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Things Ford Got Right with the Bronco Vs the Wrangler

Runngun18

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I agree there are issues with the Jeeps and in some cases can/should be improved.....that being said, it's hard to please everyone. Overall, I think Jeep has done a great job! Just my very humble opinion.......:bandit:
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AcesandEights

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1) Vinyl floors with drains
Carpet is the dumbest damn thing ever put in a Jeep. It absolutely should not be standard in a Sport or Rubicon. I can see carpet standard in a 4-door Sahara or other luxury trims, but not a base model and not the off-road model. Carpet should be optional on Rubicons, Sports, and whatever the "beach" theme Jeep is called.
There are drains in the floor, and the carpet is extremely easy to remove. Why offer it as an option, if it can be standard, and provide the same ability to drain water. Ford borrowed that idea from Wrangler.

Same argument. Leather is great for the luxury models and should remain optional on a trims. Cloth sucks for both dog owners and off-roaders. A tough but nice-looking and easy-to-clean vinyl seat would be perfect.
Wrangler had long been offered with vinyl. It is hot in the summer and cold in the winter. The cloth is easy to clean, although it does capture dog hair...which isn't that hard to clean either. The cloth is a better alternative, more comfortable, for most owners.

Ford said "yes" to their purists, and Jeep said "screw you guys". No Xtreme Recon for our purists and long time enthusiast. We don't get the good stuff.
You can get a Rubicon in two-door, so what does the Sasquatch offer that isn't already offered in the Wrangler? A two-door Rubicon is the Sasquatch package, and Wrangler offers it with a manual transmission, which Ford does not.

The Bronco 2-door has split rear seats that fold independently and relatively flat. Much better design than the tumble bench seat in the Jeep.

What says you? In what ways can the new Bronco inspire improvements from Jeep?
This is a weird one to me. As someone who has owned three Wranglers, I don't know why someone would want a split rear seat in a Wrangler? You either roll the seat forward, or take it out. You can't do either with the Bronco, and the Bronco seats to not lay anywhere near flat.
 

Tech Tim

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5) Driver cockpit. The JK had more driver room than the JL, but the Bronco has more leg and head room than both of them.

6) Engine (even with the small percentage of failures). The 2.7 has more power and gets better mileage.

7) 35s fit without any lift, even on the Base model, though it is tight.

I view the competition between the two as extremely good. Hoping we will see some new improvements from Both Jeep and Ford.
 

ajkitebrder40

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The Bronco has a non-self-destructing manual transmission. That’s a big plus in my book.
Ha, so far, so good with the Jeep manual, but there is this. I haven't spent much time with the Bronco Manual to see how it is from a driving standpoint.
 

AFD

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There are a lot of things that Ford got right that are simply superior to anything offered by Jeep.

I'm not talking about IFS. That is something that can be debated. But there are some things that can not be debated. They are simply BETTER. And would be received positively by the Jeep community if Jeep did it.

1) Better readily available and reasonably priced engines. Yeah, you can get a 392 and a diesel in a Jeep. But if you want to spend just a bit more and get a motor that will always be more than enough without being overkill, its hard to beat the 2.7L twin turbo V6.

This motor makes 50 more hp than our V6. But more importantly, it makes 415 ft-lbs of torque. That's 135 ft-lbs more torque than our engine and is only 55 ft-lbs less than the 392.
100% this. Still kinda irks me going to a heavier vehicle with a tow hitch that has less torque than my car. The upcoming turbo i6 sounds great, but I'm a little doubtful that it'll come to the 2-door Wrangler (or if the 2-doors will still exist by then).

At that point its more important that you buy from a dealer that will take good care of you. When I bought my Sti, I was torn between an Evo and a STi. The decision was made easy when I went to visit my 2 local dealers. The Subaru dealer treated me with respect and showed integrity in their negotiations. The Mitsubishi dealer immediately started all the car dealer sales scam crap, DESPITE the fact that I told them I had worked as both a car sales man and as a F&I manager. Sorry, Im not buying accidental death and dismemberment insurance on my car loan.
So many Mitsu dealers are trash, but fortunately I was able to find a nearby combo Subi/Mitsu dealer for most of my service, which was a pleasant experience. After they eventually dropped Mitsu, it only took 20 minutes for the next closest dealer to break something while doing a recall.
 

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AcesandEights

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1) Better readily available and reasonably priced engines. Yeah, you can get a 392 and a diesel in a Jeep. But if you want to spend just a bit more and get a motor that will always be more than enough without being overkill, its hard to beat the 2.7L twin turbo V6.

This motor makes 50 more hp than our V6. But more importantly, it makes 415 ft-lbs of torque. That's 135 ft-lbs more torque than our engine and is only 55 ft-lbs less than the 392.
I don't get this. Why not compare the Jeep larger engine to the 2.7L? Why pick and choose an engine that has less power when Jeep offers four engines and Ford offers two. You certainly could pick the standard 2.3L from Ford and compare it to the "standard" engine in the Jeep.

6.4L, 3.6L, 3.0L, 2.0L, EV...

...
3) More passenger space - this was irrelevant to me, but it is fact.
The four-door hard top versions have the same passenger volume 103.7 cubic feet.

4) Basesquatch - You can get (almost) all the off road goodies on a base truck with a stick. Jeep kind of fixed this with the XR package.
This isn't any different than buying a base Rubicon. I paid $39.8k for a two-door Rubicon.
 

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I drove a Bronco before buying my JL to replace my JK.
1. Mirrors on body.
2. Doors without window frames. The opening is so big it’s almost like built in 1/2 doors with the windows down.
3. There isn’t a cross bar across the top so it’s awesomely wide open for the back passengers.
4. I must be getting old because I dig the 11 inch screen. I think that’s about how big the screen was on my first Mac in ‘86.
 

AcesandEights

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5) Driver cockpit. The JK had more driver room than the JL, but the Bronco has more leg and head room than both of them.
Not really true. The JL and Bronco are basically the same.

JL headroom: 40.8" hardtop, 42.6" soft top
Br headroom: 40.8

JL legroom: 41.2" front /38.3" rear
Br legroom: 43.1" front / 36.3" rear

6) Engine (even with the small percentage of failures). The 2.7 has more power and gets better mileage.
Jeep offers four engines and 4xe, with better power and mileage.

7) 35s fit without any lift, even on the Base model, though it is tight.
Only with Sasquatch, which Jeep offers on the Rubicon (the JL was designed to fit 35" stock).
 

AcesandEights

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ZBRA

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There are drains in the floor, and the carpet is extremely easy to remove. Why offer it as an option, if it can be standard, and provide the same ability to drain water. Ford borrowed that idea from Wrangler.
Every Wrangler I have ever owned leaked, straight off the lot, hard tops and soft top. Water collects under the carpet and it stinks. I have removed the carpet from the last four Wranglers I have owned. Two I did Line-X floors, two I did bedtread floors. I plan to try Armorlite next, but they have so far ignored the 2-door market.

Compared to other vehicles, the carpet is easy to remove. But for weekly removal to get rid of trapped moisture, it's not exactly a 5 minute task.

Wrangler had long been offered with vinyl. It is hot in the summer and cold in the winter. The cloth is easy to clean, although it does capture dog hair...which isn't that hard to clean either. The cloth is a better alternative, more comfortable, for most owners.
For years cloth and vinyl have been no cost options on plenty of trucks. Leather should be the only option that costs more. Not saying cloth should be discontinued, but vinyl would be a great option as well.

You can get a Rubicon in two-door, so what does the Sasquatch offer that isn't already offered in the Wrangler? A two-door Rubicon is the Sasquatch package, and Wrangler offers it with a manual transmission, which Ford does not.
Rubicon is equivalent to a Badlands (33s, Dana 44s, lockers, sway bar disconnect, etc.). Sasquatch package is equivalent to Xtreme Recon package (35s, OEM beadlocks, factory lift, etc.).

Rubicon is not a match for a Sasquatch.

You can get the manual with a Sasquatch package now. In 2021 you couldn't.

This is a weird one to me. As someone who has owned three Wranglers, I don't know why someone would want a split rear seat in a Wrangler? You either roll the seat forward, or take it out. You can't do either with the Bronco, and the Bronco seats to not lay anywhere near flat.
Personal preference. I'll be pulling the rear seat out of my JL anyway.
 

Tech Tim

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Not really true. The JL and Bronco are basically the same.

JL headroom: 40.8" hardtop, 42.6" soft top
Br headroom: 40.8

JL legroom: 41.2" front /38.3" rear
Br legroom: 43.1" front / 36.3" rear
I'm 6'6" and have been driving the Northridge4x4 Bronco a bunch and it has way more room inside for the driver. The only rig that size where I have the seat forward one-click.

I also drive our JLs and JTs and owned a JK for a number of years. Am very familiar with how well they fit the driver.


Jeep offers four engines and 4xe, with better power and mileage.
I was comparing the most common engines in both rigs: the 2.7 v-6 to 3.6 v-6.


Only with Sasquatch, which Jeep offers on the Rubicon (the JL was designed to fit 35" stock).
We just installed 35s on our Base model Bronco. Can't do that with a Sport.

35s come stock on the Squatch Broncos, but you've got to order the Xtreme package for that.


There are Pros and Cons to both vehicles and as said in my earlier post: I'm hoping the competition between the two vehicle brings us some new improvements.
 
 



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