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I started to lean toward not buying the bronco because my wife and I have since made other vehicle plans. But I ended up trading in my F150 Lariat and buying the Bronco for MSRP. (4 door Wildtrak)
Here are the things I was concerned about (On the pavement only): TL;DR: I am very pleased and this vehicle has exceeded my expectations.
Price and Appreciation
The dealership seems to believe that the $60 broncos will continue to sell for over $70k for a long time. I'm still very skeptical of that.
MPG
After a few commutes and some initial testing, it seems like I'll end up between 16-18 MPG vs 19-20 with the F150. Not a huge difference and I wasn't driving the F150 for the mileage.
Road Manners
I'm honestly blown away. I'm sorry I ever doubted it. How can an off road beast with 35 inch all terrain tires behave that well on the highway and in the suburban concrete jungle? I'm honestly floored. It's not perfect or anything, but I think the steering and suspension feels better than our platinum expedition. I personally prefer it by a substantial margin over the Jeeps and 4Runners I've driven.
Power
A few weeks ago, there was a thread about the bronco being neutered. I don't understand that. The low end torque and turbo performance from the 2.7 liter engine in the wildtrak is fantastic. Plenty of power off the line and it's very impressive from 60-80 MPH on the freeway. I do not see why the power would be a negative with this vehicle unless you are talking about towing or some type of off-road driving I don't participate in.
Seat Comfort
The F150 and Expedition are incredibly comfortable, so I was worried as a bigger guy that I wouldn't be comfortable in the Bronco on my commute. I was wrong. I should repent. The seats are great. A few people said they were not comfortable, but I'm not sure what they are looking for here. I have the leather, so maybe the more rugged seats are more stiff or less roomy? I don't know.
Visibility
I'm really impressed by the visibility. Even the mirrors are fine. Though I will say, when you have the roof panels in the bag in the back, it blocks rear visibility.
Speakers
The upgraded B&O speakers are solid. Fantastic for podcasting and music, even with the roof off.
Infotainment
Wireless car play and I are trying to make friends, but I feel like it's not quite ready. But it's a great feature. The huge screen is super cool. I don't think Ford has done a great job with using all the extra real-estate though, other than that amazing graphic that plays when you get in. Oh, and the cameras are fantastic. Even better on the 2022 than the 2020 cameras from other Ford models.
Area 51 Color
I can't believe how good it looks in person. People talked about how it was better in person, but I am blown away. I have the all black wheels, and that Area 51 finish looks amazing.
Roof Storage
It's honestly annoying to me that they send a bag for the front panels but not for the center panel for the 4 door model. Not the end of the world, but managing that thing is annoying. I understood that taking off the back hatch would be cumbersome and storing it would take some creativity, but I didn't think about the center panel being a pain in the a**
I'm excited to do some intermediate off-road stuff in this rig. Even though I basically hate Ford at this point and the process of ordering/reserving for both the Bronco and Lightning pisses me off, Ford absolutely knocked it out of the park with the Bronco. Just incredible.
Here are the things I was concerned about (On the pavement only): TL;DR: I am very pleased and this vehicle has exceeded my expectations.
Price and Appreciation
The dealership seems to believe that the $60 broncos will continue to sell for over $70k for a long time. I'm still very skeptical of that.
MPG
After a few commutes and some initial testing, it seems like I'll end up between 16-18 MPG vs 19-20 with the F150. Not a huge difference and I wasn't driving the F150 for the mileage.
Road Manners
I'm honestly blown away. I'm sorry I ever doubted it. How can an off road beast with 35 inch all terrain tires behave that well on the highway and in the suburban concrete jungle? I'm honestly floored. It's not perfect or anything, but I think the steering and suspension feels better than our platinum expedition. I personally prefer it by a substantial margin over the Jeeps and 4Runners I've driven.
Power
A few weeks ago, there was a thread about the bronco being neutered. I don't understand that. The low end torque and turbo performance from the 2.7 liter engine in the wildtrak is fantastic. Plenty of power off the line and it's very impressive from 60-80 MPH on the freeway. I do not see why the power would be a negative with this vehicle unless you are talking about towing or some type of off-road driving I don't participate in.
Seat Comfort
The F150 and Expedition are incredibly comfortable, so I was worried as a bigger guy that I wouldn't be comfortable in the Bronco on my commute. I was wrong. I should repent. The seats are great. A few people said they were not comfortable, but I'm not sure what they are looking for here. I have the leather, so maybe the more rugged seats are more stiff or less roomy? I don't know.
Visibility
I'm really impressed by the visibility. Even the mirrors are fine. Though I will say, when you have the roof panels in the bag in the back, it blocks rear visibility.
Speakers
The upgraded B&O speakers are solid. Fantastic for podcasting and music, even with the roof off.
Infotainment
Wireless car play and I are trying to make friends, but I feel like it's not quite ready. But it's a great feature. The huge screen is super cool. I don't think Ford has done a great job with using all the extra real-estate though, other than that amazing graphic that plays when you get in. Oh, and the cameras are fantastic. Even better on the 2022 than the 2020 cameras from other Ford models.
Area 51 Color
I can't believe how good it looks in person. People talked about how it was better in person, but I am blown away. I have the all black wheels, and that Area 51 finish looks amazing.
Roof Storage
It's honestly annoying to me that they send a bag for the front panels but not for the center panel for the 4 door model. Not the end of the world, but managing that thing is annoying. I understood that taking off the back hatch would be cumbersome and storing it would take some creativity, but I didn't think about the center panel being a pain in the a**
I'm excited to do some intermediate off-road stuff in this rig. Even though I basically hate Ford at this point and the process of ordering/reserving for both the Bronco and Lightning pisses me off, Ford absolutely knocked it out of the park with the Bronco. Just incredible.
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