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Gladiator vs Bronco.

dcmdon

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I know its not apples to apples. But the pickup truck aspect of a Gladiator is a want not a need.

So for me its between the Gladiator and the Bronco.

The following is a short write up I did for a Bronco group of what I saw yesterday during a static viewing of the Bronco.


I got a chance to sit in and measure a Bronco in person yesterday at Stoneham Ford in MA. Here are some thoughts and observations.

They had 2 - 4 doors. One was a Badlands on 32s, the other was a Black Diamond Sasquatch on 35s.

1) the 12" display is big. and responsive.
2) the interior is relatively narrow compared to the cars we own now. Not bad. But you can definitely feel that its built off a compact/midsized truck and not a full sized truck.

3) the Badlands on 33s looked very nice. It's proportions are very good.
4) I want to know how much the wheel/tire on a Sas weighs? It would not want to change a flat. Though with those tires, id imagine your chances eof getting a flat is pretty slim.

5) My concern with the Bronco was fitting my dog's crate in the back, lengthwise. The cargo area measures ~32" from a closed rear door to the hump at the front of the cargo area. MY dog crate will fit.
6) The MGV was not as nice as I was expecting. It has a brushed almost metallic look to it. I thought it was going to have more of a leather type texture to it. Not a big deal. I'll probably replace with Katzkins saddle leather interior shortly after I buy it.

7) the plastic floor is very nice and is going to be super practical. We have Weather Tech matts in all our current vehicles, so we effectively have a plastic floor now.
8) the Lux sound system sounded "good enough".

9) We will probably use ours with the top up and the doors and side windows off in the summer. (safari mode, the jeep guys call it). The side windows and rear window of the soft top come off very easily.
10) The anti-matter blue was GORGEOUS.

I'm looking forward to driving it within the month. I'm expecting it to drive better than a Jeep on the road. I drove a couple of jeeps recently and have decided that I may not want to live with the poor on-road manners of the jeep as an everyday driver.
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dcmdon

dcmdon

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One other thought regarding engines.

The base engine on a Bronco is a 2.3L turbo with 300 hp and 325 lb ft of torque.

$1800 gets you a 2.7L V6 turbo with 330 hp and 415 ft-lbs of torque.

$500 gets you a tune for either that bumps HP and torque by roughly 80 hp and 80 ftlbs.

There is nothing like this available on the Jeep.
 

AverageDad

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The Bronco looks great and Iā€™m sure itā€™s capable. But Iā€™d go Jeep for a few reasons (in fact I just did).

1) the large screen in the Bronco is impressive but Fordā€™s Sync system has never been as good as FCAā€™s Uconnect. Day to day, I prefer the Jeep interface.

2) Itā€™s a truck. It may not be a need but I think you want it. If not, youā€™d be comparing the Bronco to a Wrangler like most do. I love the truck bed.

3) Engine. Yes, the 3.6L is arguably underpowered and the Ecodiesel can get pricey. But it is a solid workhorse. Iā€™ve driven the Fordā€™s 2.3L in the Ranger and the 2.7L in the F-150. Yes, they are more powerful but they also have a low-speed vibration that I hated. I came out of a BMW to buy my Jeep and worried Iā€™d miss the power. But I donā€™t.

4) The Jeep community. Itā€™s real. Itā€™s impressive. You feel like part of the family. There is a lot of hype around the Bronco right now. In a lot of ways it may be better than the current Wrangler/Gladiator. But there is only one Jeep.

it also drives much better and quieter than I expected. My Gladiator is the first vehicle Iā€™ve ever bought with no buyers remorse.
Buy the Gladiator!
 

jorbasaurus

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The Bronco looks great and Iā€™m sure itā€™s capable. But Iā€™d go Jeep for a few reasons (in fact I just did).

1) the large screen in the Bronco is impressive but Fordā€™s Sync system has never been as good as FCAā€™s Uconnect. Day to day, I prefer the Jeep interface.

2) Itā€™s a truck. It may not be a need but I think you want it. If not, youā€™d be comparing the Bronco to a Wrangler like most do. I love the truck bed.

3) Engine. Yes, the 3.6L is arguably underpowered and the Ecodiesel can get pricey. But it is a solid workhorse. Iā€™ve driven the Fordā€™s 2.3L in the Ranger and the 2.7L in the F-150. Yes, they are more powerful but they also have a low-speed vibration that I hated. I came out of a BMW to buy my Jeep and worried Iā€™d miss the power. But I donā€™t.

4) The Jeep community. Itā€™s real. Itā€™s impressive. You feel like part of the family. There is a lot of hype around the Bronco right now. In a lot of ways it may be better than the current Wrangler/Gladiator. But there is only one Jeep.

it also drives much better and quieter than I expected. My Gladiator is the first vehicle Iā€™ve ever bought with no buyers remorse.
Buy the Gladiator!
I was also worried about on road manners, and considered the truck bed a want not need - and will happily second that I have zero buyers remorse with the Gladiator. I went Overland over Mojave/Rubicon to mitigate the annoyance of a rough daily driver, but honestly wish I had gone for one of the more off road ready models. The Overland drives better than my 2013 optima, with the optional A/T tires. Iā€™m sure Iā€™d have no issue with the bigger tires, etc of the more off road ready trims.

edit: the Bronco does look awesome though, good luck with your choice. Post pictures when you get it!
 

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The more mooks that go buy the bronco the merrier. Thats less of them owning a Wrangler or Gladiator. I hope that increased HP and TQ gets you far when the novelty wears off.
 

be77solo

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Curious to see more about the Bronco, but honestly, it's the Wrangler you'd be comparing.

I simply couldn't get by with a Wrangler or Bronco, I need some sort of truck bed. Went from a F350 8' bed I drove for 13 years to a Tundra 5'6" bed and managed for 5 or so years, so the Gladiator will work at 5', but no bed is simply not an option (in construction, GC, but subs do the heavy hauling ha), still need to simply pick up random stuff unexpectedly in a day from a few toilets to some plywood (don't get me started on current lumber prices :mad:.)

And of course you are on a Gladiator forum ;)

EDIT: And yes, I just put my money where my mouth is ha, traded the Tundra for the Gladiator about a month ago. No serious interest in Bronco or Wrangler, just doesn't fit my needs.
 

FrankFrqnkFrank

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If my then-current vehicle had not totally failed late last year (I drive them until the wheels fall off), I would've waited for the bronco black diamond to compare. You can get great tunes on those Ford ecoboosts (I use livernois) that raise HP and torque across the rpm range (not just a bump in meaningless peak #ā€™s). I like how the bronco looks, I like its features, and ifs would help occasionally on roads. But Having owned a gladiator for 1/2 year I wonā€™t be trading it in. I too need the bed, the features are good, open air driving is so very easy, and the auto tranny is superb (I have to control the shifts in our Ford). Plus when will Broncos actually be available?
 

CJ5w4wdSmokyOnMyTail

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One other thought regarding engines.

The base engine on a Bronco is a 2.3L turbo with 300 hp and 325 lb ft of torque.

$1800 gets you a 2.7L V6 turbo with 330 hp and 415 ft-lbs of torque.

$500 gets you a tune for either that bumps HP and torque by roughly 80 hp and 80 ftlbs.

There is nothing like this available on the Jeep.
Impressive numbers, no doubt. But slapping turbos on smaller displacement engines has downsides in the long run (the engines wear out much faster). This may not matter much if one plans on only keeping the vehicle a few years. Overall, I'm happy the Bronco is back and hope it will drive competition with Jeep and benefit us all. Thank you for sharing your observations!
 

AverageDad

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I was also worried about on road manners, and considered the truck bed a want not need - and will happily second that I have zero buyers remorse with the Gladiator. I went Overland over Mojave/Rubicon to mitigate the annoyance of a rough daily driver, but honestly wish I had gone for one of the more off road ready models. The Overland drives better than my 2013 optima, with the optional A/T tires. Iā€™m sure Iā€™d have no issue with the bigger tires, etc of the more off road ready trims.

edit: the Bronco does look awesome though, good luck with your choice. Post pictures when you get it!
I was also torn on trim. I love the look of the Mojave. But I know the overland suits my life right now - and it saved me thousands. Might trade up for a Mojave next time!
 

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The only Broncos I have seen are the sport. They. Seem tiny. And I am reminded of a new defender bu they look smaller. IMHO
 

OldButStillJeeping

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Been an avid 4wd guy since the 70's. I've owned both solid axle and IFS 4x4s. I'll never go back to an IFS 4x4 unless it's a basic snow car like a Subaru.

Bronco looks good, but that IFS was a deal killer for me, and it is for many hard core 4 wheelers.

Did the 4wd club circuit for a few years. Saw many blown axle shafts on IFS FJ Cruisers and 4 Runners. Not to mention the articulation draw backs and banging engine skid plates due to minimum ground clearance loss during suspension compression.
I wish Ford well with the Broncos, but they really screwed the possibilities with the IFS.

I'll keep my Gladiator Mojave and my Ford Super duty with it's solid axles.

Ford could have done it right, but they chose to appeal to the mall crawlers.
 
 



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