I just spent the weekend driving a soft-top 2022 Ford Bronco Sasquatchand it made me rethink everything. Specifically, everything I’ve always loved about the Jeep Wrangler.
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See, the Bronco is the first convertible 4×4 in a long time to offer independent front suspension. In part, that’s because it’s the first drop-in 4×4 in a long time that isn’t a Jeep Wrangler.
I love the Jeep Wrangler. I simply love Jeep. I’ve owned a few (some in really disgusting condition), and while I can’t vouch for David Tracy’s (RIP) all-around Jeep lifestyle, I’ve long held that your off-road vehicle doesn’t deserve to die unless it has a solid front axle.
My weekend with Bronco shed some light through the cracks in that particular line of thought.
See, even with thick 35-inch off-road tires and high-altitude suspension (all part of the Sasquatch package), the Bronco I drove was incredibly solid on highways, twisting roads. and cracked pavement. You certainly feel the weight of those big, wide 35s working against you in steering and braking, but compared to all the solid axles I’ve ridden, it’s a completely different animal.
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And I’m not just talking about Wrangler. The old Mercedes G-Wagen had a solid front axle. In all fairness, it’s a handful to drive, even if it’s powered by some kind of fire-breathing AMG engine with five times the horsepower of the engine the car was originally built with. created for use or not. The Wrangler is an obvious target with Ford’s new Bronco, and it’s amazing that any automaker in the country let Jeep have full, unregulated ownership of the off-road vehicle segment not. roofless, doorless throughout his life. But while Jeep has forged a tradition of solid front-wheel drive in the Wrangler, it’s not the only automaker to bring that trusty ancient configuration into the 21st century.
I have a particularly difficult uphill pass during my usual weekend fun, always pointing out the weak points of a solid front-wheel drive. It was a 270-degree downhill bend with a series of cracks and bumps running across the ramp almost perpendicular to the flow of traffic. A bumpy curve can make even a brand-new, zero-meter Wrangler feel a little wobbly. In my dear departed ’92 XJ Cherokee, the whole rig would shake and shake as I headed down the ramp, the infamous “death wobble” on full display.
I went to that infamous ramp last night in Bronco. Roofs falling, windows falling, sunsets falling over the horizon and several options at play. In a nutshell, my brain is in Wrangler mode, and I hit the bend in anticipation with lots of shimmy and resistance through the steering wheel.
No. No. Bronco ate up that ramp as if it were as smooth as a bowling alley.
On the one hand, it’s no surprise. Independent suspension was invented to eliminate the bad behavior of solid axles and we have known for a century that it is the superior arrangement. In recent years, even the heaviest off-road vehicles have switched to IFS. Culturally speaking, the Mercedes G-Wagen is a luxury item for the rich, but Mercedes knows this modern-day car has to perform as convincingly off-road as the previous generation, and the company has make good on that promise. Every serious off-roader from GM, Ford, and Ram uses independent front suspension, and – with the exception of the traditional Wrangler and Gladiator – every modern Jeep has independent front suspension. and behind.
I’m not sure I’m ready to give up the solid front axle entirely. Jeep has stuck with that configuration since World War II for good reasons, and tradition is only part of the story. But my weekend with the big Bronco made me understand that a capable, playful 4×4 convertible doesn’t have to shake and shiver every time you ask it to think in two directions at once.
After three decades of sticking to the religion of the solid front axle, I began to experience some doubt.
