The New "Old" Ford Bronco

[Throwback]

I went through an analysis of whether to buy one or not over the last few months as I was giving my 16 yr. old son my 2012 Tacoma with 175K miles that I have had 0 problems with.

I drove my buddy's 2022 Bronco and discussed with him obviously. As stated, road noise and lack of engine are two main drawbacks. Also, for the price I think they are a little over priced for what they are but if you want one, you want one. I get that. Lastly, I also found the Bronco dealerships not as pleasant to deal with vs. the Toyota, Dodge, etc. The Bronco guys seemed like "see what we got on the lot today, take it or leave it, they will be gone tomorrow".

I ended up buying a 2024 four door Tundra with a 3" lift from the factory and love it. More or less same price and enough power, bigger inside and smoother drive. Cheers

 

[G Skinner]

I VOTE KEEP THE TUNDRA !

 

[BlueFlyer]

Now, I’m looking at 2021Jeep Rubicons with Diesels. Thanks!

Not sure about Jeep

 

[WAB]

View attachment 639242My 69 pickup,

I’m assuming that you know
How much that rig is worth? If not, do a little digging and make sure it’s insured properly.

 

[93marlin]

It is highly unlikely with the current and future immisions requirements that you will get a new diesel in the US market. Thank god we still have a good selection of diesels available.

I have a '22 Silverado with a diesel! And plan on buying another when it's time for my current one to go, hopefully a few more years down the road...

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Not sure about Jeep

Damn those French engineers and executives!

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I went through an analysis of whether to buy one or not over the last few months as I was giving my 16 yr. old son my 2012 Tacoma with 175K miles that I have had 0 problems with.

I drove my buddy's 2022 Bronco and discussed with him obviously. As stated, road noise and lack of engine are two main drawbacks. Also, for the price I think they are a little over priced for what they are but if you want one, you want one. I get that. Lastly, I also found the Bronco dealerships not as pleasant to deal with vs. the Toyota, Dodge, etc. The Bronco guys seemed like "see what we got on the lot today, take it or leave it, they will be gone tomorrow".

I ended up buying a 2024 four door Tundra with a 3" lift from the factory and love it. More or less same price and enough power, bigger inside and smoother drive. Cheers

I hear you guys about the Tundra. Mine has lots of mile left in it I'm sure. @Throwback, how many miles do you have on the new Tundra? My concern with them is they're still having engine issues. I believe there was a large recall this year on the 2024s.

And it's funny how things are with dealers. The last Toyota dealer I went into......well sparing the details, I left them quite angry. The salesman was flat out rude, the sales manager no better. Told them it was the last time I planned on visiting a Toyota dealership. I'd just buy through Costco in the future.

Whereas the Ford dealerships have been great, but then they've also got a bunch of 2024 Broncos on the lot with the 2025s not far being out.

 

[K-man]

Sorry to hear you have to replace an old faithful vehicle. I went through that also in the last year to put out to pasture my 2006 dodge Cummins 3/4 ton turbo diesel. Still runs but at 300k miles just needed something better and newer. I decided on a 4wd Rivian. That was probably the best decision I have made for a long time. 835hp. 900 ft lbs torque. True 4wd. 11000 lbs towing capacity. And, get this, will flat outrun a corvette. 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds. Worst drawback is long trips. Range is 330 miles with a charge time of 1 to 2 hrs. But when I analyze my driving, 99% of it was trips 200 to 250 miles. Charge at home for about $10. Road charging is about $15. Best off-road vehicle I have owned, including a 4wd Blazer. Just look into it.

 

[Adipose]

One of my toys is a Bronco Badlands. Really great ride, you will not be disappointed. I also have a diesel rubicon Gladiator. The Jeep is pretty built so not much can match the off road capabilities of that rig with the diesel, but we certainly love both rides.

 

[Saul]

My wife has been eyeing one in baby blue, so I am probably going to have to buy one soon.

 

[Throwback]

I hear you guys about the Tundra. Mine has lots of mile left in it I'm sure. @Throwback, how many miles do you have on the new Tundra? My concern with them is they're still having engine issues. I believe there was a large recall this year on the 2024s.

And it's funny how things are with dealers. The last Toyota dealer I went into......well sparing the details, I left them quite angry. The salesman was flat out rude, the sales manager no better. Told them it was the last time I planned on visiting a Toyota dealership. I'd just buy through Costco in the future.

Whereas the Ford dealerships have been great, but then they've also got a bunch of 2024 Broncos on the lot with the 2025s not far being out.

Ive got about 2300 miles so far, thats it. No issues I know of. I know of the recall and I bought mine after that so I was told no issues, fingers crossed. Cheers

 

[Huvius]

I saw a post about a new Bronco shearing all of the lug studs on the driver rear wheel - on the highway - YIPES!!
One response was that this is not unheard of and the bolts are Turkish (?) steel.

Think I’d save some more funds and get an Ineos Grenadier

Home

INEOS identified a gap in the market for a stripped back, utilitarian, hard-working 4X4 engineered for modern day compliance and reliability. We’re building a serious off-roader from the ground up ready for all American conditions.

ineosgrenadier.com

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Sorry to hear you have to replace an old faithful vehicle. I went through that also in the last year to put out to pasture my 2006 dodge Cummins 3/4 ton turbo diesel. Still runs but at 300k miles just needed something better and newer. I decided on a 4wd Rivian. That was probably the best decision I have made for a long time. 835hp. 900 ft lbs torque. True 4wd. 11000 lbs towing capacity. And, get this, will flat outrun a corvette. 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds. Worst drawback is long trips. Range is 330 miles with a charge time of 1 to 2 hrs. But when I analyze my driving, 99% of it was trips 200 to 250 miles. Charge at home for about $10. Road charging is about $15. Best off-road vehicle I have owned, including a 4wd Blazer. Just look into it.

Don't have to replace the Tundra, it runs like a top. Just getting the hankering for a new vehicle.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I don't have one so I can't give you any first hand experience. I have a co worker who bought one right when they came out with the soft top, having been promised that the hard tops would be available as an accessory. The hardtop was never made available, she traded the first bronco in on a second one that came from the factory with the hardtop. Both were trouble free, but obviously they haven't been a round all that long. The 2.7L ecoboost has a pretty good reputation for reliability, not sure about the 2.3L as that hasn't been used as often or as long as the 2.7L. I'm told some of the early 10R80 transmissions had some issues, but I think those are resolved by now.

@Cheesehead
It amazes this old fella that the newer smaller engines combined with all the technology are out performing the old bigger displacement engines.
To me I doest seem right getting a little 2 litre motor to put out more horsepower than an older 3 litre.
I just wonder how these smaller motors will last when putt to the towing test like I do in Australia.
Just doesn't seem right to me. My wife's new Hyundai 2 litre diesel puts out 400 Nm of torque.
My old school Nissan 4x4 2.7 litre diesel only gets 300Nm. The marvels of modern technology.
Bob

 

[Alistair]

I test drove one when I was considering options for my winter / snow roads car.

I liked it quite a lot to be honest. In that 'small, practical, 4wd with just enough off-road capability to justify its looks' space, it's pretty competitive.

I was primarily cross-shopping a 2 door manual vs a 2 door manual wrangler.

The Bronco has way better on-road manners, is slightly more refined, slightly quieter at highway speeds, has a nicer interior, and seemed marginally better quality in terms of materials / fit / finish (although still very much in the 'American Car Brand' space, which is to say, still pretty poor). I liked clutch and brake feel better than the Jeep. I liked the driving position better than the Jeep. The tech is clunky, annoying and over complicated, just the same as the Jeep (and every modern car). Sound system seemed marginally worse as did the (subjective) shifter feel. MSRP Pricing was pretty comparable. It felt more fun to me that the Jeep. They're happy, eager little cars to drive, at least in my opinion.

I did feel that the 2.3 was a little under powered and would ideally like the 2.7L with the manual, although in fairness, the gearing does work really well with the 2.3's power band so it was pretty easy to drive and it didn't feel dangerously slow. I think my opinions in that area are a little biased by my other car as well.

I think it probably lags behind the Wrangler a little for 'serious' off-roading, but then I doubt that many buyers will actually do that anyway. I think it'll be very capable for the usual 'snow / rain / back roads / broken pavement / occasional dirt track' use case that most SUV/truck people actually encounter.

I don't think it's going to do a whole lot of towing, or at least, there are way better tools for that job.

Reliability, it's probably too soon to tell, but there don't seem to be too many horror stories just yet. In the absence of evidence, I'll fall back to my default assumption that it'll be ok, but not as good as anything Japanese.

I didn't buy one in the end, mostly due to silly dealer mark ups at the time and my eventual conclusion that my winter driving needs didn't really justify an SUV.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

@Cheesehead
It amazes this old fella that the newer smaller engines combined with all the technology are out performing the old bigger displacement engines.
To me I doest seem right getting a little 2 litre motor to put out more horsepower than an older 3 litre.
I just wonder how these smaller motors will last when putt to the towing test like I do in Australia.
Just doesn't seem right to me. My wife's new Hyundai 2 litre diesel puts out 400 Nm of torque.
My old school Nissan 4x4 2.7 litre diesel only gets 300Nm. The marvels of modern technology.
Bob

I think you have valid questions here Bob. Eventually as the more power you get while holding displacement at a specific level or in this case reducing it, the questions of reliability start to come into play. Race motors are designed of course to produce maximum power, not maximum mileage before a repair is required.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I test drove one when I was considering options for my winter / snow roads car.

I liked it quite a lot to be honest. In that 'small, practical, 4wd with just enough off-road capability to justify its looks' space, it's pretty competitive.

I was primarily cross-shopping a 2 door manual vs a 2 door manual wrangler.

The Bronco has way better on-road manners, is slightly more refined, slightly quieter at highway speeds, has a nicer interior, and seemed marginally better quality in terms of materials / fit / finish (although still very much in the 'American Car Brand' space, which is to say, still pretty poor). I liked clutch and brake feel better than the Jeep. I liked the driving position better than the Jeep. The tech is clunky, annoying and over complicated, just the same as the Jeep (and every modern car). Sound system seemed marginally worse as did the (subjective) shifter feel. MSRP Pricing was pretty comparable. It felt more fun to me that the Jeep. They're happy, eager little cars to drive, at least in my opinion.

I did feel that the 2.3 was a little under powered and would ideally like the 2.7L with the manual, although in fairness, the gearing does work really well with the 2.3's power band so it was pretty easy to drive and it didn't feel dangerously slow. I think my opinions in that area are a little biased by my other car as well.

I think it probably lags behind the Wrangler a little for 'serious' off-roading, but then I doubt that many buyers will actually do that anyway. I think it'll be very capable for the usual 'snow / rain / back roads / broken pavement / occasional dirt track' use case that most SUV/truck people actually encounter.

I don't think it's going to do a whole lot of towing, or at least, there are way better tools for that job.

Reliability, it's probably too soon to tell, but there don't seem to be too many horror stories just yet. In the absence of evidence, I'll fall back to my default assumption that it'll be ok, but not as good as anything Japanese.

I didn't buy one in the end, mostly due to silly dealer mark ups at the time and my eventual conclusion that my winter driving needs didn't really justify an SUV.

Yah it'll be a 2.7L turbo in a 4 door for me if I decide on one. The off road capabilities will almost certainly be more than I'll ever ask or have a need for. I've been clunking around the mountains and woods for hunting and fishing in these last 30 plus years with a 4x4 pickup that offered 4 hi and lo and that was it. Managed to do just fine. Might be fun and make it even easier to have these options, but they're certainly not required.

No, it won't tow a lot either. But then my wife and I have arrived at the conclusion we won't be buying a camper and touring the country in retirement using it. We may tour the country by vehicle but it will be in her Lexus and an Airbnb or hotel will be our lodging. We neither want to maintain a camper nor do I want to be bothered with towing it.

If anything it may be snowmobiles or UTVs we haul and the Bronco can handle that just fine. In the end I guess I'm really not sure why I'm thinking of this outside of I just think they look cool, thought it was a fun drive too (and a little less vehicle to drive isn't so bad) and it'll still handle the off roading I do still.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I just hate eco boost engines although granted I had one of the 2014 eco boost in my F150…I just swore I would never touch one again after spending $7,000 on its repairs. Hearing “they have fixed all the problems” makes me think of Jaguars a vehicle that looks great but at the very bottom of consumer reports in terms of mechanics

@Rare Breed
A lot of people in Australia including me think
Ford stands for, fix or repair daily.
To me give me a bit of shit and a bit of board and you can build a ford. Found in rubbish dump.
I think you get the picture I don't like fords. They are the 243 of the motor industry.
It's a pity you can't get the Nissan Frontier/ Navara in diesel in the USA. Great on and off road mid size pick up.
Bob

 

[Ed Lally]

Also attracted to the new Bronco. Also have a 2012 Tundra with 170,000 miles. Tires (315/75/17), wipers, brakes, 1 battery and oil changes, nothing else! Put ARB and OME aftermarket bumpers, suspension and accessories and lights. Starts, runs, extremely comfortable - lacks nothing but good MPG. Looked at the new Land Cruiser and prefer it over the Bronco. Had a 2000 LC and it was literally the best vehicle I’ve owned in 60+ years including several BMWs (5s, 6s, 1985 grey market M6 etc.) V10 diesel Touareg, several high end Mercedes cars and SUVs. New is nice but paid-for is nicer.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

They are the 243 of the motor industry.

We agree. Nice looking. Works great! American legends. I’ve had my best luck with Fords and the 243!

It figures you’d be driving a rice burner! Did you take out the drivers seat and sit on a lounge chair to fit in that “model” of what a real truck might look like?

I know, your Hibachi engine can run on soy sauce and peanut oil in a pinch! Tough to get that smell out isn’t it?!