Reliability and Recalls

BroncoFan1

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Hi everyone. I am really interested in getting a Bronco Sport, but I am a little worried about the reliability and potentially having a lot of recalls, since this is a brand new first year model. I'm hoping the Bronco Sport will be reliable because they've used the 1.5L and 2.0L engines in other vehicles for a while. Is there anything to worry about or should I buy with confidence?
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Ponyrider

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My 2 cents. I bought a first year Escape. First one delivered to my town. One or two really minor recalls early on. No problems till the air conditioner needed replaced at 14 years and over 350,000 miles. I had that suv for 15 years. 378000 miles. That vehicle is the reason I ordered a Sport.
 
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BroncoFan1

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My 2 cents. I bought a first year Escape. First one delivered to my town. One or two really minor recalls early on. No problems till the air conditioner needed replaced at 14 years and over 350,000 miles. I had that suv for 15 years. 378000 miles. That vehicle is the reason I ordered a Sport.
Wow, thank you for sharing! I’ve only heard bad stories of people having problems with new models, so thank you for the positive.
 

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Wow, thank you for sharing! I’ve only heard bad stories of people having problems with new models, so thank you for the positive.
It's not quite the rosy picture noted here.

Firstly, the 2001 Escape was jointly designed with Mazda which contributed greatly to the solid reliability of the first gen. Escape.

Secondly, the 2020 Escape has been anything but a shining star of reliability. Last month, Consumer Reports rated the 2020 Escape dead last in the small SUV reliability category. The 2020 Ford Explorer was dead last of all vehicles in the survey! I don't know the details of the Escape's faults or whether they are fixable, but it is concerning.as it is very much related to the Bronco Sport.

From what I've seen at the dealer, the 2021 Bronco Sport appears to be put together better than the early 2020 Escapes Let's hope the teething issues of the Escape are being ironed out for the Bronco Sport.
 


Freeskierdude

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its a make it or break it moment for Ford right now and the bronco sport, Bronco, and Mustang Mach-e are their bets on making it big again. It sounds like ford didn't rush the design so I hope they thoughtfully engineered everything they could. On another positive note, they have been testing these things hard off-road for quite a while now. I'd like to think hard offroading will show any reliability issues far before traditional road testing does. They borrowed some parts from the Focus rs and i think that has turned out to be a fairly reliable vehicle. The engine seems to be very well made, just make sure you get brand name gas into it so the detergents clean out the carbon buildup, but that's with any turbo vehicle
 
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BroncoFan1

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It's not quite the rosy picture noted here.

Firstly, the 2001 Escape was jointly designed with Mazda which contributed greatly to the solid reliability of the first gen. Escape.

Secondly, the 2020 Escape has been anything but a shining star of reliability. Last month, Consumer Reports rated the 2020 Escape dead last in the small SUV reliability category. The 2020 Ford Explorer was dead last of all vehicles in the survey! I don't know the details of the Escape's faults or whether they are fixable, but it is concerning.as it is very much related to the Bronco Sport.

From what I've seen at the dealer, the 2021 Bronco Sport appears to be put together better than the early 2020 Escapes Let's hope the teething issues of the Escape are being ironed out for the Bronco Sport.
I hope they have everything ironed out for the Bronco Sport!
 
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BroncoFan1

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its a make it or break it moment for Ford right now and the bronco sport, Bronco, and Mustang Mach-e are their bets on making it big again. It sounds like ford didn't rush the design so I hope they thoughtfully engineered everything they could. On another positive note, they have been testing these things hard off-road for quite a while now. I'd like to think hard offroading will show any reliability issues far before traditional road testing does. They borrowed some parts from the Focus rs and i think that has turned out to be a fairly reliable vehicle. The engine seems to be very well made, just make sure you get brand name gas into it so the detergents clean out the carbon buildup, but that's with any turbo vehicle
That’s a good point about using brand name gas. I like using Chevron gas.
 

Sparky

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That’s a good point about using brand name gas. I like using Chevron gas.
I always use Top Tier fuel stations. I think it is a must with turbo gas engines. You can look up the brands that have Top Tier and their locations at toptiergas.com
 


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BroncoFan1

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I always use Top Tier fuel stations. I think it is a must with turbo gas engines. You can look up the brands that have Top Tier and their locations at toptiergas.com
Thanks, I never knew about that website. I was surprised to see Arco on there because their prices are usually cheaper than Chevron. I’ve always thought Chevron was the best because their gas has Techron.
 

Dave B

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I’ve never put much faith in Consumer Reports, I sold furnaces for 20+ years, and some of their furnace ratings were out to lunch.
As with any first year model, there will be growing pains, but I’m prepared for anything. My dealer has always been excellent for anything that come up on any of my previous Fords. From looking at our Sport, the fit and finish is really good, kinda better than I expected.
 
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BroncoFan1

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I’ve never put much faith in Consumer Reports, I sold furnaces for 20+ years, and some of their furnace ratings were out to lunch.
As with any first year model, there will be growing pains, but I’m prepared for anything. My dealer has always been excellent for anything that come up on any of my previous Fords. From looking at our Sport, the fit and finish is really good, kinda better than I expected.
I think of the stories I’ve heard where people get lemons, but Fords are usually really good. I haven’t seen anything from Bronco Sport owners, so hopefully they are problem free!
 

tRex

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I always use Top Tier fuel stations. I think it is a must with turbo gas engines. You can look up the brands that have Top Tier and their locations at toptiergas.com
Top Tier fuels are supposed to be assured to have the correct types and combination/amounts of detergent additives to lessen deposits (carbon, sludge, varnish...). That organization lists the participating brands. These deposits are a particular (!) problem in all of today's high-compression, direct-injection engines, and especially when turbocharged. The most certain maintenance recommendation I have ever heard is to periodically (after some 10's of thousands of miles on the odometer) open up the top end of the engine and manually clean it all out. Fuel additives like Techron, or cleaners like Seafoam, I'm not convinced do the job. I do think proper break-in, good cleaning and other maintenance habits, avoiding abuse (good warmup, cooldown, driving habits), using Top Tier gas, proper and frequent oil and filter changes, and adding a PCV catch can setup can help.
 

fourthgear

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Like all cars & Trucks made today ( not counting the ones most of us can't afford & custom made ) they are mass produced ( though those waiting for their order may disagree) & can have minor issues with a first new model . Ours runs great & its my wife's daily driver & she loves it .
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