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Well, I did a thing.
A couple of weeks ago I moved back to the US after almost 2 years overseas. I knew I would need a new vehicle to replace the 2014 4Runner that I sold before leaving. I admittedly don't do any serious off-roading, but I like the stance, ride, and ruggedness of a body-on-frame 4x4, and I prefer one to a minivan or crossover for family-hauling duties. I was excited about the new Land Cruiser announcement, but those are still a few months away and waiting lists are a mile long anyway.
Anyway, I missed all of the new Bronco hype while I was out of the country, and was only vaguely aware that they even existed, but the availability of a manual transmission really piqued my interest. When I started researching vehicles, I was pretty keen on picking up a Heritage edition - it seemed to be the most economical way of getting my combination of "must-have" options: 4-doors, hardtop, manual transmission, and heated seats. I called around to a few dealers, but all of the Heritage Broncos I found sitting on dealer lots were custom orders and already claimed. I inquired about the possibility of ordering one, but I was told it would likely be at least 6 months and perhaps a year before I got one. That didn't work for me.
I started looking on CarMax because I didn't want to deal with dealer mark-ups and frankly the whole thing seemed easier. I found an Area 51 MY23 Badlands with <6K miles on it that met my minimum criteria. This particular one had the High package. I had experienced 360-degree cameras in a few rental cars overseas, and really liked the feature - I think it is especially well-suited to a larger vehicle like the Bronco. So, at this point, I really stopped considering any vehicles without the High package.
I was pretty content with the Bronco that I had found at CarMax, but started having qualms about the price - they wanted almost $58K for it, which seemed rather high. I figured dealer mark ups must still be pretty bad. I ran a CarFax on the truck and found the original window sticker, and realized that CarMax's price was several thousand dollars ABOVE the vehicle's MSRP when new! Not only that, but the original build did not include a hardtop. I figured maybe the original owner had spent some serious money acquiring an MIC top, and that was factored into the price. But upon further digging I realized that the hard-top was in fact an aftermarket top, and looked to be a Rally top. The window sticker also revealed that the truck was affected by the subwoofer delete. I figured there was no way I was going to pay over MSRP for a used Bronco with an aftermarket top and a gimped stereo system, so I put the brakes on that one.
So I was back to looking at new Broncos, and found a MY24 Badlands in Cactus Gray with the MIC top and 7MT, plus heated eats and 360-degree camera. I was surprised to find that the High and Lux packages were combined into one package, but that was okay with me - I certainly like the idea of the B&O stereo, wireless charging, integrated garage door opener, etc. I was slowly creeping up the build ladder, and now I was pretty set on Lux as a minimum. The only thing I didn't like about this particular Bronco was the inclusion of the Sasquatch package. I know it is a desirable build, but I actually prefer the look of the standard 33" tires on the Badlands to the more overstuffed look of the 35" tires, and I didn't want to take a road noise and MPG penalty for a wheel and tire package that wasn't my first choice anyway. But what really bothered me was paying an additional $5K for wheels and tires, since the 7MT Badlands gets the rest of the package standard anyway.
I found an Eruption Green Badlands with 7MT and MIC top that looked lovely, but it was only Mid package which turned me off a bit. Plus the dealer had already drilled the bumper for the front plate bracket - annoying! So I kept looking.
Then I found it. A MY24 Badlands with MIC top, 7MT, High/Lux, and no Sasquatch package. I asked for a price, and was pleasantly surprised that the quote included no markup above MSRP. This truck was over $5K less than the one with the Sasquatch package, and only $2K more than the CarMax truck - despite being one model year newer and having almost 6K fewer miles on the odometer, an actual OEM hardtop, and the addition of the Lux package - plus the dealer would deliver to the house where I was staying for free (they were a couple hours away). About the only thing I wasn't super excited about was the color, Oxford White. Not that it looks bad, but I usually prefer an actual color, something a little bit more exciting - I kind of wanted one of the blues or the green. But I decided to go for it, figuring color was an okay thing to compromise on. I felt a little rushed because of some factors unique to my personal situation right now, otherwise I might have held out a little longer, but I felt that this truck was about as close to perfect as I was going to get right now.
Now that I have the truck, I'm actually pretty happy with the Oxford White. I like the contrast, and I like that the hardtop and grill match, but in Carbonized Gray rather than black - I really want to avoid the "stormtrooper" or "panda" look that I feel is common in a lot of modded white vehicles. I'm going to try not to go too crazy with mods - I went that way with a BMW that I own, and while I'm still very happy with that car, it was definitely a rabbit-hole and a time and money sink. Will probably stay pretty close to OEM on this one, especially since it will be more of a family vehicle and maybe even my wife's daily.
I think I'm going to try and play up the vintage look, and think the white will be particularly well-suited to some retro stripes. I have some other ideas as well, which I will document along the way here. Probably some changes to the wheels and badging, that kind of thing. One thing that I would LOVE is a Trektop for the summer, but it would have to be brown or tan - and unfortunately Bestop has confirmed that they have no plans to make any other color than black. But if a slant-back brown soft top ever does become available, I will likely be first in line.
Some pleasant surprises with the MY24 Badlands are the inclusion of the heavy-duty steering rack (from the Wildtrak) as standard now, and especially the padded and stitched dash. I was wondering why people were complaining about the "plasticky" interior but didn't realize that the upgraded dash was a new thing. The only place I really notice cheap-feeling hard plastics in the cabin are the doors, but I realize that it doesn't make much sense to add padding and such to doors that are intended to be removed.
Overall, I think the cabin on the MY24 feels really nice, and passengers have been very complementary. I'm also loving all of the tech, which I know many people think of as superfluous, but it really feels very modern and high end. I really love the way the truck drives and handles - the 2.3L engine is more than adequate and feels quite zippy, especially when paired to the manual transmission, which shifts great. That said, I will probably do the Ford Performance tune not only for the additional power, but I'd like to try the rev-matching. The suspension is much less floaty and nose-divey than my 4Runner was, and is pretty confidence-inspiring for a truck! Definitely no complaints there. I may try out Forscan to enable sport mode, and see how the throttle and steering response changes feel.
Anyway, I'm really happy with this vehicle. I think Ford really nailed it with this one, and I'm happy to support American design, engineering, and manufacturing - and not feel like I'm settling by doing so. 10/10, would definitely recommend!
Anyway, here's a picture of my Bronco at baseline:
A couple of weeks ago I moved back to the US after almost 2 years overseas. I knew I would need a new vehicle to replace the 2014 4Runner that I sold before leaving. I admittedly don't do any serious off-roading, but I like the stance, ride, and ruggedness of a body-on-frame 4x4, and I prefer one to a minivan or crossover for family-hauling duties. I was excited about the new Land Cruiser announcement, but those are still a few months away and waiting lists are a mile long anyway.
Anyway, I missed all of the new Bronco hype while I was out of the country, and was only vaguely aware that they even existed, but the availability of a manual transmission really piqued my interest. When I started researching vehicles, I was pretty keen on picking up a Heritage edition - it seemed to be the most economical way of getting my combination of "must-have" options: 4-doors, hardtop, manual transmission, and heated seats. I called around to a few dealers, but all of the Heritage Broncos I found sitting on dealer lots were custom orders and already claimed. I inquired about the possibility of ordering one, but I was told it would likely be at least 6 months and perhaps a year before I got one. That didn't work for me.
I started looking on CarMax because I didn't want to deal with dealer mark-ups and frankly the whole thing seemed easier. I found an Area 51 MY23 Badlands with <6K miles on it that met my minimum criteria. This particular one had the High package. I had experienced 360-degree cameras in a few rental cars overseas, and really liked the feature - I think it is especially well-suited to a larger vehicle like the Bronco. So, at this point, I really stopped considering any vehicles without the High package.
I was pretty content with the Bronco that I had found at CarMax, but started having qualms about the price - they wanted almost $58K for it, which seemed rather high. I figured dealer mark ups must still be pretty bad. I ran a CarFax on the truck and found the original window sticker, and realized that CarMax's price was several thousand dollars ABOVE the vehicle's MSRP when new! Not only that, but the original build did not include a hardtop. I figured maybe the original owner had spent some serious money acquiring an MIC top, and that was factored into the price. But upon further digging I realized that the hard-top was in fact an aftermarket top, and looked to be a Rally top. The window sticker also revealed that the truck was affected by the subwoofer delete. I figured there was no way I was going to pay over MSRP for a used Bronco with an aftermarket top and a gimped stereo system, so I put the brakes on that one.
So I was back to looking at new Broncos, and found a MY24 Badlands in Cactus Gray with the MIC top and 7MT, plus heated eats and 360-degree camera. I was surprised to find that the High and Lux packages were combined into one package, but that was okay with me - I certainly like the idea of the B&O stereo, wireless charging, integrated garage door opener, etc. I was slowly creeping up the build ladder, and now I was pretty set on Lux as a minimum. The only thing I didn't like about this particular Bronco was the inclusion of the Sasquatch package. I know it is a desirable build, but I actually prefer the look of the standard 33" tires on the Badlands to the more overstuffed look of the 35" tires, and I didn't want to take a road noise and MPG penalty for a wheel and tire package that wasn't my first choice anyway. But what really bothered me was paying an additional $5K for wheels and tires, since the 7MT Badlands gets the rest of the package standard anyway.
I found an Eruption Green Badlands with 7MT and MIC top that looked lovely, but it was only Mid package which turned me off a bit. Plus the dealer had already drilled the bumper for the front plate bracket - annoying! So I kept looking.
Then I found it. A MY24 Badlands with MIC top, 7MT, High/Lux, and no Sasquatch package. I asked for a price, and was pleasantly surprised that the quote included no markup above MSRP. This truck was over $5K less than the one with the Sasquatch package, and only $2K more than the CarMax truck - despite being one model year newer and having almost 6K fewer miles on the odometer, an actual OEM hardtop, and the addition of the Lux package - plus the dealer would deliver to the house where I was staying for free (they were a couple hours away). About the only thing I wasn't super excited about was the color, Oxford White. Not that it looks bad, but I usually prefer an actual color, something a little bit more exciting - I kind of wanted one of the blues or the green. But I decided to go for it, figuring color was an okay thing to compromise on. I felt a little rushed because of some factors unique to my personal situation right now, otherwise I might have held out a little longer, but I felt that this truck was about as close to perfect as I was going to get right now.
Now that I have the truck, I'm actually pretty happy with the Oxford White. I like the contrast, and I like that the hardtop and grill match, but in Carbonized Gray rather than black - I really want to avoid the "stormtrooper" or "panda" look that I feel is common in a lot of modded white vehicles. I'm going to try not to go too crazy with mods - I went that way with a BMW that I own, and while I'm still very happy with that car, it was definitely a rabbit-hole and a time and money sink. Will probably stay pretty close to OEM on this one, especially since it will be more of a family vehicle and maybe even my wife's daily.
I think I'm going to try and play up the vintage look, and think the white will be particularly well-suited to some retro stripes. I have some other ideas as well, which I will document along the way here. Probably some changes to the wheels and badging, that kind of thing. One thing that I would LOVE is a Trektop for the summer, but it would have to be brown or tan - and unfortunately Bestop has confirmed that they have no plans to make any other color than black. But if a slant-back brown soft top ever does become available, I will likely be first in line.
Some pleasant surprises with the MY24 Badlands are the inclusion of the heavy-duty steering rack (from the Wildtrak) as standard now, and especially the padded and stitched dash. I was wondering why people were complaining about the "plasticky" interior but didn't realize that the upgraded dash was a new thing. The only place I really notice cheap-feeling hard plastics in the cabin are the doors, but I realize that it doesn't make much sense to add padding and such to doors that are intended to be removed.
Overall, I think the cabin on the MY24 feels really nice, and passengers have been very complementary. I'm also loving all of the tech, which I know many people think of as superfluous, but it really feels very modern and high end. I really love the way the truck drives and handles - the 2.3L engine is more than adequate and feels quite zippy, especially when paired to the manual transmission, which shifts great. That said, I will probably do the Ford Performance tune not only for the additional power, but I'd like to try the rev-matching. The suspension is much less floaty and nose-divey than my 4Runner was, and is pretty confidence-inspiring for a truck! Definitely no complaints there. I may try out Forscan to enable sport mode, and see how the throttle and steering response changes feel.
Anyway, I'm really happy with this vehicle. I think Ford really nailed it with this one, and I'm happy to support American design, engineering, and manufacturing - and not feel like I'm settling by doing so. 10/10, would definitely recommend!
Anyway, here's a picture of my Bronco at baseline:
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