Haven't 100% decided on a Bronco yet, but we really want one...

[cr117]

We kind of were in a similar situation a couple years back. Really loved the Bronco when it was first announced, but thought it was geared a little too off road for the kind of activities we did (hiking & camping). We ended up getting an F-150 for the utility. That thing was a pain to park so we wanted something easier to drive to work and around town. On a whim, we placed an order for a Bronco in early 2022. After waiting 6 months, we realized how much of a gas hog the F-150 was, and the Bronco wasn't going to be any better, so we bought an EV for everyday driving and kind of gave up on the Bronco idea.

We were good with this setup for a while, but realized we didn't really need a full size truck. We rented a Bronco during a trip to Hawaii and were once again hooked. Luckily we still had our original Bronco on order (now converted to a 2023, lost the cyber orange but liked the area 51 just as much). Ended up trading in the F-150 for the Bronco when it was finally delivered mid-2023 and don't regret it at all. The thing is able to do what we asked of the F-150 and more. Able to haul the family and all our gear on road trips, while being much easier to drive around town. Plus, it has opened us up to the world of off roading, especially after the off-roadeo my wife and I did. We now have more ways of exploring the outdoors than we did before, thanks to the Bronco.

Sorry to ramble, just wanted to share my "success story".

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[MayhemMike]

My 2011 F 150 crew cab 4x4 Lariat is like a luxury vehicle in ride and comfort ( well because it is) compared to my two door Badlands Bronco. However, the Bronco is way more capable for what it was built for, plus the hard top comes off. If your wife likes the comfort of an SUV, the Bronco may not be to her liking. Don't get me wrong, the Bronco is fantastic and is a super riding vehicle, but it isn’t , or was supposed to be an SUV. BTW, anything with Sasquatch drives smoother on pavement. It’s the tires.

 

[voxel]

I've owned a 22 Telluride SX and now own a 23 Heritage which is Big Bend with Sasquatch and different color schema. They are completely different SUVs. The Bronco is a fun convertible car but lacks lane centering + adaptive cruise and the create comforts of the Telly (Bronco is an off-roader with basic amenities). The Telluride was meh in city traffic... a true appliance. On the highway I enjoyed the quiet smooth premium ride. The Telluride deserves the car of the year awards it has received.

If you want a family long road trip hauler that is quiet and comfortable... buy another Telluride. If you want to enjoy life and have fun get a Bronco. Don't skimp out and go with a 2.7L V6. It's a peppy engine that's a pleasure to zip around with.

Baby photo comparisons.

 

[Jazer]

(Mother of two/wife/large breed dog owner here)... The Bronco is my vehicle/primary "family" hauler and it now has 22k miles and nearly problem free. Mine was the second week of MY22 builds so there was only bout 6-7 months of Bronco production before mine was built, so I still bracket in with those first model year kinks that need to be ironed out.

Only mechanical issue was a bad alternator that was labeled as a factory defect, replaced under warranty (went out at 7k miles). This is not a Ford issue, it can happen to any make/model so I don't hold it against Bronco. Even the tow truck driver that day said he was seeing bad alternators/electrical issues on TONS of new vehicles of all makes/models. Other than that, a couple very minor things that warranty has covered (front camera went out & window switches falling apart)... Again, warranty replacements without any issue. Otherwise it's been great. Remember, you are going to hear the complaints far before the praise.

Any vehicle can have issues. I absolutely love my Bronco and everything that comes along with it & I intend to keep it for a long time. It is exactly what I expected it to be. Not everyone is in the same boat. A lot of people had unrealistic expectations of what an off-road oriented removeable top vehicle is supposed to be.

 

[Ninjak]

I had a few F150's all modded and lifted. The F150 I traded for the Bronco was a Harley Davidson version. What made me go Bronco was the simple fact I did not need a full-size truck. I did not haul or use it as a truck. It was my daily driver. So when I started looking, I looked for the same things my truck had and went from there. For me, that was a Badlands with the Lux package and leather.

I have not looked back. My Bronco is still large for a Bronco, but it fits. I can get into carparks, I fit in spaces. It's easy to handle, turn, all of it. Most of all I can go off-roading again. This is built for it and does it better than any of the trucks I had set up for off-roading.

I have no regrets and I am all in on my Bronco. Lol so many mods, and more are coming. So that is what I did, for you, you have to decide what will be the best vehicle for you.

 

[RobWTX]

Go drive one and do a U turn, you will immediately want to buy it.
I too, as many have, went from an F-150 to the Bronco and only have one regret. Waiting so long to do it!

Actually, when I bought the truck in '18, I heard that Ford was thinking about putting out a Bronco, but it was not confirmed, and I was ready for something else to drive. Loved the truck, but the Bronco is fantastic!

 

[Splattered23]

Any vehicle can have issues. I absolutely love my Bronco and everything that comes along with it & I intend to keep it for a long time. It is exactly what I expected it to be. Not everyone is in the same boat. A lot of people had unrealistic expectations of what an off-road oriented removeable top vehicle is supposed to be.

I agree with the bolded, my wife and i were just saying this is probably why we are all of a sudden seeing a ton of Broncos on the market and even below current blue book value with lower mileage. Lots of people ran out and bought these expecting them to be closer to a Kia/Honda etc in comfort.

 

[Callelk]

If you want stone cold reliable, look at a 4 Runner.

And with a young family that may be the best advice yet.

 

[Splattered23]

I was just a car guy my entire life until my father passed away, i inherited his 2008 F150 King Ranch with a lift kit and big knobby tires... drove it ~1,500 miles from AR to CA where i lived at the time. Fell in love with it but eventually traded it in along with my 2013 Subaru Impreza hb for a newer 2013 F150 FX4 which i LOVED the entire time i had until i traded it in for the 22 Tremor. Have just preferred trucks ever since i drove my dad's across the country.

We do actually use the truck for hauling boats and loaded down utility trailers so i'm not looking to replace the Tremor with anything - i love it! But that being said i do also like the idea of having something like a Bronco and my wife has been kicking around the idea of picking up an older Jeep as a weekend fun vehicle for several years now so this all sort of makes sense. We are just worried about the reliability/leaking/etc issues.

Also the more i look at these i'm wondering if we should try and make do with a single vehicle as long as possible in hopes the used 2023 start coming down in price as the 24s hit the lots? We want a Wildtrak and would miss out on the orange but would get the HOSS 3.0 and whatever other little improvements that come along with the newer model.

 

[Splattered23]

And with a young family that may be the best advice yet.

We've looked at the 4runner... they are supposed to introduce a totally new model next year so no way i'd want to buy a 2022-23 and then have a better version come out a year later i'd never forgive myself haha

 

[Callelk]

We've looked at the 4runner... they are supposed to introduce a totally new model next year so no way i'd want to buy a 2022-23 and then have a better version come out a year later i'd never forgive myself haha

Makes sense.

 

[userdude]

The 2025 Bronco I think is expected to be a new model. So there's that.

I dunno, most everyone who actually drives the Bronco is always like, wow this is nice to drive. They're all pretty capable. If you wanted to get one and go out on the Winona Auto Tour immediately, you'd be fine. Especially if you went full plates. The WildTrak's suspension and acceleration in sport mode is also nice. Turnkey, the 4dr Broncos are pretty good.

 

[Sledge]

Alrighty so back story... i drive a '22 F150 Tremor and my wife WAS driving a '23 Kia Telluride EX X-Line. We originally wanted a Bronco for her but some of her friends had the Telluride and it was cheaper so she went with the Kia. Absolutely NO mechanical issues with the Telluride. Well about a week ago she got rear ended by a Ram HD Dually and it totaled the Kia. So... we are in the market for a replacement vehicle again but are extremely torn on what to buy next. We live outside of town in Arkansas with three kids and a dog and do go to areas to camp etc that are much easier to navigate in the truck. Some rough roads here.. lots of rain, mud, sometimes snow etc. We are wanting something at least somewhat off-road capable and my wife has absolutely fallen in love with the Orange Metallic color on the 2022 Broncos.

So Bronco seems logical choice for us, but that being said... we seem to be reading nothing but problems about the Broncos and it's making the decision extremely difficult now. Researching pretty much ALL current vehicles seems like nearly everything has reliability issues. Or the engines are tiny and lack oomph. Or the cabin/cargo space sucks.

The Mazda CX-5 or CX-50 with the turbo seem like one of the best choices if she decides against the Bronco but it's small compared to what we are used to now. She doesn't want another Telluride or a Palisade.

Are the odds pretty high if we get a Bronco that we're going to have issues with water leaks, window noises/alignment, etc? We WANT the Bronco but we don't want to deal with the headaches. We had a 2015 Ford Exploder Sport before the Kia and it was great until it developed pretty bad leak problems with the sun roof and the tailgate. Had to get the drains cleaned out multiple times and the tailgate seal kept leaking and the carpet got moldy and musty and it drove us crazy, we hated it.

Feel free to talk us into the Bronco or OUT of the Bronco, we just want to hear opinions while we are trying to decide on what to do.

2022 wildtrak softtop heavily accessorized. absolutely zero issues at just shy of 60,000 miles. For road noise I pop a sound insulating blanket (from Amazon) between the Bimini and the soft top, which makes a huge difference. i found that different tires made a huge difference in sound levels as well (I’m rising on KO2’s). I love this thing….best vehicle ever.

 

[Rspayde]

I personally think the Bronco is far to small for three kids plus two adults but I bought a four door to haul around my two dogs. The middle rear seat is kind of awful with the little hump in in where your ass would typically rest.

THat being said I love my Bronco but just be warned you typically will only see the really in love or the really in hate people on line. The people who just drive the damn thing (my boss) won't ever be posting on a forum.

The 2.3L is plenty enough power, I have had the same engine going on 5 years coming from a Ranger to the Bronco. I hauled some weight in that ranger and couldn't have even told you I could notice it back there. I am sure the 2.7 is nice but I wouldn't get to hung up there.

 

[MNBigfoot]

We've looked at the 4runner... they are supposed to introduce a totally new model next year so no way i'd want to buy a 2022-23 and then have a better version come out a year later i'd never forgive myself haha

Still kicking myself for not getting the old Tundra before the new design came out.

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