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GNFITR

GNFITR

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a few things that I would Not want to leave behind ;
upgraded steering rack
upgraded transfer case
lockers Front and Rear
swaybar disconnect
and Yes the 4.70 gears

Your profile under your avatar says you have a 23 Badlands Sasquatch.

My 23 Non-SAS Badlands has the exact same steering rack as a 23 Badlands SAS
Has the exact same transfer case.
Has the exact same front and rear lockers.
Has the exact same Swaybar disconnect.

You do have .24 lower gears. Good luck finding an obstacle that a Badlands with 4.70 can go that one with 4.46 can't. Not that big of a difference to me to justify the added cost.

With the money I saved, I used it to upgrade the highly questionable Bilstein ESCV shocks that several have reported leaking and reservoirs falling off. An additional benefit is that I now sit ~2" higher and have ~2" more clearance than I would have if I had gone with the Sasquatch option.
 

BroncocnorB

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Your profile under your avatar says you have a 23 Badlands Sasquatch.

My 23 Non-SAS Badlands has the exact same steering rack as a 23 Badlands SAS
Has the exact same transfer case.
Has the exact same front and rear lockers.
Has the exact same Swaybar disconnect.

You do have .24 lower gears. Good luck finding an obstacle that a Badlands with 4.70 can go that one with 4.46 can't. Not that big of a difference to me to justify the added cost.

With the money I saved, I used it to upgrade the highly questionable Bilstein ESCV shocks that several have reported leaking and reservoirs falling off. An additional benefit is that I now sit ~2" higher and have ~2" more clearance than I would have if I had gone with the Sasquatch option.
Wait a minute now aren’t the 4.7 gears to compensate for the bigger SAS tires? Where the rubber meets the road I’m sure they’re geared even more closely. The rolling radius of the tire is the last gear in the math..
 
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GNFITR

GNFITR

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Wait a minute now aren’t the 4.7 gears to compensate for the bigger SAS tires? Where the rubber meets the road I’m sure they’re geared even more closely. The rolling radius of the tire is the last gear in the math..
I am not sure I understand what your question is, but if someone is saying that you must have 4.70's to run 35" (34.4) tires that is not true.

Is there an advantage to having .24 lower gears. Sure there is, but is it going to be noticable by the "butt indicator"? I don't think so and as I said, I think you would have a very hard time finding an obstacle that a similar bronco with 4.70's can navigate that one with 4.46's can't.

There are several on here who made the jump from 35"s to 37"s with 4.70's with no issue so not sure why anyone would see an issue with going from 33's to 35"s with 4.46's.
 
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BroncocnorB

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I am not sure I understand what your question is, but if someone is saying that you must have 4.70's to run 35" (34.4) tires that is not true.

Is there an advantage to having .24 lower gears. Sure there is, but is it going to be noticable by the "butt indicator"? I don't think so and as I said, I think you would have a very hard time finding an obstacle that a similar bronco with 4.70's can navigate that one with 4.46's can't.

There are several on here who made the jump from 35"s to 37"s with 4.70's with no issue so not sure why anyone would see an issue with going from 33's to 35"s with 4.46's.
I’m just saying that out the box, non SAS with 4.46 is probably nearly identical gear ratio to SAS on 35’s on the road because of the smaller tires.and off road. As well. I do t plan to get bigger tires, my non SAS. 2dr has great power on the road, is comfortable as well. It’s probably the fastest stock spec Bronco - auto, 2.7, 33’s
 

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GNFITR

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I’m just saying that out the box, non SAS with 4.46 is probably nearly identical gear ratio to SAS on 35’s on the road because of the smaller tires.and off road. As well. I do t plan to get bigger tires, my non SAS. 2dr has great power on the road, is comfortable as well. It’s probably the fastest stock spec Bronco - auto, 2.7, 33’s
Yeah I would not disagree with that.
 

SoDak1623

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I went non sas on my badlands 2.3 and 7mt. I didn't see the point in paying the package price just for wheels and tires. There are a lot of posts on this site where people seem to think that the 35's on the SAS are absolutely necessary to off road. I've done plenty of the trails in the San Juans near Ouray and Telluride and never found a situation where my stock badlands wasn't enough. People forget that the non sas badlands was very well thought out by Ford for its purpose as a jeep rubicon counterpart, and the rubicons didn't start offering 35s until Ford did. 1-1.5 inches of clearance is not going to make or break a trail ride if the driver is competent.
 

EasternSierra

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Isn't it possible just to be happy with what we have and appreciable of what others have done without it becoming some kind of personal spat? People gonna do what they're gonna do. I don't know, I just don't care to make others validate my feelings about how dumb or expensive others choices have been, since I don't have to pay their bills.

I have a BL Sas, I like BL non-Sas's just fine. If you're happy with the performance, great! So am I. Let's move on.
One thing I've found useful here is discussions of the pros and cons of various options such as Sasquatch vs. aftermarket mods. This can include people saying that their choice worked for them or didn't work for them and why. This is helpful to prospective buyers.

Sas tempts me, but for a Badlands it's not justified cost-wise ($5K+) for me because it adds almost nothing other than the tires and wheels. I'll be getting a MT with the 4.7 (if that's ever going to be built again at some point) and I personally don't want the Territory tires or the wheels. I'd replace them quickly if I did get a Sas.

To put the gearing ratio issue in context, the difference for AT BL buyers between 4.46 with non-Sas and 4.7 with Sas is 11% [correction: 5.4%]. Whether that matters or not will be a matter of use case and personal preference. There's no wrong or right answer here, though if you want to go up to larger tires then it's more likely to matter.
 
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dgorsett

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mciasto

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Another non-SAS BL here. The SAS bead lock wheels are really not great looking, IMO.

33"s are more than capable. I added skid plates everywhere ($1k) and now I just surf over anything that the 33s can't clear, which is nothing besides the toughest obstacles.

If SAS added a substantially different suspension, I would have got it. But just for ugly wheels and bigger tires...not for me.
 

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cbrenthus

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Didn't read the whole thread, but I believe to go SAS if you aren't going to mod, and don't go SAS if you are going to mod. Unless you have a ridiculous amount of money and don't care, then go SAS and mod, but then its probably a Raptor anyway ;)

I went SAS and am very happy, but I somewhat regret it because for the money, I could have done a nice 1-2" lift and whatever wheels and tires I wanted, and still ride well.
 
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GNFITR

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But it's the "only losers think they need that" mentality of "I did my build better" that these "vs" threads fall into. Even talking about it often boils down to how I did is right, how you did it is wrong. It isn't a binary thing. If you want a build thread explaining your approach and reasoning and couching it as a bonus, that's one thing. Saying it's just wrong for others to spend their money the way they want to (if they knew "better" or not) to me is an ego trip and boring.
I am nore sure who you are referring too but nobody voted you to be the comment police and nobody is forcing you to read anything. You can be an adult and scroll past.

To the contrary, I have not seen a single comment here that has been uncivil. This post like many of the post on this forum are based on individual opinions and experiences. It is all about personal choices. If you go back and read my initial post I clearly said upfront the choices I made were right for me. Some here have similar opinions while others have provided disenting opinions that are different than mine. We call that a discussion. I don't think a single person here has made a comment critizing another individuals choices. If it is not informative or not interesting to you than you have the right to move on. But please quit making antaginistic comments here to people who are making comments about their opinions and experiences.
 
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userdude

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I am nore sure who you are referring too but nobody voted you to be the comment police and nobody is forcing you to read anything. You can be an adult and scroll past.

To the contrary, I have not seen a single comment here that has been uncivil. This post like many of the post on this forum are based on individual opinions and experiences. It is all about personal choices. If you go back and read my initial post I clearly said upfront the choices I made were right for me. Some here have similar opinions while others have provided disenting opinions that are different than mine. We call that a discussion. I don't think a single person here has made a comment critizing another indiviiduals choices. If it is not informative or not interesting to you than you have the right to move on. But please quit makiing antagonistic comments here to people who are making comments about their opinions and experiences.
I do not believe I am being antagonistic or implying incivility. But it is your thread. Deleted my comments. Good day.
 

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Your profile under your avatar says you have a 23 Badlands Sasquatch.

My 23 Non-SAS Badlands has the exact same steering rack as a 23 Badlands SAS
Has the exact same transfer case.
Has the exact same front and rear lockers.
Has the exact same Swaybar disconnect.

You do have .24 lower gears. Good luck finding an obstacle that a Badlands with 4.70 can go that one with 4.46 can't. Not that big of a difference to me to justify the added cost.

With the money I saved, I used it to upgrade the highly questionable Bilstein ESCV shocks that several have reported leaking and reservoirs falling off. An additional benefit is that I now sit ~2" higher and have ~2" more clearance than I would have if I had gone with the Sasquatch option.


Just from my experience on the trails , SAS does give you options that are not stock . I will admit I have change a Lot off of stock SAS , and not saying what I have is the best , it's just what I have done so far . I for one can not drive a stock vehicle, and Love that fact that Ford has made everything modular for us to be able to personalize to our liking . One gentleman I trail ride with started Non SAS , and does a Lot , but he is running True 35's and is getting 12-13 mpg . Mine on 37's is 17 driving like I am a Tard , always in Sport mode .
 
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GNFITR

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Just from my experience on the trails , SAS does give you options that are not stock . I will admit I have change a Lot off of stock SAS , and not saying what I have is the best , it's just what I have done so far . I for one can not drive a stock vehicle, and Love that fact that Ford has made everything modular for us to be able to personalize to our liking . One gentleman I trail ride with started Non SAS , and does a Lot , but he is running True 35's and is getting 12-13 mpg . Mine on 37's is 17 driving like I am a Tard , always in Sport mode .
I am sure I am the only one here who told their wife/husband they were not going to make any changes :)

I truly did not intend to make any changes other than the wheels and tires for while, at least not until after the warranty was about up. But then my son, who bought a 23 Heritage, and I decided to go to Off-Rodeo TX and since then I have spent alot of time checking out what other Bronco Owners have done and came up with my own to do list :)
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