It has been over a 12 months since I pieced collectively a Ford Bronco speculative suspension deep dive utilizing preliminary specs, comparisons to the overseas-market Ranger Raptor, and teaser images of a unadorned chassis. Right this moment the specs are extra full, and I’ve been in a position to lay my arms on the actual factor for a more in-depth look in my very own driveway. The 2-door physique could also be bolted in place this time, however I’ll take that as a result of I’m in a position to take away the tires and poke round beneath.
This Bronco is a two-door First Version, a 2021 trim stage that is bought out. You may mainly ignore that truth, as a result of every little thing it included will be nonetheless discovered on the 2022 Ford Bronco Badlands. Importantly, it additionally has every little thing we’d care to take a look at so far as a suspension deep dive is anxious, plus extra. It had the stabilizer bar disconnect mechanism shared with the Badlands, locking entrance and rear differentials which are frequent to the Badlands and the Wildtrak, and the Sasquatch mixture of HOSS Bilstein dampers and 35-inch tires that comes commonplace on Wildtrak and will be added to any trim as an possibility.
The Bronco I desire is the Badlands, which has every little thing we’ll see right here, however with 33-inch tires paired with a longer-travel set of HOSS Bilstein dampers. The rationale? The 33s don’t stuff the wheel wells as a lot as this 35-inch rubber, and because of this, they permit for higher flex and articulation. This setup, with the 35s, managed a 648-point most Flex Index rating on my RTI ramp (see video above), however a Badlands with out Sasquatch would do even higher.
Many of the Bronco vs Wrangler trash discuss facilities on the Bronco’s use of impartial entrance suspension. Jeep folks will say, “Stable entrance axles flex extra.” They’re not flawed, however stable axles don’t trip easily or steer precisely if you’re not off-roading, they usually’re not practically as settled on washboard filth roads. Until the necessity for max articulation enters the body, impartial entrance suspension and the decrease unsprung mass that comes with it may be a greater method to go if that suspension provides respectable floor clearance and a wholesome quantity of journey.
The suspension we see right here just isn’t a direct carryover from the North American Ford Ranger pickup we all know. As a substitute it comes from the Ranger Raptor bought in Australia, Europe and different components of the world. Because the Raptor title implies, it’s a wide-track, long-travel impartial entrance suspension. Rumors of a U.S. Bronco Raptor will little doubt construct up from what we’ll see right here.
It’s clearly a double wishbone entrance suspension, with higher (yellow) and decrease (inexperienced) wishbones fabricated from aluminum, and a steering knuckle (purple) that’s fabricated from metal. This mix is a direct reverse of the North American Ranger pickup, which makes use of metal arms and an aluminum knuckle.
The entrance bump cease (yellow) is a urethane bumper that sits on the prime finish of the coil-over spring and damper meeting. Ford makes use of this design as a substitute of the frame-mounted bump-stops we’re used to seeing on a Tacoma or 4Runner as a result of it offers them higher freedom to tweak the accessible suspension journey utilizing bolt-on components.
The aluminum higher management arm (inexperienced) is canted downward towards the again to generate a useful dose of anti-dive geometry, and the ball joint is ready far again to assist generate a wholesome dose of caster. Past that, the ball-joint appears to be held in place with a circlip that ought to enable for straightforward adjustments or aftermarket upgrades.
When in place, the tire barely hides the higher ball joint that’s simply peeking into this image. We’re not seeing the intense high-mount design favored by Toyota, however the entrance knuckle (purple) continues to be fairly tall, a transfer that reduces higher ball-joint and wishbone bushing hundreds by rising the vertical separation distance from the tire contact patch on the floor.
This view additionally makes it clear that the Bronco has the type of front-steer rack placement (yellow) we count on to see when an engine is mounted lengthwise, and why the house occupied by the rack-and-pinion steering linkage forces the brake caliper (inexperienced) to occupy the unused house on the alternative facet.
You could have puzzled how heavy that metal knuckle (yellow) was going to be, but it surely’s truly hole. We’re additionally getting our first glimpse of how the Bilstein HOSS dampers bolt to the decrease wishbone through a decrease bushing (inexperienced) with a molded-in tie-bar. These dampers have piggyback distant reservoirs (purple), and if we may peer inside we’d see stiffer end-travel damping zones on the excessive prime and backside ends of the shock to protect in opposition to topping and bottoming.
The decrease wishbone and knuckle have protuberances (yellow) that work collectively as a steering restrict cease to maintain the steering rack from loading up in opposition to its inner end-stop. The opposite factor to note is how the knuckle’s thickness is regionally optimized (inexperienced) to save lots of additional weight past what they’ve achieved by making the higher part hole.
Every leg of the wishbone has eccentric cams (yellow) that enable for caster and camber adjustment, and additional out we will see the nuts (inexperienced) that maintain the damper in place. In the meantime, the stabilizer bar end-link (purple) connects to the rear leg of the wishbone.
The stabilizer linkage connects to a weird-looking stabilizer bar arm (yellow). We’re used to seeing stabilizer bars created from a easy bent piece of round-stock, however this one consists of a blade that’s bolted (inexperienced) and listed to a separate crosspiece, as you may see in a racecar.
That crosspiece incorporates the First Version and Badlands’ stabilizer bar disconnect mechanism (yellow), which is each hidden and guarded by a stout bash plate. I somewhat doubt we’d see this bolt-on arm building on Broncos that lack the stabilizer bar disconnect, however their single-piece mounted bars would mount to the identical bushing places.
It’s lots simpler to see the works with the bash plate eliminated. The enterprise finish of the bar consists of two halves (inexperienced) that meet inside a hydraulic coupling mechanism (yellow) that may be disconnected below load. This represents an enormous benefit over the Wrangler’s mechanism, which might solely be operated on flat floor in no-load situations.
The Ford unit will be disengaged in H4 or L4 drive modes, and it’ll robotically reconnect in case your pace will increase to the purpose the place the bar is required for security. Nevertheless it doesn’t change totally off at such instances – it as a substitute goes right into a standby mode that waits to robotically disengage once more when your pace drops beneath the edge.
The diameter of the brake rotors (yellow) is pretty modest as a result of the bottom Bronco comes with 16-inch wheels. However the rotors make up for this by being fairly thick, which supplies them quite a lot of thermal mass. The calipers themselves are pretty beefy twin-piston (inexperienced) sliding items with sizable brake pads.
From right here, the rear suspension seems to be incomplete. It’s a five-link solid-axle setup, however we will solely make out the decrease trailing hyperlink (yellow).
The coli-over spring and shock meeting bolts right into a closely strengthened pocket (yellow) that’s integrated into the body rail.
The coil spring itself employs a dual-rate design, however the preliminary price is ready as much as collapse totally (yellow) when the car is sitting on the bottom. For all intents and functions, the primary working space of the spring seems to be a linear price – until there are delicate wire diameter variations that aren’t instantly apparent.
Right here the suspension is totally unloaded on my Flex Index ramp, and you’ll see how that preliminary part has opened up. Its essential function is to maintain the spring seated at full droop, very similar to the skinny tender springs you usually see on the prime of racing coil-overs.
This view additionally offers us a sneak-peek on the urethane bump cease (yellow) that sits on the prime finish of the coil-over meeting. Just like the entrance, the Bronco completely employs shock-mounted bump stops. You gained’t see a stopper that registers on the stable axle housing itself.
You need to crawl beneath fairly far to get a superb view of the higher tailing hyperlink (yellow), however it’s there.
The higher hyperlink’s axle attachment bracket (yellow) is canted ahead. That becoming simply outdoors (inexperienced) is an axle breather tube that wends its method upwards to maintain water out of the differential housing at most fording depth.
At first I believed the rear hyperlink bracketry was low and weak, but it surely’s actually not any decrease than the gasoline tank skid plate (yellow) within the background. In the meantime, the piggyback-style distant reservoir (inexperienced) on the rear Bilstien damper is protected by an impact-resistant stone guard.
We will account for 4 of the 5 hyperlinks as a result of we’ve seen the higher and decrease trailing hyperlinks, and there are two per facet. This Panhard bar (aka monitor rod) is quantity 5. Its mounted finish (yellow) attaches to a bracket that’s welded to the body, whereas the transferring finish (inexperienced) is bolted to a bracket on the axle housing. It’s about so long as it may be within the accessible house, and it sits practically stage when the car is on the bottom. Each ways are vital to reduce the quantity of left-right axle shifting that may in any other case happen because the bar swings by means of an arc because the suspension strikes up and down.
The opposite factor to note here’s what you’re not seeing: a rear stabilizer bar. The Bronco doesn’t have one. Nicely, this two-door doesn’t. I’ve not caught my head below a four-door but. I think about it is the identical, as a result of I don’t see any unused brackets.
Just like the entrance, the sizing of the rear brake rotor and caliper setup is restricted to what can match inside the bottom mannequin’s 16-inch wheels. Nonetheless, the rotors are thick and properly ventilated. The rotor’s deep hat part (yellow) could provide the impression it’s hiding a shoe-type parking brake, however the single-piston sliding caliper has an digital parking brake (inexperienced) bolted onto the again.
The 17-inch wheels that include the 35-inch LT315/70R17 Sasquatch tires are beadlock succesful, which implies you’ll be able to unbolt the ornamental 12-bolt ring you see right here and substitute it with an adjunct 24-bolt ring that really clamps the tire bead in place for excessive low-pressure aired-down off-road operating. The identical kind of beadlock-capable 17-inch rims additionally include the 33-inch Badlands setup.
These are, in actual fact, Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT tires, however Ford didn’t need the phrase Wrangler on the Bronco, for apparent causes. As a substitute, they invited Goodyear to stamp their title on twice.
Look carefully and also you’ll see that the ornamental 12-bolt beadlock rings aren’t doing any bead locking. They do assist add as much as a tire meeting weight of some 89 kilos, although. Elevate along with your knees, is all I’m saying.
The Bronco’s suspension execution is mighty spectacular, and I believe it offers consumers an amazing third possibility that sits about halfway between the Jeep Wrangler on one finish and the Toyota 4Runner on the opposite. You get the detachable prime and doorways of the Wrangler, however the Ford’s suspension format has the identical daily-drive advantages of a 4Runner due to double wishbone impartial entrance suspension and rack-and-pinion steering. Past that, the Bronco advantages from a wider stance and beefy high-flying design that’s based mostly on the Ranger Raptor. Certain, the Jeep Wrangler will flex extra in excessive situations, however the Bronco is not any slouch, and it’ll steer, trip and deal with higher nearly anyplace else.
Contributing author Dan Edmunds is a veteran automotive engineer and journalist. He labored as a car growth engineer for Toyota and Hyundai with an emphasis on chassis tuning, and was the director of car testing at Edmunds.com (no relation) for 14 years.
You will discover all of his Suspension Deep Dives here on Autoblog.
