Pulled a camper with my BadSas 2.3

[RedBeardoh]

A 4 cylinder engine doesn’t belong in the Bronco. The base engine should have been the 2.7.

An automatic transmission doesn’t belong in a true enthusiast vehicle. I’ll gladly run my 2.3 to have the proper third pedal in place sure I’d love a V8 option, but I haven’t been let down on or offroad yet and I’ve definitely been putting it through its paces. Plus I can squeeze 20 mph on 35s what’s not to love?

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[userdude]

And I will enjoy my walnut blasting. Walnuts are delicious.

Gonna have to disagree here, in the strongest way. Vile wanna bes are those from the walnut trees!! Pecans are the best nut ever, anyone who says different has their hat on backwards. Imeen, where's all the walnut pies?!? I ask in jest as seriously as a heart attack. And don't cashew me! That's not even a nut!

 

[not on the rug]

Not a dog with 93 octane in sport mode. I mean it’s only 4/10ths of a liter smaller and it has larger forged pistons and larger forged connecting rods and forged crankshaft.. Mine performs and tows great. My second 2.3 ecoboost. I also have a 2017 ecoboost Mustang that is a blast to drive and over 100,000 trouble free miles.

Honest question...what else do you drive? The 2.3 is an absolute dog. Not even a good dog. It's a freaking mutt, especially with the Sas package or any other lift and big tires. It rolls at a snail's pace and feels underpowered for the weight and size of the Bronco.

I guess if you're comparing it to a 70s or 80s Bronco, it might feel fine. But compared to basically any vehicle made after 2005, it's an underpowered dog. Slower and than any small, mid-sized or large car or SUV. Slower than many/most mid-sized or half-ton pickup. To me, that's the definition of a dog. It feels like many of you guys have vastly different definitions of what a dog is. Heck, even the 2.7 barely provides enough juice to make the Bronco "fun" to drive.

 

[RedBeardoh]

Honest question...what else do you drive? The 2.3 is an absolute dog. Not even a good dog. It's a freaking mutt, especially with the Sas package or any other lift and big tires. It rolls at a snail's pace and feels underpowered for the weight and size of the Bronco.

I guess if you're comparing it to a 70s or 80s Bronco, it might feel fine. But compared to basically any vehicle made after 2005, it's an underpowered dog. Slower and than any small, mid-sized or large car or SUV. Slower than many/most mid-sized or half-ton pickup. To me, that's the definition of a dog. It feels like many of you guys have vastly different definitions of what a dog is. Heck, even the 2.7 barely provides enough juice to make the Bronco "fun" to drive.

Maybe the pre-2025 2.3 in the Bronco was different, tho I had that in my 19 Ranger and it was plenty zippy when the stupid transmission wasn’t hunting through 10 gears. The new 2.3 in the 2025+ broncos feels pretty good to me. To make the bronco “fun” to drive I take it off road. If I’m wanting to be zippy around the block or have a track day I’d take my wife’s tuned STi. The bronco wasn’t designed to run a 1/4 mile, as evident by any engine choice offered and the fact that it’s as aerodynamic as a brick with a parachute heading into the wind.

 

[VirginiaHeritage]

Lemme guess...it's 4.25" not 4".

Hey, I’m a 2.7 guy. I’m just trying to help a bro out.

 

[not on the rug]

Maybe the pre-2025 2.3 in the Bronco was different, tho I had that in my 19 Ranger and it was plenty zippy when the stupid transmission wasn’t hunting through 10 gears. The new 2.3 in the 2025+ broncos feels pretty good to me. To make the bronco “fun” to drive I take it off road. If I’m wanting to be zippy around the block or have a track day I’d take my wife’s tuned STi. The bronco wasn’t designed to run a 1/4 mile, as evident by any engine choice offered and the fact that it’s as aerodynamic as a brick with a parachute heading into the wind.

I have not driven the update 2.3, but unless I'm wrong the numbers haven't changed significantly.

It's weird when people say "if I wanted fun I'd drive my sports car." The bronco isn't a sports car. I'm not saying it is or has to drive like one. But even my wildtrak or the raptor is still a "slow" vehicle by any modern standard, even for vehicles it's size and weight.

 

[Vynull]

Honest question...what else do you drive?..... Heck, even the 2.7 barely provides enough juice to make the Bronco "fun" to drive.

I've driven every new BMW and MINI since 2014. Your definition of "fun to drive" seems to be strictly related to "how fast does this thing accelerate". Mine is "does this vehicle engage me and does it have character". Over the years, the vast majority of BMW and MINI vehicles have lost my version of fun to drive and replaced it with yours.

The thing is - most cars these days are blindingly fast. Speed has become a commodity. Steering feel, engagement, character have all become uncommon. I feel that the bronco and particularly the 2.3/MT combo have this in spades.

For reference, my daily driver right now is a 2026 BMW 550e. That does 0-60 in 4.2 seconds. I am finding myself finding excuses to drive the Bronco.

 

[not on the rug]

I've driven every new BMW and MINI since 2014. Your definition of "fun to drive" seems to be strictly related to "how fast does this thing accelerate". Mine is "does this vehicle engage me and does it have character". Over the years, the vast majority of BMW and MINI vehicles have lost my version of fun to drive and replaced it with yours.

The thing is - most cars these days are blindingly fast. Speed has become a commodity. Steering feel, engagement, character have all become uncommon. I feel that the bronco and particularly the 2.3/MT combo have this in spades.

For reference, my daily driver right now is a 2026 BMW 550e. That does 0-60 in 4.2 seconds. I am finding myself finding excuses to drive the Bronco.

Sort of. Creeping along and watching paint dry isn't fun at all though, unless we're talking about driving an M1 Abrams.

Steering feel and engagement, suspension performance, etc all play major roles in how fun a car is to drive. Many modern cars are blindingly fast and have no feel or soul. That 550e is a perfect example of that. It's a nice car. The B58 is a good motor (minus the hybrid system) and I'm actually considering a 2020 540 as a new build project. But it needs either M or aftermarket suspension, downpipes, improved cooling, a full exhaust and a tune.

Don't get me wrong, the Bronco is fun to drive. My wildtrak drives surprisingly well. I enjoy it. But some more power and some damn engine noise would make it a hell of a lot more fun (to me).

 

[userdude]

I've driven every new BMW and MINI since 2014. Your definition of "fun to drive" seems to be strictly related to "how fast does this thing accelerate". Mine is "does this vehicle engage me and does it have character". Over the years, the vast majority of BMW and MINI vehicles have lost my version of fun to drive and replaced it with yours.

The thing is - most cars these days are blindingly fast. Speed has become a commodity. Steering feel, engagement, character have all become uncommon. I feel that the bronco and particularly the 2.3/MT combo have this in spades.

For reference, my daily driver right now is a 2026 BMW 550e. That does 0-60 in 4.2 seconds. I am finding myself finding excuses to drive the Bronco.

I saw someone recently talk about this on a video, I think it was Engineering Explained with the new Ferrari (that looks like a Corvette, which now looks like a Ferrari... ) Chasing a number instead of a total package. I'm not that well versed, so I dunno, but I could see how that could be true. Gain a lead in the race for metrics but lose the spirit.

 

[RedBeardoh]

I have not driven the update 2.3, but unless I'm wrong the numbers haven't changed significantly.

It's weird when people say "if I wanted fun I'd drive my sports car." The bronco isn't a sports car. I'm not saying it is or has to drive like one. But even my wildtrak or the raptor is still a "slow" vehicle by any modern standard, even for vehicles it's size and weight.

I hear ya, fair enough. If you get the chance to drive the new 2.3 with the manual, I’d love to hear your feedback. Not quick my any means, but with my setup the gears are long and I find it has enough power to overtake when passing. But the engagement I get from shifting (one of the nicer feeling manuals I’ve driven honestly) I wouldn’t trade for anything… unless ford hears us whining and releases a N/A V8 then maybe I’ll consider

 

[not on the rug]

I saw someone recently talk about this on a video, I think it was Engineering Explained with the new Ferrari (that looks like a Corvette, which now looks like a Ferrari... ) Chasing a number instead of a total package. I'm not that well versed, so I dunno, but I could see how that could be true. Gain a lead in the race for metrics but lose the spirit.

Which is why any pre-electronic nanny Porsche is more fun to drive than newer ones. You sacrifice a bit of power for a lot more soul

 

[not on the rug]

I hear ya, fair enough. If you get the chance to drive the new 2.3 with the manual, I’d love to hear your feedback. Not quick my any means, but with my setup the gears are long and I find it has enough power to overtake when passing. But the engagement I get from shifting (one of the nicer feeling manuals I’ve driven honestly) I wouldn’t trade for anything… unless ford hears us whining and releases a N/A V8 then maybe I’ll consider

I know it's a toss-up with the MT vs V6 argument.

I chose the wildtrak bc it was the only model that drives close to the way I wanted it to. The raptors are cool but heavy and loaded with an extra 800lbs.

The Wildtrak has the 2.7 but it's auto. I would much prefer a stick but for me, that was the sacrifice I made. At the end of the day a big, growling V8 and Manual tranny would be the ultimate Bronco trim

 

[RedBeardoh]

I love how quickly this deviated from the OP lol

 

[vrtical]

The Bronco was not designed as a tow vehicle and therefore doesn’t need a good towing platform like a 2.7 for the base engine. The 2.7 is not a base engine. In the F150, it will outpull any V8 from any manufacturer. We use all the engines in the F150s for work and the 2.7 will out pull any V8 from any manufacturer. We used to use Chevys and ram trucks, but their V-8’s are not on par with the eco-boost engines. They’re more comparable to the coyote, which is a bit anemic when towing. The coyote sounds fantastic, however.

True the coyote is kinda worthless in this use case, the TQ band is way to high lol. I had a 3.5TT in my F150 and pulled 8500 lbs without sneezing anywhere. The 10spd trans makes a big difference also. I towed about 5k with my braptor but we won't talk about that.

 

[MayhemMike]

Nothing like sitting back and watching folks mark their territory over which disposable motor is better. The “ real” factor used by most to decide which motor to opt for is “ testosterone “. It was the main factor back in the day when we had those fantastic V8 options. The vast majority of owners sitting in the passenger seat with an head set on playing music couldn’t tell which motor was which in the Bronco anyway. All these turbo sewing machines will be melted down in some Chinese smelting plant and turned into lawn ornaments sooner than later. Just a disposable mirage to make the EPA happy. Enjoy those Broncos regardless of what power you own.

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