading the wife wants to do, it might be enough. I still want a full size but really, this thing is capable enough that it will do more than the wife will allow! lol!!!

Lift and tires look good! Enjoy!

 

[Grumpy]

I thought the title was referring BS (bullshit) owner wanting to upgrade LOL!

 

[dgorsett]

To me it all comes down to the OPs user name...Low Range.......and not minimum ground clearance. On a Bronco min clearance is at a cast iron diff., on a BS it's some semi soft bendable/ breakable stuff. Plus there's the fully boxed frame, but like we say "you do you"

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