My exact thinking, I'm sure we can change models when we are contacted to order!
both have 7 modes
Yes You can Change,
It starts in August.
Not sure if it can be done. But have no desire to downgrade. In fact I'll be upgrading the Wildtrak to match the FE specs. Only reason I reserved both was I heard dealers might be trying to sell the FE at MSRP or above. Also heard the FE might only come with Navy Pier interior, which I'm not a big fan of. If one or both scenario happen I be purchasing a fully loaded Wildtrak.
I saw a video of a Ford dealer guy going over the options, etc. He also mentioned that you can change your "reserved" Bronco when you actually order. Is that true, IDK. But, it seems that Ford would understand that we are "building" our Bronco's in the dark right now, and allow changes when the time comes. I guess we'll know for sure when the order banks open up.
I'm guessing it would also require the Tardis Technology option to fit that sucker inside the vehicle.
They're not all linear improvements in trim, Wildtrak is a dune-runner (speed for sand not rocks), Badlands is more robust (steel bumpers + armor) and better for slower trailing and crawling (2.3L standard, sway bar disconnect, etc).
Both will be excellent off road vehicles and handle any trail. If your going to do alot of rock climbing you'll want the Badlands with the disconnect. Personally I choose the Wildtrak. I love offroading but have no desire to take my $50k plus vehicle and slowly go over rocks. I know alot of folks live for it, just not my cup of tea. I own a Rubicon and have never found a need to use the stablizer disconnect. The Wildtrak comes standard with 2.7 V6, 35 tires and a few other goodies which is exactly what I want. Do yourself a favor and read a few articles on sway bar disconnect. Then make your own choice if you think you'll need it or not. Just my humble opinion. I suppose that's why Ford has so many Bronco models with different packages. Different stokes for different folks.
The disconnect in the Badlands is not quite the same as the Wrangler, it's much less cumbersome to use, you just put it into Rock/Crawl mode and forget about it. You're right that it's probably unnecessary except in very intense situations. IMO the Black Diamond with 'Squatch would be at least as good or better in almost all scenarios compared to a Badlands w/o Squatch and has all the armor and interior. There are lots of good reasons to go with the Badlands other than the disconnect though.
I am a current Jeep JK (2 door owner). I really like it and may keep it even after Bronco WildTrak purchase. I use the jeep mainly for long distance runs from SoCal to Utah. I camp. I fish. I sightsee. Have never been rock crawling and have never needed even posi-traction for trails I go on after reaching mountains. I ordered the WildTrak to get more room and maybe better highway manners. I checked with a good friend who is a Jeeper and has owned many to help me figure out if I needed the sway bar disconnect. He said in all his years of off roading he never needed to get to where he was going and I know from some pictures I have seen he hit the trails hard. But he didn't take on the Rubicon or other highly intense and skill required rock crawling. I even wondered about getting the sway bar discoonect just for Bronco resale value. But in the end went with WildTrak because it fit my current use of Jeep which is mostly a mall crawler anyway lol. Hope this helps with your decision.
