Badlands.... Do I need the Sasquatch Upgrade (Newbie)

[ThunderFlash]

Doug, Thank you so much for your dealer suggestion. I am going to look at AutoNation Bellevue this weekend.

I've bought a few new and used cars from them, the last being our used '22 WT. They seriously had the best price on my truck, or one similar to it, in the entire country. I also thought they were nipping me a little on my trade. So I checked around more on line and locally and it was actually a fair offer. They gave me $31,500 and listed the car for sale at $34,500....so with the tax credit, that was about as well as I would have done selling myself. You still got to haggle a little bit and they are a national chain dealer, but in my experience they've been more reasonable than some of the other local dealers, which is too bad. I'd haggle pretty hard on a '25 if you can find one you like, or at least close to it.

I'm no Ivan Stewart or Camel Trophy winner, but we could go mosey around on some trails a little. @Scott M and @ezapar 2 set up activities a bit over on the FB page, too.

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[Kevin Scarbel]

Guys thanks for taking the time to read this question. I am a total newbie and want to get into overlanding. I decided that I am going to get the Badlands model but here is my million dollar question. Do I need to upgrade to the Sasquatch package? Here is what i am looking to do. Nothing extreme! I want to be able to head out for overnight trips in the back country and be my weekend home on wheels in the parking lots during the ski season here in WA state. No rock crawling nothing crazy I just want to get away from the people here in Seattle. This will be my everyday driver as well so keep that in mind. The one I am looking at has the Equipment Group 334A and does not have the Sasquatch upgrade. The salesman at Sound Ford told me the only difference is the Sasquatch upgrade has the bigger tires. I actually prefer the slightly smaller tires on the basic Badlands but I do want to be safe when off roading. So please any experienced overlanders here in the PNW tell me if I really need to upgrade. Thank you so much! Also to anyone in Seattle do you have a recommendation for a dealer? The guys at Sound Ford could not answer any of my questions other then they are all basicly the same.... which i find hard to believe

I'm of the opinion that it would be silly to buy a Badlands and not get the Sasquatch package.
I can imagine ordering an Outer Banks without the SAS but look how much better an OB is with the SAS package.

 

[23OBX2.7]

Just a note on tires ( for our prospective buyer ) - the 33” KO2’s are firm, the 315/70 Goodyears are marshmallows. By going with the 35” Falken RT01’s, I get that same firm ride I liked in the KO2’s. The stock 315/70 Goodyears are downright SOFT. Just something to keep in mind during test drives.

No joke I was shocked at the extremely poor transitional stability at speed I walked away. 275-70/18 Destination XT feel like sport tires in comparison.

 

[ejpaul1]

IMO, Badlands non-sas is the way.

and right now I have a situation: I am seeing take offs in my area, 35's and some 33's,,,, price is close enough and guess what I am buying? the 33's.

From a guy that offroads almost every weekend, the 33s do it wonderfully

 

[Valhalla]

 

[HalfmuleFarmer]

and right now I have a situation: I am seeing take offs in my area, 35's and some 33's,,,, price is close enough and guess what I am buying? the 33's.

From a guy that offroads almost every weekend, the 33s do it wonderfully

Really depends on terrain, and the need (or not) to clear pointy rocks and go up and down rock shelves. I don’t set out to take the most challenging line, but in Utah, sometimes you have no choice. 35s get me there, but I understand why people have 37s. But in wet mud? It’s usually not about clearance. As one of my offroad buddies puts it, “the heavier you are the more likely you get stuck.”

 

[timhood]

Guys thanks for taking the time to read this question. I am a total newbie and want to get into overlanding. I decided that I am going to get the Badlands model but here is my million dollar question. Do I need to upgrade to the Sasquatch package? Here is what i am looking to do. Nothing extreme! I want to be able to head out for overnight trips in the back country and be my weekend home on wheels in the parking lots during the ski season here in WA state. No rock crawling nothing crazy I just want to get away from the people here in Seattle. This will be my everyday driver as well so keep that in mind. The one I am looking at has the Equipment Group 334A and does not have the Sasquatch upgrade. The salesman at Sound Ford told me the only difference is the Sasquatch upgrade has the bigger tires. I actually prefer the slightly smaller tires on the basic Badlands but I do want to be safe when off roading. So please any experienced overlanders here in the PNW tell me if I really need to upgrade. Thank you so much! Also to anyone in Seattle do you have a recommendation for a dealer? The guys at Sound Ford could not answer any of my questions other then they are all basicly the same.... which i find hard to believe

For you, Sasquatch would be an appearance package, so since you prefer the smaller tires, it’s a no-brainer. I’ve done a ton of what you would call extreme off-roading in a non-Sasquatch Badlands. Sasquatch is only needed to get into trails on the more extreme side before requiring heavy modifications. Personally, I think the KO2s on the regular Badlands are better tires than the Goodyears on the Sasquatch. Go non-Sasquatch. If later you decide you want bigger tires, it’s easy to put 35s on.

 

[Rpm]

Even though I've got the Sas and on 37, I would absolutely suggest to go with Badlands on 33.
You get a nice ride with badlands suspension, 33 would be much better in snow. The drive would be great for day to day as well.
Needless to say that Badlands is very much a capable ride

 

[michelle227]

Personally, I think the KO2s on the regular Badlands are better tires than the Goodyears on the Sasquatch. Go non-Sasquatch. If later you decide you want bigger tires, it’s easy to put 35s on.

To repeat, the '26 was not being delivered with KO2's installed. My February build came with Goodyear Territory's on all five wheels.

 

[DALOLA]

lol... 7 pages..... ‍

Bottom line OP, *ANY* Bronco, from the no option base, to a full on Raptor, will do what you want to do, no question. Sure, some will do it "better" than others, commensurate with price....

So, just get what you want, and don't worry about trying to justify it. You want it, you can afford it, that's all that matters. Go for it!

Post up pix when you find the right one.

 

[Oldhippie]

I drove a 4dr non Sasquatch badlands at the Moab of offroadeo and was surprised at how low (scraped on lots of “nothing” stuff) it was…I knew my bronco would need 37”s and a lift…I ordered a non Sasquatch v6 2dr badlands…but ended up with a stripper 2dr v6 big bend Sasquatch…after many changes I wish I had gotten just a base v6 non Sasquatch so I could do proper suspension and axle upgrades without throwing all the factory options away…but the fact is probably less than 1% of bronco buyers/owners will ever “need” the capabilities of the Sasquatch package and a non Sasquatch badlands is probably overkill also…for the use case described by the OP Sasquatch is unnecessary imho…

 

[Billy Baroo]

"If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up"

 

[ThunderFlash]

So @blg did you find a truck?

Remember, the only bad decision you can make is to not buy a Bronco at all!

 

[gwbigdog]

I have both, go to the Bronco Off Rodeo. Good training

 

[bendover]

if you're MT, non sas. if you're auto go sas.
manual cars get the gearing regardless.

the gearing advantage makes a big difference once you're on a heavy MT on a beadlock.

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