[TFL] Sasquatch Bronco vs Modded Wrangler vs Defender goes serious off-roading

[Zandcwhite]

These comparison videos are entertaining, but not very informative. Anybody whose been wheeling for years understands how different suspension systems perform. The bronco didn’t change the physics of short arm ifs, solid rear axle off road vehicles. Picture the 2 door with an fj body and the 4 door with a 4 runner body. Viola, you’ve now seen exactly how a bronco will drive both on and off road hundreds of times over the last 20 years (although it certainly won’t have Toyota reliability). The lockers, sway bar disconnect, and 35’s make it nearly identical to the thousands of mildly built 4runners you see out on the trails. Yes it is capable of most trails(any Vehicle with 35’s and lockers is). Yes it will carry a tire in the air a lot. No it won’t flex as well as a solid axle. It will be more expensive to lift and likely less durable. It’s a new vehicle on an old design with all the off road tech. It was built to cash in on the rubicon’s success and was obviously designed to 1 up the wrangler in nearly every off road measurement (easy to do when copying someone else). The xtreme recon showed just how easy it is to 1 up the other guy with a little lift and bigger tires. The competition is clearly raising the bar for all of us, but don’t pretend the bronco did anything revolutionary.

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[Steph1]

I think they will take whatever they can get their hands on fast. They want to be first with the video. In this case, the same Steve guy owned the Land Rover and the monster Rubicon. So I’m sure it was convenient.

Having said that, it can’t be that difficult to locate a Rubicon on 35s.

I believe it was totally done on purpose, these guys are popular enough to get numerous willing Jeeps guys by merely asking for it. They wanted people to find the stock Sasquatch Bronco almost as capable as highly modified Defenders and Wranglers to have an excuse why it didn’t keep up in certain areas. That way, the Bronco doesn’t really loses the game…. It has excuses and that’s what they wanted.

 

[aldo98229]

I believe it was totally done on purpose, these guys are popular enough to get numerous willing Jeeps guys by merely asking for it. They wanted people to find the stock Sasquatch Bronco almost as capable as highly modified Defenders and Wranglers to have an excuse why it didn’t keep up in certain areas. That way, the Bronco doesn’t really loses the game…. It has excuses and that’s what they wanted.

Plus there’s the unspoken politics. They want to be in Steve’s good graces seen he lent them two wheels and tires to recover their Defender from Red Cone.

 

[rallydefault]

I believe it was totally done on purpose, these guys are popular enough to get numerous willing Jeeps guys by merely asking for it. They wanted people to find the stock Sasquatch Bronco almost as capable as highly modified Defenders and Wranglers to have an excuse why it didn’t keep up in certain areas. That way, the Bronco doesn’t really loses the game…. It has excuses and that’s what they wanted.

Uhm, come again? lol

 

[LongTimeListener]

I gotta say: the Bronco is very trim-dependent in the looks department. Looks a little like a Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet in this shot.

 

[rkj__]

Looks a little like a Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet in this shot.

I'm trying to see what you're seeing, but I can't find a single body line that is comparable.

 

[T Town]

I gotta say: the Bronco is very trim-dependent in the looks department. Looks a little like a Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet in this shot.

Are you cross eyed?

 

[rallydefault]

Maybe the color? I dunno lol

 

[aldo98229]

Are you cross eyed?

Haven’t you see his avatar...?

 

[MrMischief]

He appeared to believe “more gas” was the answer for everything.

But hey, he drives a Land Rover...with dealer plates. So it kinda makes perfect sense...

I believe in land rover world "more gas" is the correct answer for many situations. It's my understanding that the traction system needs to see a tire spinning in order to engage the various electronic magic that it uses. Surely how fast the tire is spinning compare to the others comes into play. So it may be one of those things that becomes normal behavior, spin up the tires a bit first see if the electronics can figure it out.

 

[jdegrave]

I don’t think you’re going to convince many of the Jeep diehards to move to a Bronco. TFL did a decent job on the comparison but definitely wasn’t apples to apples-modded Wrangler was definitely advantaged. That said the Bronco performed exceptionally well. At the end of the day its very existence is great for Jeep as it will drive innovation and make the Wrangler even better. It’s already happening!

 

[SilverSurfer]

Geez Guys, get real. That Bronco was not impressive at all. 35" wheels, lockers, sbd, etc. and it scrapes its belly at most places.

Why did they not try the Bronco at the first obstacle where the Defender failed? Scared of a real challenge?

 

[Outrun]

These comparison videos are entertaining, but not very informative. Anybody whose been wheeling for years understands how different suspension systems perform. The bronco didn’t change the physics of short arm ifs, solid rear axle off road vehicles. Picture the 2 door with an fj body and the 4 door with a 4 runner body. Viola, you’ve now seen exactly how a bronco will drive both on and off road hundreds of times over the last 20 years (although it certainly won’t have Toyota reliability). The lockers, sway bar disconnect, and 35’s make it nearly identical to the thousands of mildly built 4runners you see out on the trails. Yes it is capable of most trails(any Vehicle with 35’s and lockers is). Yes it will carry a tire in the air a lot. No it won’t flex as well as a solid axle. It will be more expensive to lift and likely less durable. It’s a new vehicle on an old design with all the off road tech. It was built to cash in on the rubicon’s success and was obviously designed to 1 up the wrangler in nearly every off road measurement (easy to do when copying someone else). The xtreme recon showed just how easy it is to 1 up the other guy with a little lift and bigger tires. The competition is clearly raising the bar for all of us, but don’t pretend the bronco did anything revolutionary.

Yep. It's nothing new. SAS have been a real thing for years for IFS vehicles.

 

[AirportDave]

We ran this trail last weekend, and I can tell you the "V-notch" obstacle is pretty challenging, even with a big lift and tall tires. Most of the trail is in or near water so your tires will be wet going up all the obstacles, and all the loose dirt on the rock from those wet tires adds even more challenge. Our JLR has a Mopar lift and 35's, and we had to work to make it up.

I'll give props to the Defender for trying what they did- that line to the left of the actual notch is the hardest line up- our group helped recover a modded GX470 that had gotten hung up pretty badly trying that line. The other obstacles on Wheeler are pretty fun too!

 

[LongTimeListener]

I'm trying to see what you're seeing, but I can't find a single body line that is comparable.

Are you cross eyed?

Maybe the color? I dunno lol

Haven’t you see his avatar...?

Maybe it's like cilantro. To some people it tastes soapy. To others, parsley-ish. There seems to be a genetic component.

I'm sorry you guys don't see it, but consider this fair warning: If you buy a Bronco with the OBX package, some people are definitely going to think "Oh look, that guy put different wheels on his Murano CrossCabriolet!"

It's practically a dead ringer.

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