Questions for the Community- New Bronco Owner in Waiting....

[lwilliams34]

Tire and wheels are one of the greatest impacts to gas mileage on the Bronco, more than 2.3 vs 2.7, by far. With my M/T's, mileage drops by as much as 25%.

My best freeway mileage is 23.5 mpg (22.5 typical) over a 350 mile trip at an average speed of 75 mph (I did that trip nearly every weekend for 2 years - 700 miles round trip) and my worst was with the Patagonia M/T's (17-18 MPG typical). The Bridgestone Duellers were typically good for 10-15% better mileage than the General Grabbers. All from the rolling resistance and weight of the steelies and the tires. The OBX wheels and tires are lighter by a significant margin.

Any increased lift isn't your friend either because of the impact of the aerodynamic impact of more air under the vehicle.

thanks, that is why I am leaning towards no SAS pkg, more pedestrian wheels/tires and height. Still adequate for a lot of the off roading.

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[5GENIDN]

I live in Idaho. I am an old man and lived here my entire life. The state is literally defined by the rocky mountains. thousands and thousands of miles of easy FS roads as well as some harder core stuff.... We also deal with snow and mud, rock and sand. My experience: I would rather have a two wheel drive with a locker than an open diff 4x4. Simple little sandy/rocky steep section in a FS road and the two wheel locker will preform better. The 4A transfer would be a must for me as long as I have to deal with snow or ice. Otherwise I really do not need it. Off road I am served well by 4H and 4L.

You probably do not need the lift and bigger tires. But your tires matter actually as much if not more than the locker. I would probably choose a nice AT.... lots of options. I got the SAS... I do not like the goodyears. They are great on the road but off road can not stand them.

The 2.3 should serve you well. Has more power than the V8s of old. but that power is peaky. The V8s had a big long power curve. the 4 and the 6 do not. I love the 10 speed. It matches extremally well with these motors. Keeps them in the peak of their power curve.

My experience... make of it what you will. I wish you the best of luck. I have owned/driven a lot of different 4x4s.... I love this Bronco. It has its pros and cons but Ford balanced it out very nicely.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

THanks for the reply... $795 is not a hardship. I understand the risks and responsibilities of "fun" car ownership. I have Shelby GT350 which I track regularly. My point is that no matter what I purhase I want to be responsible with my finances. I have a limit to how much I want to spend, otherwise i'd just buy a bronco raptor or i'd be tracking a Porsche GT3RS. Just trying to ensure I have what I need to do light off roading (i'm not boulder crawling) and try not to get too much off road stuff that it makes it harder to live with as a daily driver (road noise, height for daily in an d out..comfort, etc.). That is why I purchased the 350, great car on the track without any after market mods, but comfortable on a cross country grand touring trip.

I hear ya there bud, but let’s get a few things out in the open. The Bronco is not a vehicle that I’d confuse with “comfortable”; it’s not. It’s also loud and a bit unrefined and I have a loaded 2 Dr Badlands with Sasquatch, Lux, and 2.7 and all the other fixings.

The Bronco is an off-roader FIRST and everything else it’s serviceable and a compromise. So if you’re not buying this to off-road, boulders or not, I hear Toyota has this new Land Cruiser that’s more for riding and road tripping with occasional dirt and forest road type trails.

Although I feel that Ford has been giving away front and rear lockers to far too many who don’t need them, overall they hit a homer with the Bronco because they accomplished what they set out to do.

The spartan nature of the Bronco is what I love about it, but I don’t confuse it with the other SUV at the house which is 95% luxury and 5% off road for those who dare or are on a ski trip, but the Bronco isn’t even close for those purposes and I don’t need or want it to be.

A locker comes in handy when the unexpected happens. I went wheeling last weekend in rain and today with full sun and dry trails. Bronco was muddy as hell last week; had to come straight home and wash her. Today, hardly looks like I did anything other than maybe the tires and a little dust, but it stays dusty inside and out.

Point is that last week was a locker day for some vehicles; not mine, but some. Today, even a Prius could have trailed me without much concern. I ran the same trail network both days and what a difference 1 week can make.

That locker is your insurance and if you don’t understand that, this ain’t the truck for you.

 

[mpeugeot]

I will add one comment to the above, it isn't a luxury vehicle, but doing 12 hour days in the Bronco seats is easy... They are extremely comfortable. However, the other comments stand, it's not a Land Cruiser.

The interior needs a little love, such as a pad for the center armrest... It was worth every penny of the $20 I spent.

 

[jrm5723]

My 2 cents. I purchased a 2 door Big Bend just weeks ago. Love it so far. I got the 2.7 (have had 2.3 and 2.7 previously. My preference is 2.7 , better performance. I'm not worried about gas milage. Stock 32" tires and no bash plates are fine by me, I can add them later if need be. In the short term I do not plan to "off road" a $44K vehicle. What ever you decide, just enjoy it!

 

[TonkaTruck]

I hear ya there bud, but let’s get a few things out in the open. The Bronco is not a vehicle that I’d confuse with “comfortable”; it’s not. It’s also loud and a bit unrefined and I have a loaded 2 Dr Badlands with Sasquatch, Lux, and 2.7 and all the other fixings.

The Bronco is an off-roader FIRST and everything else it’s serviceable and a compromise. So if you’re not buying this to off-road, boulders or not, I hear Toyota has this new Land Cruiser that’s more for riding and road tripping with occasional dirt and forest road type trails.

Although I feel that Ford has been giving away front and rear lockers to far too many who don’t need them, overall they hit a homer with the Bronco because they accomplished what they set out to do.

The spartan nature of the Bronco is what I love about it, but I don’t confuse it with the other SUV at the house which is 95% luxury and 5% off road for those who dare or are on a ski trip, but the Bronco isn’t even close for those purposes and I don’t need or want it to be.

A locker comes in handy when the unexpected happens. I went wheeling last weekend in rain and today with full sun and dry trails. Bronco was muddy as hell last week; had to come straight home and wash her. Today, hardly looks like I did anything other than maybe the tires and a little dust, but it stays dusty inside and out.

Point is that last week was a locker day for some vehicles; not mine, but some. Today, even a Prius could have trailed me without much concern. I ran the same trail network both days and what a difference 1 week can make.

That locker is your insurance and if you don’t understand that, this ain’t the truck for you.

I completely disagree. The Bronco is an extremely comfortable car to drive. It handles great as a daily driver on pavement. It’s not a Wrangler, the on-road ride is fantastic.

To the OP, the 2.3 will have plenty of power, but I’d suggest the 2.7 if you enjoy a more powerful, spirited drive.

Sure it’s a little loud, but you’re not looking at a car with a removable top to roll up the windows and completely block out the elements.

 

[indio22]

I completely disagree. The Bronco is an extremely comfortable car to drive. It handles great as a daily driver on pavement. It’s not a Wrangler, the on-road ride is fantastic.

To the OP, the 2.3 will have plenty of power, but I’d suggest the 2.7 if you enjoy a more powerful, spirited drive.

Sure it’s a little loud, but you’re not looking at a car with a removable top to roll up the windows and completely block out the elements.

My Bronco is comfortable enough on pavement, but it handles more like a boat compared to my cars, especially my sports car. You guys who think the Bronco handles well must have some crummy cars, lol.

 

[Bmadda]

My Bronco is comfortable enough on pavement, but it handles more like a boat compared to my cars, especially my sports car. You guys who think the Bronco handles well must have some crummy cars, lol.

It handles well compared to a Jeep Wrangler! Its not a road racer, corvette etc. Performance is always relative!

 

[5GENIDN]

My Bronco is comfortable enough on pavement, but it handles more like a boat compared to my cars, especially my sports car. You guys who think the Bronco handles well must have some crummy cars, lol.

compared to my wife's 23 Mercedes AMG nightline coupe... your right it does not handle anywhere in the same stratosphere. BUT.... compared to other 4x4s, trucks, off road vehicles it handles extremally well. I am going to suggest you do not have a lot of experience driving off road vehicles.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

I completely disagree. The Bronco is an extremely comfortable car to drive. It handles great as a daily driver on pavement. It’s not a Wrangler, the on-road ride is fantastic.

To the OP, the 2.3 will have plenty of power, but I’d suggest the 2.7 if you enjoy a more powerful, spirited drive.

Sure it’s a little loud, but you’re not looking at a car with a removable top to roll up the windows and completely block out the elements.

Guess it depends on what you’ve driven. If you’re coming from a pickup truck, maybe so. Compared to more luxury tuned SUVs, a Bronco feels like crap on the road.

Compared to other off-roaders, like a Wrangler; feels great, but that’s a very low bar my friend.

I love driving mine, but that’s do to my expectations and not trying to turn an orange into a banana like some on here want to do.

 

[Scott R Nelson]

Why on earth are you guys comparing Broncos to sports cars?

Mine, a Sasquatch, has a better highway ride than I was expecting and the tires make less noise than I expected. Compared to my Mustang convirtible it's slightly quieter as well.

The important thing is that it allows me to go places that I could never go in a normal car. That's all that really matters to me.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

Why on earth are you guys comparing Broncos to sports cars?

Mine, a Sasquatch, has a better highway ride than I was expecting and the tires make less noise than I expected. Compared to my Mustang convirtible it's slightly quieter as well.

The important thing is that it allows me to go places that I could never go in a normal car. That's all that really matters to me.

I’m in your camp Scott, but guys will compare naturally to what they have experience with; some people are realistic, but I see many who are not at all.

Same can be said about Bronco creature comforts, of which there are few. I don’t wish to go down the path of the “my past cars” pissing contest on here because I’m not sure it’s very relevant to the discussion, but even compared to the quiet and softish ride of a Highlander, or Tahoe, a Bronco may be a bit of a shock.

To those in the off-roading community such as yourself, @indio22, @Bmadda, @mpeugeot, me and several others who’ve shared perspectives, the Bronco feels great and either meets or exceeds our expectations in many ways.

The OP doesn’t sound like he’s going to wheel, or at least not much, which is fine, but he and others need to understand what they’ll sign up to live with once all the Instagram pics are done and the “you look so cool and hard!” novelty is gone.

End of the day, it’s a plasticy and steel body on frame complex suspension that sits high, handles in interesting ways, and is pretty loud without music turned up. Basically it’s perfect in our eyes, but we’re a small community within the larger Bronco community.

 

[indio22]

compared to my wife's 23 Mercedes AMG nightline coupe... your right it does not handle anywhere in the same stratosphere. BUT.... compared to other 4x4s, trucks, off road vehicles it handles extremally well. I am going to suggest you do not have a lot of experience driving off road vehicles.

Nah, I've owned open top 4x4s since 1989, currently own four including the Bronco. Actually it's more the other way around, I got a used sports car when my Bronco order went MIA for nearly 2 years, and it's been a revelation on pavement.

 

[5GENIDN]

Nah, I've owned open top 4x4s since 1989, currently own four including the Bronco. Actually it's more the other way around, I got a used sports car when my Bronco order went MIA for nearly 2 years, and it's been a revelation on pavement.

Based on your background and experience your comment does surprise me.

 

[lwilliams34]

Hey Guys thanks again for all of the comments and input.
I contacted my Ford Sales rep and changed my order to add the 4.27 gearing and switched the color to Azure Gray. Other than that I am keeping it the way I originally spec'd it. The 4.27 will give me some options for larger wheels/tires later on if I want to go that route.

2024 Big Bend 2 Door
Azure Gray
Mid Pkg (222A)
10 speed auto
2.3 L
4.27 axle with rear locking diff
hoop step
aux switches
LED Signature Lighting
Spare TIre Cover (bronco logo)
Trailer Tow Pkg

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