Sizing down to 33's with Sasquatch - what would be involved?

[Zenithon]

I'm ordering a Badlands and am trying to make up my mind on whether to get the sasquatch package or not. Just not sure I want 35's, but would hate to get it with 33's and wish I went the other way after delivery. From what I've read there seems to be quite a bit of work to go from 33's to 35's properly. So here are my questions for all of you out there who are way more knowledgeable than me on this kind of thing:

If I get it Sasquatched and later decide I'd rather go down to 33's, what would be involved? Would the 4.7 gear ratio still be ok? Would I need new rims? I would probably need to at least change out the fender flairs, but that shouldn't be a big deal. Is there any other downside to this, and most importantly would it look bad?

**Additional Info: I am getting a 4-door with the automatic transmission & 6-cyl engine.

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[mtap]

Gear ratio..

 

[toymaster]

Here are my 2 cents:

Dude, you live in Nevada, I really do not think you will ever go below 35s. The 2dr looks perfect with 35s and the 4dr actually needs 37's.

If you go squatch you are 100% good for 35s or 37s, if you want to go down to a 33 for some ungodly reason yes, you would be over geared and highway will not be optimal for you.

On the other hand, if you do not go squatch and ever wanted to go up in tire size, to do it properly you would need to be regeared and that is a PITA and not cheap and new rims and would not be covered under warranty from there on out.

So, my suggestion is if you are going to do anything with the Bronco besides daily driver for 2 years and then trade it, go squatch.

 

[AcesandEights]

It is no big deal to go from 33" to 35" tires. You can run either on the Badlands. The gear ratios are similar, the height of the rig is similar, it's really not a big deal on this vehicle.

Think about this: the tire is roughly 6% taller. That's going to make a nit of difference to the transmission. You only need the vehicle to be one inch taller to go from 33" to 35" tires (one inch above and one inch below axle centerline).

Whoever told you going from 33" to 35" tires involved very much wasn't thinking of the Ford Bronco when they said it, and certainly wasn't considering the Badlands will wear either tire.

 

[Rick Astley]

This is certainly a topic that has been talked about in many other threads and had threads on this very topic made before.

Main point: Gear ratio for Badlands and Sasquatch package is the same, so it's a moot point. They geared Sasquatch for the 35" tires, Badlands will also be fine with it.

The only change between the two is wheels/tires and about a 0.25" lift.

 

[EvlNvrDys]

The problem here is, no one can give you the right answer.
We've heard Badlands has basically same suspension as a Squatch but with less travel. So logically we'd think if Squatch is a lift, we'll Badlands is too. But shit, whe don't even truly know about the other models.

So the best answer I can give you is, going from 33's to 35's on the Badlands shouldn't be a problem. Likewise going reverse of that should be simple too.

Most likely the biggest issue you'll have is getting your speedometer calibrated

 

[toymaster]

Main point: Gear ratio for Badlands and Sasquatch package is the same,....

I think that depends on the trans desired. I had to go squatch to get the 4.7s on my Badlands build.

 

[Rick Astley]

I think that depends on the trans desired. I had to go squatch to get the 4.7s on my Badlands build.

OP didn't give their transmission choice so I assumed Manual Transmission because it's tons more fun.

Always assume Manual, it's the safe bet.

 

[mtap]

Mechanically you can get away without re-gearing and keeping same rims...aesthetically, those flares are specific to SAS so may look a little funny with 33s. If that doesn’t bother you, you are gtg...

 

[toymaster]

Whoever told you going from 33" to 35" tires involved very much wasn't thinking of the Ford Bronco when they said it, and certainly wasn't considering the Badlands will wear either tire.

310hp will power through a lot, but that said to power through requires fuel consumption. We used to run 40's on 3.x gearing back in the 80's but there is a better and more fuel friendly way to do that now-a-days.

 

[toymaster]

OP didn't give their transmission choice so I assumed Manual Transmission because it's tons more fun.

Always assume Manual, it's the safe bet.

How is it a safe bet when over 80% are autos?

 

[Rick Astley]

How is it a safe bet when over 80% are autos?

Besides, I was being ironical. Text didn't transfer that very well. But if the transmission isn't given, the reader has creative freedom over the response.

 

[HBTFD]

There is a 1.4” difference in height and a .9” width difference Sasquatch vs stock tires. Not a noticeable difference to most. As another option the 285/75/17 tire size splits both tire sizes. You won’t need new rims, your speedometer will be off unless it’s recalibrated for the new tire size.

 

[toymaster]

..... But if the transmission isn't given, the reader has creative freedom over the response.

OK, I can live by those rules. But, the info you gave could be considered mis-information. I think your the one that corrected me weeks ago about the 4.7 being standard on the manual trans. Before that I just knew my ordering experience and the part that tires size affecting the gear ratio Ford puts in seemed extremely reasonable at the time.

 

[VoltageDrop]

Gear ratio..

The manual transmission has 2 overdrives and the automatic has 3 so this chart isn't very relevant to the Bronco. If you want to use it to derive the cruising RPM in the highest gear, multiply the RPMs in this chart by 0.646 for the 7MT and by 0.636 for the 10AT. I'm not sure what the ideal RPM should be but lower is not necessarily better for fuel economy when dealing with turbos.

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