- First Name
- Kris
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2022
- Threads
- 47
- Messages
- 884
- Reaction score
- 2,461
- Location
- North Carolina
- Vehicle(s)
- 2022 Bronco Sport Badlands
- Thread starter
- #1
Hi folks. I know many of you were expecting a write up of my 1800+ mile move from AZ to NC with my roof rack on my Badlands. I was also curious how the 2.0L would perform with a loaded roof rack as compared to the 1.5L in my old Big Bend I drove along the same journey last year. If you recall, the 1.5L definitely had some challenges with the roof rack.
Unfortunately, actually getting the Uhaul truck I reserved in my small rural AZ town wound up being quite the saga. At the end of the day, they upgraded us to a gigantic 26 foot behemoth for free since it was the only equipment they could find for us (despite reserving a truck over 3 months ago). This extra space in our unexpected giant truck mitigated the need for me to toss on my roof rack and hitch basket to carry clothes and other luggage, as we had more room than we could fill with our belongings. I decided not to attach either one and save the fuel by loading them in the Uhaul instead. Seriously, this thing was way more than we needed after selling off most of our furniture in preparation for the move.
However, I did document my MPG over the entire three day journey to share with you all just for the sake of science. I apologize if this isn't the thread you were expecting, but hope it's useful data nonetheless.
What was I hauling?
Here is my Badlands as I drove it, with just cross bars installed and the cargo area loaded with miscellaneous items that were too fragile for the moving truck. My back seat also contained a very unhappy cat in a large travel carrier (though I am pretty sure her 10 pounds did little to affect fuel consumption).
What route did we take?
We traveled almost 1900 miles over the course of three days, stopping for two nights. The first night we stopped in Amarillo, TX, the second night was spent in Forrest City, AR, and we hit our new hometown of Hendersonville, NC on day three. Most of the journey took place along I40 and we purposefully avoided major cities.
What fuel did I use?
Since our lovely Uhaul got a whopping 8 MPG, I used exclusively regular 87 in my Sport this time around. I did not keep receipts to hand-calculate MPG. The mileage reported is that which was reported by the onboard computer.
Mileage results by day:
Day 1 (Safford, AZ to Amarillo, TX):
Day 2 (Amarillo, TX to Forrest City, AR):
Day 3 (Forrest City, AR to Hendersonville, NC):
Remarks regarding the journey:
So, this was more eventful than planned. We hit tornadoes and torrential rain for most of Day 2 in Arkansas and high winds (60 mph winds) in Arkansas and Tennessee on Day 3. We drove through Little Rock, AR less than an hour after the tornadoes ripped through and saw a lot of destruction along I40. We were very fortunate that we did not run into an active tornado along the way, but the inclement weather definitely slowed us down. You'll notice my average MPG dropped on days 2 and 3 as a result.
It is also worth noting that despite the high winds for 2 days of the journey, my windshield was battered with debris (leaves, sticks, small rocks) but escaped unscathed. Miracles happen every day - Not a single chip or crack.
Conclusions:
I am extremely impressed by the performance and interstate manners of the 2.0L engine. I bought it fully expecting a drop in MPG as compared to my Big Bend, but overall mileage in the 30's is amazing considering the weather conditions I was driving in. Even if a hand calculation brought the overall mileage down by a few MPG, we're still talking about fuel consumption in the upper 20s. It was still higher than the highway estimate on the window sticker. I was also not driving like a careful grandmother, by any means. I was driving 70 - 80 mph for a significant majority of the trip.
Performance-wise, the acceleration felt more "peppy" as compared to my old Big Bend and I was able to get up to speed and pass with ease. I felt more competent in moments where extra speed was needed for safety. I could also very much feel the upgraded suspension on the pothole-ridden segments of I40 in several states. It was smooth as butter even as other cars bounced around in front of me. However, my biggest complaint was the effect of wind on the controllability of the vehicle. I was tossed around like a ragdoll through much of day 2 and day 3, especially when driving into the tail wind of semi trucks when passing or when a strong gusty crosswind would knock me sideways. I wouldn't expect anything different since, after all, the Sport is basically a brick.
The upgrade to my Badlands was worth every penny and I sincerely hope I get a chance to take my roof rack on a long journey soon for a more direct comparison. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with the 1.5L engine, but the 2.0L is a much better fit for my personal driving style. It was an eventful journey, but a safe and successful one at the end of the day. I was also quite thankful for my lumbar support and heated seats. My back was very appreciative after loading everything we own into the Uhaul.
Thanks for reading, all!
Unfortunately, actually getting the Uhaul truck I reserved in my small rural AZ town wound up being quite the saga. At the end of the day, they upgraded us to a gigantic 26 foot behemoth for free since it was the only equipment they could find for us (despite reserving a truck over 3 months ago). This extra space in our unexpected giant truck mitigated the need for me to toss on my roof rack and hitch basket to carry clothes and other luggage, as we had more room than we could fill with our belongings. I decided not to attach either one and save the fuel by loading them in the Uhaul instead. Seriously, this thing was way more than we needed after selling off most of our furniture in preparation for the move.
However, I did document my MPG over the entire three day journey to share with you all just for the sake of science. I apologize if this isn't the thread you were expecting, but hope it's useful data nonetheless.
What was I hauling?
Here is my Badlands as I drove it, with just cross bars installed and the cargo area loaded with miscellaneous items that were too fragile for the moving truck. My back seat also contained a very unhappy cat in a large travel carrier (though I am pretty sure her 10 pounds did little to affect fuel consumption).
What route did we take?
We traveled almost 1900 miles over the course of three days, stopping for two nights. The first night we stopped in Amarillo, TX, the second night was spent in Forrest City, AR, and we hit our new hometown of Hendersonville, NC on day three. Most of the journey took place along I40 and we purposefully avoided major cities.
What fuel did I use?
Since our lovely Uhaul got a whopping 8 MPG, I used exclusively regular 87 in my Sport this time around. I did not keep receipts to hand-calculate MPG. The mileage reported is that which was reported by the onboard computer.
Mileage results by day:
Day 1 (Safford, AZ to Amarillo, TX):
- 583 miles driven
- 33.0 MPG
- 9 hours, 17 minutes of drive time
Day 2 (Amarillo, TX to Forrest City, AR):
- 672 miles driven
- 31.1 total MPG (Day 1 and day 2)
- 9 hours, 44 minutes of drive time
Day 3 (Forrest City, AR to Hendersonville, NC):
- 587 miles driven
- 31.0 total MPG (Between all 3 days)
- 9 hours, 10 minutes drive time
Remarks regarding the journey:
So, this was more eventful than planned. We hit tornadoes and torrential rain for most of Day 2 in Arkansas and high winds (60 mph winds) in Arkansas and Tennessee on Day 3. We drove through Little Rock, AR less than an hour after the tornadoes ripped through and saw a lot of destruction along I40. We were very fortunate that we did not run into an active tornado along the way, but the inclement weather definitely slowed us down. You'll notice my average MPG dropped on days 2 and 3 as a result.
It is also worth noting that despite the high winds for 2 days of the journey, my windshield was battered with debris (leaves, sticks, small rocks) but escaped unscathed. Miracles happen every day - Not a single chip or crack.
Conclusions:
I am extremely impressed by the performance and interstate manners of the 2.0L engine. I bought it fully expecting a drop in MPG as compared to my Big Bend, but overall mileage in the 30's is amazing considering the weather conditions I was driving in. Even if a hand calculation brought the overall mileage down by a few MPG, we're still talking about fuel consumption in the upper 20s. It was still higher than the highway estimate on the window sticker. I was also not driving like a careful grandmother, by any means. I was driving 70 - 80 mph for a significant majority of the trip.
Performance-wise, the acceleration felt more "peppy" as compared to my old Big Bend and I was able to get up to speed and pass with ease. I felt more competent in moments where extra speed was needed for safety. I could also very much feel the upgraded suspension on the pothole-ridden segments of I40 in several states. It was smooth as butter even as other cars bounced around in front of me. However, my biggest complaint was the effect of wind on the controllability of the vehicle. I was tossed around like a ragdoll through much of day 2 and day 3, especially when driving into the tail wind of semi trucks when passing or when a strong gusty crosswind would knock me sideways. I wouldn't expect anything different since, after all, the Sport is basically a brick.
The upgrade to my Badlands was worth every penny and I sincerely hope I get a chance to take my roof rack on a long journey soon for a more direct comparison. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with the 1.5L engine, but the 2.0L is a much better fit for my personal driving style. It was an eventful journey, but a safe and successful one at the end of the day. I was also quite thankful for my lumbar support and heated seats. My back was very appreciative after loading everything we own into the Uhaul.
Thanks for reading, all!
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