Moving Up in the World

[Nc211]

Actually, I might be a little sketchy of that one. I found it and can see the Carfax on it. Nothing alarming vehicle wise, but the ownership history is strange. The green window sticker indicates a special order car. First owner takes delivery Christmas holidays 2021 in Chicago. Then it's registered in Spartanburg SC a few weeks later. Then has a visit for an alignment a few months later with 4,600 miles on it (guessing there is your tie rod end upgrades, perhaps snapped one of the OEM's). Then trades it in at the local VW dealer in Spartanburg 3 months and 800 miles later. The VW dealer then sells it at auction almost immediately. Why? In August 2022 people were paying $10k+ over sticker for these things and they were hard to get. Auction doesn't seem like the right place to sell a car like this immediately after taking it in on trade. I mean they didn't even try to sell it themselves in their market..

Owner #2 ends up buying it from a Ford dealer in Lexington NC (presume the dealer bought it at the auction). Owner #2 has it for 8 months and 8k miles and it ends up back in Chicago at a Toyota dealer in June 2023, who I presume is now Owner #3, despite the report indicating they sold it in June 2023 with 16,900 miles and was registered, yet again, in North Carolina. However, this same Toyota dealer in Chicago indicates they took title to the car in February of 2024 too with the same mileage that is on it now of 25k???

Chicago - SC - NC - Chicago? You're going to tell me that a Ford Bronco is a rare car in Chicago? No way would I believe that line from that dealer.

I think you need to ask yourself a couple of questions on this one. First, why did the first owner trade it in for a VW so quickly, but more importantly right after having an alignment done with less-than 5k miles on it? I would be skeptical of abuse that ultimately required an aftermarket tie rod end.

Why did owner #2 only keep it for 8 months / 8k miles and decide to trade it in to a Toyota dealership, who indicates they too sold it 9k miles ago, yet somehow have it on their lot today with title in hand?

Super cheap price. Odd ownership story. Something doesn't add up here if you ask me, and I suspect it all points to those tie rod ends and that visit to the alignment shop which seemed to have started this hot potato ownership story.

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[Elegance]

Actually, I might be a little sketchy of that one. I found it and can see the Carfax on it. Nothing alarming vehicle wise, but the ownership history is strange. The green window sticker indicates a special order car. First owner takes delivery Christmas holidays 2021 in Chicago. Then it's registered in Spartanburg SC a few weeks later. Then has a visit for an alignment a few months later with 4,600 miles on it (guessing there is your tie rod end upgrades, perhaps snapped one of the OEM's). Then trades it in at the local VW dealer in Spartanburg 3 months and 800 miles later. The VW dealer then sells it at auction almost immediately. Why? In August 2022 people were paying $10k+ over sticker for these things and they were hard to get. Auction doesn't seem like the right place to sell a car like this immediately after taking it in on trade. I mean they didn't even try to sell it themselves in their market..

Owner #2 ends up buying it from a Ford dealer in Lexington NC (presume the dealer bought it at the auction). Owner #2 has it for 8 months and 8k miles and it ends up back in Chicago at a Toyota dealer in June 2023, who I presume is now Owner #3, despite the report indicating they sold it in June 2023 with 16,900 miles and was registered, yet again, in North Carolina. However, this same Toyota dealer in Chicago indicates they took title to the car in February of 2024 too with the same mileage that is on it now of 25k???

Chicago - SC - NC - Chicago? You're going to tell me that a Ford Bronco is a rare car in Chicago? No way would I believe that line from that dealer.

I think you need to ask yourself a couple of questions on this one. First, why did the first owner trade it in for a VW so quickly, but more importantly right after having an alignment done with less-than 5k miles on it? I would be skeptical of abuse that ultimately required an aftermarket tie rod end.

Why did owner #2 only keep it for 8 months / 8k miles and decide to trade it in to a Toyota dealership, who indicates they too sold it 9k miles ago, yet somehow have it on their lot today with title in hand?

Super cheap price. Odd ownership story. Something doesn't add up here if you ask me, and I suspect it all points to those tie rod ends and that visit to the alignment shop which seemed to have started this hot potato ownership story.

Very very good points. I was trying to make sense of the 3 owner thing in my head and why it was traded multiple times between places. I'll call the shop that did the alignment and presumably the tie rods on Monday. I'll give my local Ford dealer a call and ask them to get me the service records, too.

If the tie rods are bad, is that a deal breaker? Wondering if that's a simple replacement or if that would affect everything else around it.

 

[Nc211]

It's not that the tie rods are bad. It's that they're not Ford OEM. It's a known weakness in the car that they can snap if doing some pretty heavy duty off-roading. Either the first owner knew this in advance (doubt it given the newness of the car back then) and prepared for it before it could happen, or he snapped them and these are the replacements. If he snapped them, then I would be cautious of the driveline and suspension components on those front wheels. Something else could be damaged under there too. YouTube it for some videos of when they snap, look at what they're doing to get them to break. Given that bumper and winch, and knowing a thing or two about western NC and SC, my money is on the fact they were a required repair and the second owner realized it after the fact and decided to buy a 4Runner instead.

An SUV is the one car I will never buy used again. Lived in Wilmington. Bought a certified 1994 GMC Jimmy SLT in 1997. It became a new Subaru Outback in 1999 once I realized the cause of all the issues it had. Think a broken tie rod end is bad? Buy a used SUV that lived in Kill Devil Hills along the ocean. Never bought a used SUV again after that. You just never know what they were subjected to or how they were treated.

 

[FordFamily4Fun]

It does seem odd that someone did those addons to a $51K truck and the dealer is under $40K on it, but a used 2 door with winch/bumper is probably a limited audience and they just want it gone.

Yeah, this is what has me wondering. Deal is too good to be true scenario. If it not a high traffic dealer and no takers over some months the dealer will do what needs to be done to move it. Also, the person who sold it to the dealer may have really had to sell fast for financial reasons/divorce/job loss so the person took the first low ball the dealer gave them.

At first I thought it was a fake SAS due to non-SAS fender flares but the previous owner may have preferred the tires poking out a bit. I'd find a local independent mechanic where you are buying it to check for new parts due to engine repairs/body work and to indicate if the mileage appears correct give wear on vehicle. If all good, best deal I have seen on a used Bronco. With the winch and whatever else was done you are getting an upper $50s Bronco with low miles for a great price.

EDIT: Now having read more of the thread I'd be hesitant. First owner probably flipped for a profit. Two additional owners has my radar up. I don't buy anything used without a thorough look by an independent mechanic.

 

[Jazer]

Hello fellow NC Bronco owner! Your Sport is very nice but I certainly understand the desire to "upgrade". It's a shame it's so far, it would nice to be able to inspect it in person without traveling 11 hours first.

I wonder if there is a member that would be willing to check it out on your behalf, before you nake the trip out there?

The ownership history is pretty suspicious & I personally would be hesitant to buy a modified Bronco.. particularly with certain upgrades that add additional stress or are due to potential stress breakage (such as the tie rods). Not that those mods are uncommon or even problematic, but everyone uses their cars differently and you just never know. It makes me wonder if there is some questionable issue that 3 previous owners got frustrated with and moved on from it given the low mileage and quick turnover.

The old saying goes, if it's too good to be true... If it's the outlier in used pricing I might look elsewhere. Broncos are not rare and we have them in quantities sitting on lots now.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

Very very good points. I was trying to make sense of the 3 owner thing in my head and why it was traded multiple times between places. I'll call the shop that did the alignment and presumably the tie rods on Monday. I'll give my local Ford dealer a call and ask them to get me the service records, too.

If the tie rods are bad, is that a deal breaker? Wondering if that's a simple replacement or if that would affect everything else around it.

Although @Nc211 makes some very good points to think about and did some good sleuthing, I don’t think you should get in a bind on tie rods (pun).

Tie rods are cheap and easy to replace, so even if you don’t trust those on it, get new ones put on. An alignment is ok and may even be needed after replacing the ends.

What I’d be most curious on is the state of the steering rack since we have no Idea why the tie rods were changed or upgraded.

Since the Bronco is fairly close to you, think you should take a trip to see it and drive it. You may not know much about cars or off-roaders, but maybe you can take someone with you who is more knowledgable, or purchase, then take it straight to a shop to inspect it. I’m sure there are some off-road shops in your area, so call ahead, then bring the Bronco to them within your first 3 days of ownership.

Other thing about a low price is it gives you room to fix anything with not much sweat. What I’d also be more concerned with is water. Was this a flood vehicle? You can inspect under the truck and under the hood to look for signs of water. The undercarriage will have some rust, they all do and mine does since I’ve gone through water, but it hasn’t sat in water if that makes sense.

There are so many flood vehicles, there is often shady business on hot ones and keeping the damage out of reports and reselling them. Good thing is that a Bronco can take water better than most cars, so even if there has been some water, it shouldn’t fry everything. Only the alternator would really be at risk and again, that’s an easy change out.

IF the suspension is stock Bilstein Squatch, again, not much of a worry.

For that price, it’s worth the risk and worth the trip to inspect. That’s what I’d do.

 

[FreddieLee]

IMO, the history isn't that odd.

My first Bronco was an Everglades. Owned it free and clear, and traded it in towards a Wildtrak. At the time of trade-in, it had just over 5K miles. If anyone looked at the service records, it would indicate that it was in for alignment twice while I owned it. The first time was after I leveled the front end. The second time was after I replaced the Bilstein shocks with Fox shocks. Point being, any changes to geometry, be it tie rods, level, lift, etc., it has to go in for alignment.

My current Wildtrak has been in for alignment 3 times. Anyone looking at the history might assume it was based on problems, but it was following each change I made to the suspension.

Back to the Everglades, it may have been traded two more times since I owned it. Who knows, but that wouldn't be indicative of any problems.

If the Bronco was traded in for a VW, it makes sense that it was sold at auction, and a lot of dealers follow that practice nowadays. Clearly, VW didn't need or want a Ford sitting on their lot, and just because it sold at auction doesn't mean that it was sold cheap. Some dealers simply want to turn a car that they accepted as a trade into cash as quickly as possible.

Some folks finance cars and take payments they can't afford. Other folks buy cars that are trending, the novelty wears off, then they trade them in, and the list goes on.

Congrats on the purchase.

 

[FreddieLee]

By the way, more often than not, customer-installed, non-OE, non dealer-installed upgrades add no trade-in or resale value to vehicles. For reputable dealers, that's sketchy, gray area.

If that was the Warn winch package purchased out of the Ford Performance catalog and installed by a Ford dealer, there'd be some value there, or with any Ford-badged item installed by a dealer.

Point is, we see upgrades and think the vehicle is worth more, but it's not. According to sources, that model with that mileage is valued at $43K on a lot. Considering the fact that Bronco's are rotting on lots all across the US right now, less than $40K seems very likely, and very reasonable. Almost expected...

 

[Tricky Mike]

If anything, high 30s is a bit overpriced. Prices are plunging, especially on 21s now that many are about to be out of the bumper to bumper warranty. My last Carvana offer was like 28.

 

[telenerd]

Looking at the pics doesn’t look like that Bronco did any serious off-roading. I see no bash or scrapes on the front skids and the body looks good. I’d go check it out in person and take on test drive. The only thing holding you back if you want the 2.7 engine instead which I would pass.

 

[Sitruc_btb]

Go check it out. It's not uncommon for vehicles like that to enter the used market.
A co worker scored a 23 WT with at least 17k worth of mods for msrp. Some other dude bought/ordered the Bronco, dumped a f#ckload pf money in it, and traded it with 2600mi. It may just be a case of "it looks cool and rugged, but I dont like it as a commuter". So off it goes. Similarly, I see lots of modded Wranglers for sale at the Mini dealer down the street from work.

The blue tie rods look like RPG upgraded rods. And the tires look big. Adds stress to the factory steering gear. That's the only worry Id have, but for that price, you can beef up the rack and move on.

 

[jrollo7]

Window sticker for reference. The VINs do match on this sticker and the door panel sticker.

Do it with inspection

 

[CGCarolinaBronco]

Hey y'all. I'm a current Sport Badlands owner from NC who has been searching for a Bronco Badlands for a bit now. I love my Sport dearly, but really want the added capability of the full size to do more technical rock climbing and some more difficult trails. After all, it's about smiles per gallon, not MPG.

I found a used 2 door 2021 Badlands with Squatch and low miles at a dealership about 11 hours away from me, and the price is exceptional - Less than $40k. I've spoken to the dealer for the past two days and it seems to be the actual price. I even pressed about dealer addons, which they guarantee me there are none of. They gave me my out-the-door price in writing and nothing seems to be shady. It's got a ton of aftermarket upgrades and looks to be in fantastic shape, plus the Carfax is clean. I went ahead and reserved it and have already started applying for financing.

I'm left wondering what would cause a Badlands with Squatch to be listed in the $30,000s. What's the catch?

I've heard the 2.3L is a pretty reliable engine and the Badlands is super fun to drive. Are there any watch out situations I should be on the lookout for before I head up north and purchase this Bronco? Are there reasons an owner would add expensive modifications to a vehicle and decide to let it go before 25,000 miles? Is there a common flaw in the 2021s that would encourage trade-ins? The dealer claims there simply isn't a huge market for Broncos in their area, but I'm still skeptical. I want to be realistic and listen to those who may be able to give me the insight to pounce on a great deal or avoid a horrible one. Thanks in advance!

It’s 3 years old and 25,000 miles is another issue. You can find them now within reason.

 

[CGCarolinaBronco]

It’s 3 years old and 25,000 miles is another issue. You can find them now within reason.

3 owners in 3 year period. No!!! I wouldn’t get it. Did you see service information. Possibly too many issues to want to keep possibly!! Sorry spoke too soon.

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