Exploring the on-road performance of the BSBL-- Decisions.

[jkernitzki]

Joining this thread late and kicking it back to life. Just got back from the Mazda (CX-50) and Ford dealer. Leaning towards a BS BL but am concerned about road noise. We regularly do 8+ hour road trips and want to be comfortably having conversations without having to raise our voice. Any comments on this aspect. In reality this car will be on road 98% of the time and 2% off road heading to trailheads for hiking. The interior noise level is really our only concern and are willing to make the tradeoffs on handling in lieu of getting us to that trailhead with no questions asked. Any input on the interior noise level front from current owners???

See my response here: https://www.broncosportforum.com/forum/threads/new-‘25-badlands.16491/post-277026

Sponsored

 

[RWT]

Joining this thread late and kicking it back to life. Just got back from the Mazda (CX-50) and Ford dealer. Leaning towards a BS BL but am concerned about road noise. We regularly do 8+ hour road trips and want to be comfortably having conversations without having to raise our voice. Any comments on this aspect. In reality this car will be on road 98% of the time and 2% off road heading to trailheads for hiking. The interior noise level is really our only concern and are willing to make the tradeoffs on handling in lieu of getting us to that trailhead with no questions asked. Any input on the interior noise level front from current owners???

As someone who owns both a 2023 BSBL and a 2025 CX-50, I will say the CX-50 is quieter. However, I also can't ever remember thinking the BSBL is very noisy and we have never had to raise our voices, even on the freeway. I certainly wouldn't pass on a BSBL out of concern for noise.

JMHO

No expertise implied or expressed.

 

[Ernest T]

The BSBL has more ambient noise than my F150, but the F150 is also quieter than my wife’s Jeep Cherokee. The noise doesn’t affect conversation, you just hear a little louder road noise.

 

[GSX86]

Joining this thread late and kicking it back to life. Just got back from the Mazda (CX-50) and Ford dealer. Leaning towards a BS BL but am concerned about road noise. We regularly do 8+ hour road trips and want to be comfortably having conversations without having to raise our voice. Any comments on this aspect. In reality this car will be on road 98% of the time and 2% off road heading to trailheads for hiking. The interior noise level is really our only concern and are willing to make the tradeoffs on handling in lieu of getting us to that trailhead with no questions asked. Any input on the interior noise level front from current owners???

I don’t think I’ve ever really noticed the road noise. We live in a flat windy area and drive on the highway quite a bit but I’ve had no issues holding a conversation with anyone. I’ve never had to raise my voice. It is a boxy vehicle though so certainly it will have more wind noise than something more aerodynamic but it’s definitely not loud enough to the point where you’d have to raise your voice.

 

[Warped9]

I have a 2021 Badlands and it's straight line street performance is pretty good, it's actually quick. It's a decent road trip vehicle (open highway) as a canyon carver it's not so great, it seems tippy and doesn't want to turn into corners unless you trail brake into the turns. I'm talking sprited canyon/mountain road driving, if you are cornering at the posted speed limits it's fine. I do have larger tires than standard and for offroad it's great but they do degrade it's canyon carving capabilites.
As an everyday vehicle it's more than adequate and can hold it's own.

No one could mistake the Bronco Sport for a canyon carver. If thats what one is looking for then a Bronco Sport, or any SUV, shouldn’t be on your list.

That said I have no complaints with my Bronco Sport’s handling even on the twisties. I have 18x8 alloys with Michelin Pilot Sport AS 4 235/55R18 tires, thus sitting a bit wider than factory, and my BS handles great. I also added a strut tower brace for a bit extra body stiffness.

I love my Bronco Sport’s composure on the highway and on curvy back roads. I don’t drive it as fast as I would a sports sedan or sports car, but it’s still fun. Around town it’s quite agile and quick. It’s quite good in the rain.

I didn’t buy my BS for off-roading, but for everyday driving and I really like the vehicle design and packaging. With winter tires I feel confident in the snow.

 

[dockiwi57]

No one could mistake the Bronco Sport for a canyon carver. If thats what one is looking for then a Bronco Sport, or any SUV, shouldn’t be on your list.

That said I have no complaints with my Bronco Sport’s handling even on the twisties. I have 18x8 alloys with Michelin Pilot Sport AS 4 235/55R18 tires, thus sitting a bit wider than factory, and my BS handles great. I also added a strut tower brace for a bit extra body stiffness.

I love my Bronco Sport’s on the highway and on curvy back roads. I don’t drive it as fast as I would a sports sedan or sports car, but it’s still fun. Around town it’s quite agile and quick. It’s quite good in the rain.

I didn’t buy my BS for off-roading, but for everyday driving and I really like the vehicle design and packaging. With winter tires I feel confident in the snow.

Thank you, this is confirmatory-type information.

 

[robrain]

We love our Badlands. It replaced a Golf Alltrack and it’s got more pep than that did, but less body control. It’s totally safe, not about to fail an elk test, but you just need to temper your enthusiasm through the winding curves. The Golf felt like it could handle a chunk more power, the Bronco feels just about right in that regard.

Long trips are comfy, sound levels are well-controlled, the lane-keep gadget works well enough on highways. I’d say it’s a good road car, and an excellent overall package if your drives occasionally include a little gravel or more.

 

[dockiwi57]

We love our Badlands. It replaced a Golf Alltrack and it’s got more pep than that did, but less body control. It’s totally safe, not about to fail an elk test, but you just need to temper your enthusiasm through the winding curves. The Golf felt like it could handle a chunk more power, the Bronco feels just about right in that regard.

Long trips are comfy, sound levels are well-controlled, the lane-keep gadget works well enough on highways. I’d say it’s a good road car, and an excellent overall package if your drives occasionally include a little gravel or more.

Thank you. I am looking for competence with "more" without sacrificing too much competence in "routine." It seems that the BSBL is unicorn-ish in these respects. It also appears that several teething issues have been addressed by the fifth iteration, which is always nice.

 

[Warped9]

Be aware the Badlands rides a bit higher than the other BS models thus lifting the centre of gravity a bit. If you also add bigger/taller tires then you’re going to affect the on-road handling. Likely not drastically so, but it will be different from the other models with factory setup.

My Big Bend came with optional 18x7 wheels (with 37.5 offset) on 225/60R18 tires as opposed to standard 17x7 wheels with 225/65R17 tires. I kept those factory 18in. wheels and mounted winter tires on them. I sold the factory all-season tires as they were practically brand new. I installed 18x8 wheels (with 35 offset) on 235/55R18 tires for the rest of the year. My BS’s track is 1-1/4 in. wider than factory on wider/stickier tires. The new setup doesn’t feel any different in terms of ride over the factory setup, but it feels sharper and stickier when cornering, and thats what I wanted. It also gives my BS a subtly different stance than factory.

Why did I bother? Firstly I dislike the current trend in grey or black wheels. I don’t think it looks sporty, but looks like someone still has winter wheels on even in the middle of summer—my opinion. My BS happened to have the factory optional 18x7 wheels which I quite liked. But I still wanted a more distinct look and to improve the on-road handling a bit more so after the first winter I opted for an aftermarket setup. I could have gone with 18x8.5 wheels for an even wider stance, but I’m quite happy with the way it is presently. I also like the touch of bright trim on my new wheels as well as the factory wheels—I think it gives the wheels and the vehicle more pop particularly given modern car design is often completely devoid of bright/chrome trim.

 

[dockiwi57]

Joining this thread late and kicking it back to life. Just got back from the Mazda (CX-50) and Ford dealer. Leaning towards a BS BL but am concerned about road noise. We regularly do 8+ hour road trips and want to be comfortably having conversations without having to raise our voice. Any comments on this aspect. In reality this car will be on road 98% of the time and 2% off road heading to trailheads for hiking. The interior noise level is really our only concern and are willing to make the tradeoffs on handling in lieu of getting us to that trailhead with no questions asked. Any input on the interior noise level front from current owners???

Here's a 2 year-old Car Confections BSBL review -
At 22:51 they include a decibel measurement compared to competitors.

I’m getting way out over my skis, but I do remember that dB is logarithmic. I dug around a little bit and found this concise explanation "(an) Increase of 3 dB represents a doubling of sound intensity or power but is only a barely perceptible increase in loudness to humans.” That’s as far as I’m willing to go down that rabbit hole. My guess is that if I drove my CX-5 and immediately switched to a BSBL on the same road and at the same speed, I might/would be able to notice a difference, but perceived speech would largely be unaffected.

 

[Ernest T]

What makes the biggest difference in the noise in my vehicle is whether the road is made of concrete or asphalt. Concrete roads are loud, even in quieter cars.

 

[NEFKANO]

As others have mentioned, the Bronco Sports are very capable playing dual roles on road and off. Moving from the base (1.5 liter) models to the Badlands expands both of those capabilities and well worth (IMHO) the added cost.

I have a 2022 BL's with stock suspension but upgraded to a very aggressive BF Goodrich KO2s in the 245x65x17 size and immediately saw better performance off-road compared to the stock tires it came with ( no surprise there...lol) but also saw a dip in MPG of about 2-3mpg.

I have 55K on my BSBL with many road trips to desert locations and aggressive off-roading, but also use this as my daily driver to and from work and combating all the poor drivers that seem to follow me, lol.

As a fomer Police Officer who spent 12 years of my 27 years working Highway patrol in various performance vehicles, I can honestly say choosing a vehicle (BSBL) is about as close to being a "unicorn" vehicle for those of us that can't afford a weekend vehicle and a daily driver but operate a single vehicle to meet all of ones needs... money well spenT!

I'm an adjunct professor at a small college these days and love to show my students old pics of vehicles I once operated and the usual response.. "Hey, that's cool... saw that in a museum... you're that old Mr.?"

That's when you know you're old..hahahaha

 

[dockiwi57]

As others have mentioned, the Bronco Sports are very capable playing dual roles on road and off. Moving from the base (1.5 liter) models to the Badlands expands both of those capabilities and well worth (IMHO) the added cost.

I have a 2022 BL's with stock suspension but upgraded to a very aggressive BF Goodrich KO2s in the 245x65x17 size and immediately saw better performance off-road compared to the stock tires it came with ( no surprise there...lol) but also saw a dip in MPG of about 2-3mpg.

I have 55K on my BSBL with many road trips to desert locations and aggressive off-roading, but also use this as my daily driver to and from work and combating all the poor drivers that seem to follow me, lol.

As a fomer Police Officer who spent 12 years of my 27 years working Highway patrol in various performance vehicles, I can honestly say choosing a vehicle (BSBL) is about as close to being a "unicorn" vehicle for those of us that can't afford a weekend vehicle and a daily driver but operate a single vehicle to meet all of ones needs... money well spenT!

I'm an adjunct professor at a small college these days and love to show my students old pics of vehicles I once operated and the usual response.. "Hey, that's cool... saw that in a museum... you're that old Mr.?"

That's when you know you're old..hahahaha

Thanks for sharing your experience. It's encouraging to have comments after consistent, personal, and long term seat time in the BSBL. I'm even beginning to lean more towards adding the Sas package to the Badlands. I'll make a final decision after the minor 26 upgrades are announced to see if there is a compelling reason to wait.

 

[jkernitzki]

Thanks for sharing your experience. It's encouraging to have comments after consistent, personal, and long term seat time in the BSBL. I'm even beginning to lean more towards adding the Sas package to the Badlands. I'll make a final decision after the minor 26 upgrades are announced to see if there is a compelling reason to wait.

Don’t expect much other than a new color or two. ‘25 was the big refresh, so unlikely anything significant for a few more model years.

 

[Bill G]

As others have mentioned, the Bronco Sports are very capable playing dual roles on road and off. Moving from the base (1.5 liter) models to the Badlands expands both of those capabilities and well worth (IMHO) the added cost.

I have a 2022 BL's with stock suspension but upgraded to a very aggressive BF Goodrich KO2s in the 245x65x17 size and immediately saw better performance off-road compared to the stock tires it came with ( no surprise there...lol) but also saw a dip in MPG of about 2-3mpg.

I have 55K on my BSBL with many road trips to desert locations and aggressive off-roading, but also use this as my daily driver to and from work and combating all the poor drivers that seem to follow me, lol.

As a fomer Police Officer who spent 12 years of my 27 years working Highway patrol in various performance vehicles, I can honestly say choosing a vehicle (BSBL) is about as close to being a "unicorn" vehicle for those of us that can't afford a weekend vehicle and a daily driver but operate a single vehicle to meet all of ones needs... money well spenT!

I'm an adjunct professor at a small college these days and love to show my students old pics of vehicles I once operated and the usual response.. "Hey, that's cool... saw that in a museum... you're that old Mr.?"

That's when you know you're old..hahahaha

Yeah, age will catch up. Don’t have any pics (sadly), but was in some great PD rides:
426 dual quad Ford’s, 390 Dodge Polaras, and 350 Novas in the 70’s, and 351 Fords in the early 80’s.
Also had to put up with some dogs over the years:
Under powered Plymouths and Pontiacs, Malibus rigged to run on CNG (big tank in the trunk of a police car????), and for a short while a CNG powered Checker (now THAT was embarrassing <lol>)
Now in my third “Bronco”; big ’82, ’83 Bronco II, and now my ’21 BSBL and I love it.