I just spent a month in the Moab, Utah area and had the opportunity to take my 2021 stock Badlands on some epic road trips.
Some areas I hit were: Sections of the White Rim road in Canyonlands, the road to Paul Bunyons Potty in the Needles District, the Gemini Bridges Road, the 4X4 road in...
I applied the foam tubing and it helped quite a bit but then I also added some rubber seal to cover the gap completely. My Badlands is far quieter now.
Mine was totaled last November with this much damage (Fed Ex van rear ended me at a stop light). It's the unibody frame. It's great for safety in an impact but not so much for repairing.
I swapped out my steelie wheels and road tires for my original alloys and Falkens since I'm headed to Utah in a few weeks. While the wheels were off, I sprayed the felt liners with rubber undercoating. I think it will make them a little more rugged and less likely to absorb water.
When you turn it off in settings, it stays that way for 6 months I believe then you'll have to do it again. An easy fix for a nice feature that's made to prevent kids and animals getting left in the car.
I think the 1.5 trim is fine for most people, and more affordable. However, I've yet to see someone on any forum trade their Badlands for a lower trim. Enjoy. I'm taking mine to Moab next month. Can't wait to hit the dirt roads.
Also, in settings, if you have collision warning with a visual turned on, it will display that lane and you can't get the speed back to center. If you see a pic of a bronco in that spot when you're close to another vehicle, that's probably the issue.
I have no hard data but my mechanic with over 20 years in the business said he's replaced many starters with the auto start/stop feature. Thus I bought the Eliminator first thing after buying my Badlands and haven't looked back. Even if it didn't make a difference with the engine, it was too...
Interested in your traction boards and my son Devin I believe contacted you about the Rotopax. I'm in Chattanooga. Also the mattress if you still have it.