Seeking input on this Offroad Scenario

[Jdyount]

Honestly I don't use the Goat modes.
I find it more intuitive to simply select 4Hi or 4Lo depending on the need, rear locker when needed.
Front locker ONLY to get me through some obstacle where I need a front locker, then immediately back off again, and front locker not used when a tight turn is needed or you have one of the tires pressed up against an obstacle, trying to turn the wheel.

To me it seems none of the easy-button "GOAT modes" do everything I look for in any given scenario. It's almost like too much of one thing and not enough of another.

I disagree with your implication that the GOAT Modes are useless.

Step 1 is knowing what the GOAT modes actually do...

GOAT Modes don't just activate 4wd, lockers, and disconnect, they also control throttle response, shift points, and traction control. This is a very big deal if you're in sand, it gives you much more control vs just 4wd and lockers. Each Mode is a default setting and will ABSOLUELY need to be adjusted depending on the ever-changing situation.

My advice, set the GOAT Mode that most fits your situation then make adjustment accordingly. As an example, if I'm on the trails (moderate to hard stuff) I go into Rock Crawl Mode then turn the lockers off and only turn them back on when I need them.

For the OP's question. My advice is to go through your Owner's Manual along with the Quick Reverence Guide and get familiar with how Ford suggests you use the off-road features. From there, yes, go out and test but be careful to understand the correct usage for situations (speeds for drive modes, when to NOT use 4wd,...). But ya, I would have probably only used 4H in that situation, maybe just regular 2H.

Here is a link to the docs:
2021 Ford Bronco Owner Manuals

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[broadicustomworks]

I 1000% disagree with your conclusion that the GOAT Modes are useless. BAD ADVICE.

Step 1 is knowing what the GOAT modes actually do...

GOAT Modes don't just activate 4wd, lockers, and disconnect, they also control throttle response, shift points, and traction control. This is a very big deal if you're in sand, it gives you much more control vs just 4wd and lockers.

My advice, set the GOAT Mode that most fits your situation then make adjustment accordingly. As an example, if I'm on the trails (moderate to hard stuff) I go into Rock Crawl Mode then turn the lockers off and only turn them back on when I need them.

For the OP's question. My advice is to go through your Owner's Manual along with the Quick Reverence Guide and get familiar with what how Ford suggests you use the off-road features. From there, yes, go out and test but be careful to understand the correct situations (speeds for drive modes, when to NOT use 4wd,...). But ya, I would have probably only used 4H in that situation, maybe just regular 2H.

Here is a link to the docs:
2021 Ford Bronco Owner Manuals

With all due respect (and I DO respect your posts, knowledge, and input) I never said they were useless, verbatim.
If you read back to what you quoted you will see qualifiers prior to my opinions such as "I find it" and "To me".
I find them useless for everything I have done so far in my travels.
YMMV, OP's MMV.

But again, I have not been to Sand Hollow yet to use the sand mode. I can see the benefit there where it does affect steering input, shift points, etc.

In respect to the terrain the OP described, I FELT any given "mode" was probably putting them in more peril, trying to monkey around with modes and finding they were not the settings they needed given the circumstance.
In perilous/dangerous situations (in my opinion) you need 110% of your concentration and faculties on getting through safely, not having to stop and dial in a new Mode in the midst of it because you find the one you tried isn't the right one.
Again, YMMV.
Much respect,
-Dave

 

[Jdyount]

With all due respect (and I DO respect your posts, knowledge, and input) I never said they were useless, verbatim.
If you read back to what you quoted you will see qualifiers prior to my opinions such as "I find it" and "To me".
I find them useless for everything I have done so far in my travels.
YMMV, OP's MMV.

But again, I have not been to Sand Hollow yet to use the sand mode. I can see the benefit there where it does affect steering input, shift points, etc.

In respect to the terrain the OP described, I FELT any given "mode" was probably putting them in more peril, trying to monkey around with modes and finding they were not the settings they needed given the circumstance.
In perilous/dangerous situations (in my opinion) you need 110% of your concentration and faculties on getting through safely, not having to stop and dial in a new Mode in the midst of it because you find the one you tried isn't the right one.
Again, YMMV.
Much respect,
-Dave

Ya, I re-read your post and modified my wording (even before your response). I was definitely a little harsh. You didn't flat out say they were useless, more implied.

I think the OP did the right thing in how he was trying the different modes and he did it in a good way, controlled, coming to a stop before changing. You can change modes on the fly and it won't make the all of the changes until it's safe to do so (won't go into 4L while in drive), but stopping to "monkey around with modes" is safer because you're not driving distracted.

 

[da_jokker]

Don't dimiss the GOATs... I love how there are tons of people that say The goat modes are a gimmick and that do nothing. Guess they can just press 4A and have sports mode then?

In my opinion, selecting the right GOAT mode is not only helpful but required. There are a crap ton of sensors on these broncos and when you put your Bronco in a mode, it is basically letting the bronco what to expect. Slipping wheels and losing traction while in "normal" can freak out the Bronco.

With that said, the Goat Modes are pretty straight forward... (And of course all of these come with field mapping and transmission shifting adjustments as well)

Normal - typical Street driving

Eco - Street driving with gas saving features like slower cruise control responses and shutter controls.

Slippery - Street Mode only when slick roads are present like rain with road puddles or spotty snow/ice. Uses 4A with tweaked traction control settings.

Mud/Ruts - this is your go to for all things off road. With that said, by default it turns ON rear locker which you should then turn OFF until you need it. (This could have been the reason the OP was feeling some binding)

Sand/Snow - OFF road only when you are in deep snow or deep sand. Basically you have little to no traction, guaranteed at all four wheels at all times.

Baja- high speed desert running. This differs from Sand/snow in that you actually have traction (aka solid-ish, smoothish, yet can slip traction).

Sport - on road only, sends power to all 4 wheels but allowes for high traction turning by using 4A.

Rock crawl - sort of the most worthless one, but does lower the throttle sensitivity and one would hope does something awesome like turn the fans on (but IDK)

Also remember tonise Mud/Rut 4L when things get challenging and such. Lets the Bronco work easier + allowes for front locker if needed.

 

[PolarVortex]

Don't dimiss the GOATs... I love how there are tons of people that say The goat modes are a gimmick and that do nothing. Guess they can just press 4A and have sports mode then?

In my opinion, selecting the right GOAT mode is not only helpful but required. There are a crap ton of sensors on these broncos and when you put your Bronco in a mode, it is basically letting the bronco what to expect. Slipping wheels and losing traction while in "normal" can freak out the Bronco.

With that said, the Goat Modes are pretty straight forward... (And of course all of these come with field mapping and transmission shifting adjustments as well)

Normal - typical Street driving

Eco - Street driving with gas saving features like slower cruise control responses and shutter controls.

Slippery - Street Mode only when slick roads are present like rain with road puddles or spotty snow/ice. Uses 4A with tweaked traction control settings.

Mud/Ruts - this is your go to for all things off road. With that said, by default it turns ON rear locker which you should then turn OFF until you need it. (This could have been the reason the OP was feeling some binding)

Sand/Snow - OFF road only when you are in deep snow or deep sand. Basically you have little to no traction, guaranteed at all four wheels at all times.

Baja- high speed desert running. This differs from Sand/snow in that you actually have traction (aka solid-ish, smoothish, yet can slip traction).

Sport - on road only, sends power to all 4 wheels but allowes for high traction turning by using 4A.

Rock crawl - sort of the most worthless one, but does lower the throttle sensitivity and one would hope does something awesome like turn the fans on (but IDK)

Also remember tonise Mud/Rut 4L when things get challenging and such. Lets the Bronco work easier + allowes for front locker if needed.

Thanks, nice breakdown - I would definitely agree with you that I should have, at a minimum, manually disabled the rear lockers if I even needed to go into 4H at all. But, like one of the previous responders said, due to the loose rocks/gravel etc, I was probably MOSTLY feeling the stock shocks as opposed to binding. Not sure, but whatever the case, no damage or leaks, just a bit of a learning experience. I've used 4WD so many times before, but I have to remember with the GOAT modes that some things are activated by default.

Followup question - I have the regular Black Diamond, not the advanced so I don't have the 4A button. But I have all of the GOAT modes except Baja (Black Diamond is a NICE trim). My question is this: If I don't have a 4A button BUT I do have Slippery mode and Sport, do I actually in turn have 4A?

 

[Bmadda]

Thanks, nice breakdown - I would definitely agree with you that I should have, at a minimum, manually disabled the rear lockers if I even needed to go into 4H at all. But, like one of the previous responders said, due to the loose rocks/gravel etc, I was probably MOSTLY feeling the stock shocks as opposed to binding. Not sure, but whatever the case, no damage or leaks, just a bit of a learning experience. I've used 4WD so many times before, but I have to remember with the GOAT modes that some things are activated by default.

Followup question - I have the regular Black Diamond, not the advanced so I don't have the 4A button. But I have all of the GOAT modes except Baja (Black Diamond is a NICE trim). My question is this: If I don't have a 4A button BUT I do have Slippery mode and Sport, do I actually in turn have 4A?

You have whatever the dial says you have when that mode is selected. Does 4H light up when you select slippery? On my BL it lights up 4A when slippery is selected...same w/sport, but in sport I can reselect 2H manually. The 4A xfer case, and the PT xfer case are physically different. The PT only has full 4x4 lock, or 2wd, so there is no way to make it function exactly the same. 2H sport, and 4H slippery would make sense tho. Try them out and let us know?

 

[PolarVortex]

You have whatever the dial says you have when that mode is selected. Does 4H light up when you select slippery? On my BL it lights up 4A when slippery is selected...same w/sport, but in sport I can reselect 2H manually. The 4A xfer case, and the PT xfer case are physically different. The PT only has full 4x4 lock, or 2wd, so there is no way to make it function exactly the same. 2H sport, and 4H slippery would make sense tho. Try them out and let us know?

Ok thanks for all that....stuck at work so can't do that for a bit but I'll try it later and advise...

My thinking is that if I don't have a manual 4A button to select then I probably don't have it.

 

[Jimmiee]

Some people laugh at the GOAT Modes but there are many options that cannot be selected without using GOAT Modes. For example
ECO - Gives you better gas milage, Early Shifts, Soft Throttle Response
SPORT - Gives you aggressive throttle response, Late Shifts, aggressive steering response.
SLIPPERY - Gives you extra Traction Control, Soft Throttle Response, Soft Steering Response, Early Shifts
SAND - Gives you extra Traction Control, Soft Throttle Response, Soft Steering Response, Late Shifts
MUD RUTS, Gives you Soft Steering Response, Late Shifts, Soft Throttle Response.
ROCK CRAWL - Soft Throttle, Tight Steering Response, Late Shifts.
BAJA - Aggressive Throttle, Late Shifts.

Laugh all you want but all these things listed above CAANNOT be selected by the driver!

 

[indio22]

Some people laugh at the GOAT Modes but there are many options that cannot be selected without using GOAT Modes. For example
ECO - Gives you better gas milage, Early Shifts, Soft Throttle Response
SPORT - Gives you aggressive throttle response, Late Shifts, aggressive steering response.
SLIPPERY - Gives you extra Traction Control, Soft Throttle Response, Soft Steering Response, Early Shifts
SAND - Gives you extra Traction Control, Soft Throttle Response, Soft Steering Response, Late Shifts
MUD RUTS, Gives you Soft Steering Response, Late Shifts, Soft Throttle Response.
ROCK CRAWL - Soft Throttle, Tight Steering Response, Late Shifts.
BAJA - Aggressive Throttle, Late Shifts.

Laugh all you want but all these things listed above CAANNOT be selected by the driver!

Since I have a manual trans, I shift whenever I want. Maybe some GOAT changes to throttle response, or a more aggressive engagement of traction control, could be of some benefit off-road. I never felt the pressing need for that stuff with my older 4x4s though, so I'm not sure the value with my Bronco.

 

[PolarVortex]

Since I have a manual trans, I shift whenever I want. Maybe some GOAT changes to throttle response, or a more aggressive engagement of traction control, could be of some benefit off-road. I never felt the pressing need for that stuff with my older 4x4s though, so I'm not sure the value with my Bronco.

That's a good point.....the manual changes a lot.

 

[Snacktime]

Lot of the issue is the traction control stepping in. Goat modes do a good job of modifing the traction control vs the operator turning it off. The reason so many like the modes is its quick vs holding traction control button for 20 seconds. Pick your poison, as you need to do one or the other when you hit the dirt.

For paved/dirt road I use 4wd (don't have auto and don't want it) once I feel the loss of traction and more over I just go straight to 4lo. 4lo disengages the traction control and does a good job of letting you know your in 4wd. Once I get past the need for traction I go back 2wd. I figure if you need 4wd might as well be in low. The only time I really use 4hi is in the snow for on road driving. I rarely use goat modes, in fact I have really only use Baja Mode a few times. I find that 4hi is way to computer controlled, you have to hold the traction button way to long to get full control or play guess a mode.

 

[PolarVortex]

You have whatever the dial says you have when that mode is selected. Does 4H light up when you select slippery? On my BL it lights up 4A when slippery is selected...same w/sport, but in sport I can reselect 2H manually. The 4A xfer case, and the PT xfer case are physically different. The PT only has full 4x4 lock, or 2wd, so there is no way to make it function exactly the same. 2H sport, and 4H slippery would make sense tho. Try them out and let us know?

So, I tried it out....and, confirmed, no 4A, which is pretty much what I thought, as I don't have a manual button for it. "Slippery" went straight to 4H. All good.

Sidenote: If you go into "Sport", it disables the start/stop switch instead of manually engaging it all the time. I hadn't delved into Sport mode yet until the ride home today which was really fun. No regrets in getting the 2.7!

 

[Silver-Bolt]

Most of the GOAT modes are based around the ABS system. You were likely smelling the rear brakes. The rough ride may have been coming from the ABS.

 

[Bmadda]

Some people laugh at the GOAT Modes but there are many options that cannot be selected without using GOAT Modes. For example
ECO - Gives you better gas milage, Early Shifts, Soft Throttle Response
SPORT - Gives you aggressive throttle response, Late Shifts, aggressive steering response.
SLIPPERY - Gives you extra Traction Control, Soft Throttle Response, Soft Steering Response, Early Shifts
SAND - Gives you extra Traction Control, Soft Throttle Response, Soft Steering Response, Late Shifts
MUD RUTS, Gives you Soft Steering Response, Late Shifts, Soft Throttle Response.
ROCK CRAWL - Soft Throttle, Tight Steering Response, Late Shifts.
BAJA - Aggressive Throttle, Late Shifts.

Laugh all you want but all these things listed above CAANNOT be selected by the driver!

Sand turns traction control off...other than that, ya looks right

 

[Bmadda]

So, I tried it out....and, confirmed, no 4A, which is pretty much what I thought, as I don't have a manual button for it. "Slippery" went straight to 4H. All good.

Sidenote: If you go into "Sport", it disables the start/stop switch instead of manually engaging it all the time. I hadn't delved into Sport mode yet until the ride home today which was really fun. No regrets in getting the 2.7!

Slippery is the one I hate the most. Feels like my mom is in control of the vehicle! I didn't know you could get a default 2H sport mode...that's cool! alot of guys would like that option!

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