Everglades Or Badlands?

[TheWaterBronco]

I have never felt the 2.3 to be underpowered though only drove the 2.7 on two test drives of other trims.

The Everglades has been great for daily driving and limited off road so far, it does get comments from other bronco owners as a rarer trim with the snorkel and squared fenders (which look great in person).

Personally with how you describe the buying situation I would recommend the Everglades but if you and your wife test drive and don’t like the feel of the 2.3 (sport mode REALLY makes a difference on road) then go with your gut and get the Badlands 2.7.

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[Kevin Scarbel]

My wife has a fully optioned out Hot Pepper Red Badlands ordered 2024 model (Sasquatch, Lux, tow, dual tops, Raptor style running boards, washout floors/vinyl as we didnt want the carpet with the leather, 4 door, 2.7L). However, with a hefty price tag of MSRP $69k, it had us looking at cheaper options that would allow us to still have a great offroad family rig. So we started to look at a new 2024 Eruption Green Everglades which has a sticker of $58k. We do get A/Z plan, so the Badlands would be around $65k, while the Everglades would be around $54k.

To be honest, one of my biggest doubts is the 2.3L. I know, a lot of you like it. But I also feel like most people who like the 2.3L, have never owned the 2.7L and always say "Its got enough power for me". My 2 door has the 2.7L and test drove a 2.3L sasquatch manual transmission. To me, the 2.3L felt like an absolute turd compared to the 2.7L. I have not driven one with the 10 speed though to see how the difference is. The 2.3L just left me less than impressed and super sluggish. People will say you can add the Ford performance tune and be at similar power of a 2.7. But you also add the same performance tune on the 2.7l, which puts it way ahead of the 2.3L.

With all that being said, this will be my wifes SUV. Shes not nearly as much of a HP junky as I am so wondering real world feedback of the Everglades. For both daily driver, rock crawling and offroad in general how the 2.3L in that package handles. We live in TN, so rocks, mud, hills and water are what it will see. We really wanted wash out floors so came down to black diamond, Everglades or Badlands. If you option out the Black diamond now, it can get into the $60s.

Part of me wants to continue to wait for the one we ordered, but the Everglades is intriguing and love the way it looks with the more squared fenders vs the Badlands. Seems like a WAY better value overall for what you get vs spending almost $70k for the Badlands. You dont get all the bells and whistles like adaptive cruise, heated steering wheel, 360 cameras, or the big one sway bar disconnect, which technically could mean more things to break offroad. But you get everything else it has plus a few other things such as winch, snorkel, longer vent tubes, and slide out tailgate. Also, I know they make some nice pull pin sway bar disconnect kits now, so I dont think I have to have the push button disconnect.

So the real question I have is what is everyones thoughts on the Everglades Vs the Badlands as far as value, fun, and all around performer? The pricing of these are ridiculous anymore so it has us reconsidering. So if you could get a fully loaded Badlands for $65k, or a Everglades for $54k what would you do?

Bonus points for anyone whos owned both an Everglades and Badlands, or has real world comparison between the two.

Only you can answer this question.
Two completely different flavors.
Everyone has a Badlands or Outer Banks.........do you mind having what everyone else has?
I feel my 2.3L-powered Heritage and Everglades have abundant power, and I enjoy the additional fuel economy. But I'm not you.
With the 4.7 axle ratio, the 2.3L works flawlessly.
If you want to go fast, buy a Porsche 911. I don't feel the Bronco was meant to go "fast", no more than the first generation Bronco was. It's best at "cruising" so to speak.

 

[Calm horse]

I have driven multiples of 2.3 and 2.7s...the big difference I noticed is not the speed, but how it feels out of the hole in the first several gears...once they are both up to about 30 to 40 mph the 2.3 was fine. However.for me the 2.7 matched with the 4.7 gear is a frigin blast to drive...then i added the FP tune on top of it which changed the shift points along with small hp boost...I no longer use sport mode..
I have not offroaded any 2.3s so I can't compare there....and I believe the 2.3 with manual has a better crawler gear than the 2.7 auto

 

[ferbm]

There's not much to add at this point, but having owned both, I can tell you that they each perform well. Like a bunch of others have said, it really comes down to you. For me, the 2.7 is way more "fun" to drive. The 2.3 was impressive for what it was, but my fun factor (seat of the pants measurement) went up 3-4x in the 2.7. Gas milage only went down 0.02x. Comparatively speaking I don't care about the extra gas given the extra smiles.

I also like the sound of an engine and am one of those dummies that would pay for a V8 option! Shoot, it could even have less power than the 2.7 and I would buy the V8... LOL! Okay... Back from dreamland... I don't LOVE the sound of the 2.7, but it is WAAAAAYYY better than the 2.3! Unfortunately, IMHO aftermarket exhaust doesn't help here on either. They sound like forced farts... Natural is the way to go...

So, is it worth 10k more??? Only you can decide OP!

 

[TheSquatch]

Totally up to you and your wife, BUT while not true apples to apples comparison, I have a 23 BadSquatch 2.7 and a 22 Explorer AWD 2.3. The biggest difference I have noticed is the 2.3’s turbo lag is much greater than the 2.7. My Badlands seems much more powerful down low and up top. Gearing is better in the Bronco, but the Explorer weighs less.

My wife drives the Bronco a couple times a week and loves the torque of the Bronco. She complains when she has to drive the Explorer, because of how “slow it feels” compared to the Bronco.

My brother in law has an Everglades and he loves it. He thinks it has plenty of power.

I guess it is all relative to the individual driver’s wants and needs?

I do love the square fenders of the Everglades!

Like the square look so much that I’m considering buying these flares to see how they look on my Bronco:

 

[Laddyaddy19]

Both are good engines. I have driven both extensively and can’t tell much difference, but you might. Try test driving each and see what you think. I think the Everglades package is a great value for what you get. Badlands swaybar disconnect is a nice tool to have but does it make it way more capable? I don’t think so.

 

[Ninjak]

Everyone has a Badlands or Outer Banks.........do you mind having what everyone else has?

Hmm well.....What model do I have? Do not cheat and look to the right With Bronco's everyone does not have to look like everyone else's Bronco. That is the beauty of it.

 

[MNBigfoot]

Reason being is we had a Badlands on order. Also, when I build a Black diamond, with sasquatch, tow, MIC top, mid package, Roof rails and 2.7, it puts it at almost $62k. Totally not worth it and would wait for the Badlands in that case. Plus I hate the blue in the Black diamond interior. Ultimately, the only reason we have been considering the Everglades is it sure seems like the most bang for the buck out of ANY of the Broncos for the cost. You get a lot of features on it and add ons, and still cheaper than a similarly loaded black diamond. Ultimately, the price point for what you get makes the Everglades seem like a great option, even if it comes with the 2.3.

The Heritage Edition is $5k less (Mid-Package, Mod-top) than the Everglades and you can put the 2.7 in it

 

[Kevin Scarbel]

Reason being is we had a Badlands on order. Also, when I build a Black diamond, with sasquatch, tow, MIC top, mid package, Roof rails and 2.7, it puts it at almost $62k. Totally not worth it and would wait for the Badlands in that case. Plus I hate the blue in the Black diamond interior. Ultimately, the only reason we have been considering the Everglades is it sure seems like the most bang for the buck out of ANY of the Broncos for the cost. You get a lot of features on it and add ons, and still cheaper than a similarly loaded black diamond. Ultimately, the price point for what you get makes the Everglades seem like a great option, even if it comes with the 2.3.

The Everglades does indeed offer a LOT of bang for the buck. It's only sales detractor is the unavailability of the V6, which is ironic given the 2.3L's 300 horsepower has a ridiculous amount of power.
As a career truck engineer, I tend to be particular. I am thrilled with the power, and fuel economy, of the 2.3L (in both of my Broncos).

 

[BricknoseBronco]

I have never felt the 2.3 to be underpowered though only drove the 2.7 on two test drives of other trims.

The Everglades has been great for daily driving and limited off road so far, it does get comments from other bronco owners as a rarer trim with the snorkel and squared fenders (which look great in person).

Personally with how you describe the buying situation I would recommend the Everglades but if you and your wife test drive and don’t like the feel of the 2.3 (sport mode REALLY makes a difference on road) then go with your gut and get the Badlands 2.7.

Great to hear! The dealer is ordering it in, so will hopefully test drive it today and know better. Last thing we want to do is buy a $55k vehicle and have regrets. But theres been a lot of positive comments on the Everglades, especially when you consider huge cost difference between the two we would be getting. Definitely a great value.

 

[BricknoseBronco]

Only you can answer this question.
Two completely different flavors.
Everyone has a Badlands or Outer Banks.........do you mind having what everyone else has?
I feel my 2.3L-powered Heritage and Everglades have abundant power, and I enjoy the additional fuel economy. But I'm not you.
With the 4.7 axle ratio, the 2.3L works flawlessly.
If you want to go fast, buy a Porsche 911. I don't feel the Bronco was meant to go "fast", no more than the first generation Bronco was. It's best at "cruising" so to speak.

Ill hopefully be driving the Everglades today to put this to rest one way or another. And do agree about the uniqueness of the Everglades. I have yet to see one on the road or at Bronco meet ups locally. Definitely a rare configuration. Which I guess that could be looked at as a good thing (no one else has one) or a bad thing (why does no one have one? Do people not like this trim?).

And I never once said anything about needing the Bronco to be fast. But if you dont believe more HP and torque help out on the trail, rocks or dunes, then you're crazy. Nothing to do with winning drag races. With todays cost of vehicles, making sure you dont have a $55-60K boat anchor just for "cruising" is what I am trying to avoid for us is all.

 

[BricknoseBronco]

The Heritage Edition is $5k less (Mid-Package, Mod-top) than the Everglades and you can put the 2.7 in it

Sure, I could build one. But 1) Heritage edition is ugly and looks tacky to me 2)color options suck 3) interior is ugly. I feel like Ford dropped the ball on that model. Either way, appreciate the recommendation. Just know the heritage edition is not for us.

 

[BricknoseBronco]

The Everglades does indeed offer a LOT of bang for the buck. It's only sales detractor is the unavailability of the V6, which is ironic given the 2.3L's 300 horsepower has a ridiculous amount of power.
As a career truck engineer, I tend to be particular. I am thrilled with the power, and fuel economy, of the 2.3L (in both of my Broncos).

Do you have an Everglades? Enjoy it?

 

[Kevin Scarbel]

Ill hopefully be driving the Everglades today to put this to rest one way or another. And do agree about the uniqueness of the Everglades. I have yet to see one on the road or at Bronco meet ups locally. Definitely a rare configuration. Which I guess that could be looked at as a good thing (no one else has one) or a bad thing (why does no one have one? Do people not like this trim?).

And I never once said anything about needing the Bronco to be fast. But if you dont believe more HP and torque help out on the trail, rocks or dunes, then you're crazy. Nothing to do with winning drag races. With todays cost of vehicles, making sure you dont have a $55-60K boat anchor just for "cruising" is what I am trying to avoid for us is all.

No question that off-road, it's all about torque rather than horsepower.
My first vehicle was a 1946 CJ-2A. 60 horsepower. It was all about the torque and gearing.

 

[Darth_JoPa]

I was in your same boat and just bit the bullet and went with the 2.7 badlands. I LOVE IT. Every single day I get my beast is a joy and I know I can go anywhere with it. Don't overthink it, follow your heart.

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