I got stuck in snow

[Gents]

Yeah, this thing is just a little more about look than it is function. The BS looks *macho* enough- and capable, but it's just that, looks.
It's not very robust at all and with this last round of snow storms in the New York tri-state area, I only got by on my wits and a lot of rerouting. I wasn't even confident about 15% incline Highway exits.
The BS wasn't much better than having a nice front wheel drive station wagon.

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[Garth]

I wouldnt go that far, I still belive my BSBL will out do any other unibody suv off road other than a Cherokee maybe. My only comparison was a 3/4 ton heavy duty standard with positrac and mudterraine TAs back in the 80s. My stuck situation was under exceptional conditions even though it looks harmless. Most wouldnt have made it over the gate keeper berm on the way in and Im sure they wouldnt have made it over on the way out.(without leaving parts behind)
I will chalk this experience to over confidence and drive error.
However it is only a subcompact unibody suv that looks rugged enough to make a person forget.

 

[OBSASQ]

Ground clearance is a problem on any vehicle. I had a Jeep Wrangler up in the mountains on an unplowed forestry road and got high centered. But with 4LO and lockers I was finally able to back and forth a path to civilization. Same with a Blazer I had. Haven't tested the Maverick or BS yet, not enough snow here the last couple of years.
Maybe you need a 6" lift for your BS. Saw one on a mustang in my neighborhood.

 

[Garth]

Ground clearance is a problem on any vehicle. I had a Jeep Wrangler up in the mountains on an unplowed forestry road and got high centered. But with 4LO and lockers I was finally able to back and forth a path to civilization. Same with a Blazer I had. Haven't tested the Maverick or BS yet, not enough snow here the last couple of years.
Maybe you need a 6" lift for your BS. Saw one on a mustang in my neighborhood.

I have 10 inches of ground clearance. The issue was the ice at the bottom of all that snow no traction at all even with my excellent new tires.

 

[sajohnson]

Yeah, this thing is just a little more about look than it is function. The BS looks *macho* enough- and capable, but it's just that, looks.
It's not very robust at all and with this last round of snow storms in the New York tri-state area, I only got by on my wits and a lot of rerouting. I wasn't even confident about 15% incline Highway exits.
The BS wasn't much better than having a nice front wheel drive station wagon.

I'm surprised you haven't gotten flamed yet!

I once criticized the "AWD" system on my 2002 WRX -- saying it stands for "All Wheels Disconnected." That did not go over well on NASIOC. Even after the Ford/Subaru dealer confirmed the system was lame (complete with a lot of laughing from the Ford techs) the guys on NASIOC didn't want to accept the truth.

Granted, the BS BL is not a body on frame, true 4WD, rock crawler with a low range and 12+ inches of clearance, but it's safe to say it's significantly better than a front wheel drive station wagon. A quick look at a roller test will show that.

I wish the Badlands had a locking front instead of using the brakes (traction control). If it did, I think ours would have walked right up the 20% grade in our lane that was covered with 7" of ice-crusted snow (separate thread). As it was, I could feel the traction control hunting back and forth which slowed momentum. We got out, but it took 4-5 runs at that hill. To be fair it still has the OE tires.

That said, a FWD car with traction control and good winter tires will do very well (on-road). In fact, C&D did a test years ago in which they compared a FWD Altima on winter tires to a 4WD Pathfinder on all-season tires. The Altima was better at stopping, cornering, the slalom, and snow course time! The Pathfinder had better acceleration and hill climbing ability. So AWD/4WD is probably not necessary in areas without steep grades.

 

[OBSASQ]

Yeah, this thing is just a little more about look than it is function. The BS looks *macho* enough- and capable, but it's just that, looks.
It's not very robust at all and with this last round of snow storms in the New York tri-state area, I only got by on my wits and a lot of rerouting. I wasn't even confident about 15% incline Highway exits.
The BS wasn't much better than having a nice front wheel drive station wagon.

I guess all of those test videos on Youtube that show both the standard AWD and advanced AWD are just lying when they say they are impressed with the AWD in the Maverick/BS. They say it is not as good as a true 4WD but it is at the top of AWD capabilities. Some did mention that the tires used and the driver would be the main problem.

 

[Gents]

I guess all of those test videos on Youtube that show both the standard AWD and advanced AWD are just lying when they say they are impressed with the AWD in the Maverick/BS. They say it is not as good as a true 4WD but it is at the top of AWD capabilities. Some did mention that the tires used and the driver would be the main problem.

And I guess over 50 years of driving and car ownership count for nothing when everyone's supposed to post fanboy phrase for how brilliant they were to buy this or any other car.
I've written it before and I'll say it again, the car was particularly good looking when I needed one quickly. it's still a great looking car with most of the features that I need, however, it's a lightweight as SUVs go. Dollar for dollar, you can do better.

 

[incavulator]

Since everyone else is offering opinions, I'll pile on.

When they first came out, I laughed at them and did NOT think they were good looking at all. They have grown on me somewhat, but I still didn't buy mine for its looks. I thought they were glorified Escapes, with wanna-be-Bronco sheet metal.

I didn't get interested in them until I saw their combination of relative performance (2.0L), fuel economy, and MOST importantly, off-road capability, taking into account it's a primary FWD body on frame vehicle. If you compare it to other products in it's class (RAV4, CX-5, most of the Subarus, Equinox, Passport, Compass, Renegade, etc.) I haven't seen anything that really competes with it off-road. That was very eye opening for me and is what got me interested in purchasing one.

In my opinion, where these vehicles are lacking is in the quality and reliability department, and I have this lingering feeling my decision to choose the vehicle with more capability but less reliability is going to come back to bite me. If I was going to call it a "lightweight" and say you could get more for your money, THIS is where and how I would apply it. It certainly wouldn't be for it's off-road capabilities, speaking specifically about the Badlands and newer Sasquatch models.

Your mileage may vary.

 

[Garth]

My wife said the Bronco Sports were ugly so I never bothered to look into them until I bought mine. I wasnt looking for an off roader, I was looking for an suv that could drive off the pavement if necessary for camping would be better in deep snow than my crv. In fact I had just finished a test drive in a nice rav4 trail that day and a CX50 meridian the week before, neither of which I would have attempted the snow adventure in. Ive watched all the BS off road videos I could find after I made my purchase and Im quite satisfied with the results Ive gotten.
Better tires and a small lift got me to the point where I got stuck, which is usually the case. Maybe if I had 33 or taller tires I would have got through but the ice under the crusty snow was the real culprit, there was a slope and the more I tried the closer I got to the ditch.
Now Im preoccupied with this vehicle, making plans for excursions and wondering how far it will get me still accepting that is not a real 4x4. I keep checking every trail off the pavement looking for adventure lol. I do checkout every BS I see, looking for off road mods but only a couple even have upgraded tires. I saw one that was maybe lifted but maybe not and so far Ive seen one BL Sasquatch and One Black Diamond Sasquatch both on the highway.
My wife decided when we were at the dealership that she suddenly liked the look so thats why the test drive, I hadnt even given them a second glance as we were heading up to deal on the rav but her comment after the sales man pointed it out got me a test drive and the rest is history. Of course there is a lot of negativity here but mine has been excellent.

 

[sajohnson]

Since everyone else is offering opinions, I'll pile on.

When they first came out, I laughed at them and did NOT think they were good looking at all. They have grown on me somewhat, but I still didn't buy mine for its looks. I thought they were glorified Escapes, with wanna-be-Bronco sheet metal.

I didn't get interested in them until I saw their combination of relative performance (2.0L), fuel economy, and MOST importantly, off-road capability, taking into account it's a primary FWD body on frame vehicle. If you compare it to other products in it's class (RAV4, CX-5, most of the Subarus, Equinox, Passport, Compass, Renegade, etc.) I haven't seen anything that really competes with it off-road. That was very eye opening for me and is what got me interested in purchasing one.

In my opinion, where these vehicles are lacking is in the quality and reliability department, and I have this lingering feeling my decision to choose the vehicle with more capability but less reliability is going to come back to bite me. If I was going to call it a "lightweight" and say you could get more for your money, THIS is where and how I would apply it. It certainly wouldn't be for it's off-road capabilities, speaking specifically about the Badlands and newer Sasquatch models.

Your mileage may vary.

Well said, you saved me some typing.

I don't particularly care for the appearance either -- I'm just not really into SUVs. The Badlands is really my wife's car. She loves the look of it. Most of the other 'boxy' SUVs were/are crazy expensive.

I'm concerned about the reliability as well. At least the BL has fewer recalls, and we drive it very little -- 7,800 miles in 4 years -- so hopefully it'll last a while longer without any trouble.

For a unibody SUV, the AWD system is impressive. I don't recall seeing any that were/are better. One improvement I can think of would be the ability to actually *lock" the front, vs using the traction control.

That system is like a modern version of the brakes on older tractors -- two (2) brake pedals that could be disconnected from each other so the operator could apply braking force to just one side, to transfer torque.

 

[Granger Ford]

Today I went for a spin down a section of road that isnt maintained in the winter.
Its been melting like crazy so I knew there wouldnt be much snow however what remained was hard and easy to walk on without breaking through. The big test was crossing the grader berm at the start so I figured if it stopped me then I wouldnt push my luck. I climbed right over it no problem because it was so hard packed and continued for about a quarter mile still in normal mode.
When I got to the end where it was a turnaround the snow was noticeably deeper so I went off-road mode and began swinging out to make a uturn.
The snow got deep and I broke through immediately and with little effort became high centered.
Was less than a mile from home so I walked back and got a shovel.
Dug it out and had to make a run at the grader berm because I had actually left deeper ruts and would have gotten stuck again. No air time but it was exciting. It doesnt look like much but the snow conditions were just right.
The last vehicle I used to go off roading in was an 81 F250 with a 300-6 and a 4speed so I really noticed a difference with this BS, the automatic drive train was not confidence inspiring and the engine power was a little too explosive lol.

Well at least you are doing Bronco adventures with your vehicle! Making memories haha