jcartwright99 Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 (edited) Well after about 6 months of death by 1000 dollar repairs from my Subaru , I decided to ditch it. Drove a Ridgeline , Passport, Maverick. Bronco, Ranger, and Explorer at the local dealerships. I would of driven a 4Runner but prices and inventory are just atrocious in my area. The Ranger, Bronco, and Passport (in that order) were my top 3. If there was any inventory to choose from I would have got a loaded up XLT with V6. Found a 2025 Bronco Big Bend with Black Diamond package that I really liked at a dealer an hour away. They had good deals on the 25s so I took the gamble. The Good: I walked away with a Bronco with 5 miles on it that I really liked and got a good deal. The Bad: Dealership was subpar. Salesman was only bright spot. They applied terrible vinyl pinstripes to every vehicle on their lot and tried to charge 499 for it (didn’t pay for it) .Weren’t completely up front with discounts. When I arrived, another salesman tried to pretend that the one I was talking with didn’t work there. The worst vehicle prep, I’ve ever seen. The vehicle has a piss poor wash and vacuum. I love it, with one exception. I literally think the 2.3 sounds like a whiny sewing machine. I now understand why they pipe in engine noise. I need to get it detailed and waxed. Debating on whether to put a coating on undercarriage. Need to get towing package, bags for the roof, and Raptor style running boards. Here is a photo (not a good one)! Edited July 14 by jcartwright99 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Congrats! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twintornados Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 That looks just like the 2022 Bronco Black Diamond I had....it was a fun vehicle for sure. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Congrats! I love my Bronco, and I'm sure you will too! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Rosadini Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 2 hours ago, fordmantpw said: Congrats! Likewise! Just curious...was the lousy dealer an old time house or part of a mega dealership? No excuse for that place to exist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenKohnen Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Welcome back. If you want to venture down a rabbit hole, RTR has been putting out some fun bits for the Bronco, specifically the 2.3 since it's going into their factory model. I'd figured the performance tune costs way less than adding the 2.7 to a build and jumps the power up to the same HP and close to the torque. Only downside would be having to jump up to premium fuel at all times. So when and where are you going to Off Roadeo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordmantpw Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 18 minutes ago, BenKohnen said: So when and where are you going to Off Roadeo? I should have added to my post...definitely go to the Off Roadeo! Seriously, it is an absolute blast! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 1 hour ago, fordmantpw said: I should have added to my post...definitely go to the Off Roadeo! Seriously, it is an absolute blast! I regret not using my free one. Just never was able to make the timing work since it'd have had to be its own trip to one of the locations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherminator98 Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 24 minutes ago, rmc523 said: I regret not using my free one. Just never was able to make the timing work since it'd have had to be its own trip to one of the locations. Yeah and COVID made that harder to do to a point too. I didn't go to mine, even though it was like 6 hour drive or so to NH one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 36 minutes ago, Sherminator98 said: Yeah and COVID made that harder to do to a point too. I didn't go to mine, even though it was like 6 hour drive or so to NH one. I know a big part for me also was limited vacation time by the time I was looking into trying to use it - I had other trips planned and didn't want to/couldn't allocate vacation days to a trip just for that (most weekend options were booked up when I was looking into it before it expired). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcartwright99 Posted July 14 Author Share Posted July 14 2 hours ago, fordmantpw said: I should have added to my post...definitely go to the Off Roadeo! Seriously, it is an absolute blast! I do want to go but just got to find the time. Right now, trying to read up on all the things in owners manual (yes, I read it). Then figure out all the things I need to get/do to prepare for what I need it to do. All while getting to know and understand what is normal/not normal, while breaking it in. Lots of new sounds (wind, engine, trans). Overall, very happy. I think my first order of business is installing my wheel locks at least on the spare tonight. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danglin Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Contgrats!! Only problem, you have 2 extra doors!! LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbone Posted July 15 Share Posted July 15 On 7/13/2026 at 7:58 PM, jcartwright99 said: I love it, with one exception. I literally think the 2.3 sounds like a whiny sewing machine. I now understand why they pipe in engine noise. I need to get it detailed and waxed. Debating on whether to put a coating on undercarriage. Need to get towing package, bags for the roof, and Raptor style running boards. Here is a photo (not a good one)! Welcome back! I’m very glad I don’t have to deal with random sales people and always get my Fords from the same person and place. Regarding the 2.3, your right, it doesn’t sound great, but to be fair the 3.0 in our ST doesn’t really sound that much better. But I will say I have the 2.3 in my work Explorer, and its performance is more than adequate. I haven’t been disappointed with that aspect at all. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.