Final Thoughts

Even from the beginning, the Bronco has always been a vehicle that pushed the boundaries of what is possible on the trail without relying on yesterday's tech to get you there.

In 1966 the Bronco became one of the first 4WDs available to have coil spring front suspension while everything else was on leaf springs all around. This allowed for far greater travel, improved ride and handling on tarmac and trail, as well as a superior turning radius to the competition, giving the Bronco the grit and performance to be the first 4x4 to win the storied Baja 1000, but also provide far superior road manners to its leaf sprung counterparts. By 1980 the Bronco was bestowed Ford’s ubiquitous twin traction beam front suspension, which further increased suspension travel numbers, making it potentially one of the most potent 4wd platforms for high speed desert shenanigans.

So Long, Solid Axle

Today's Bronco follows the same ethos, although with that comes some change that has a few people frightened. To the dismay and chagrin of some, Ford made the controversial decision to choose an incredibly modern Independent Front Suspension (IFS) for the Bronco to pair with a very well laid out 4 link and track bar set up in the rear. Your pappy may tell you ain’t nothin can flex or take a lickin like a solid axle in the front, however Ford, likely expecting this response, went above and beyond to provide a long travel suspension package that mitigates many of the limitations associated with IFS. With coilover style struts at every corner, an optional disconnectable sway bar that can be activated under load, and best in class travel numbers of 8.75” front 10.2” rear on Badlands models, the Bronco is capable of a RTI score of up to 620, essentially putting it on par with or better than a lot of solid front axle vehicles. All this capability in technical terrain does not come at the expense of on road comfort, stability, or high speed off road performance, and you can thank the IFS for that.

HOSS Suspension System featuring proprietary Bilstein Dampers

Truly in a “have your cake and eat it too” approach, Ford is offering the HOSS suspension system featuring proprietary Bilstein dampers on all Badlands, Wildtrak, and Sasquatch equipped models for far increased performance at higher speeds in rough terrain. Thus sticking to the Broncos Baja bashing roots while still giving us the capability in technical terrain demanded of an off road vehicle of this caliber. Not only does this suspension system give you a little bit of additional lift and clearance for 33” tires on base Badlands models and 35s on Wildtrak and Sasquatch equipped models, it features proprietary longer travel external reservoir Bilstein coilovers that include their newly designed ESCV technology. All that travel quantity does not mean anything without a quality damper to control that travel, and Bilstein’s End Stop Control Valve technology turns an already great damper design into a spectacular one. By integrating sprung stops at both ends of the shock body, these ESCV coilovers work to add more resistance at bottom out similar to a hydraulic or air bump stop as well as slow down and resist rebound at the opposite end of travel to better avoid top out and further dissipate energy from impacts.

So what does all that mean for you, the consumer?

By minimizing most of the sacrifices associated with independent front suspension, while maximizing the strengths, Ford brought to market a platform that has the bones to float whoops in the desert, walk through rocks in the forest, and wisp you down the road on your daily commute in more comfort and with more poise than a lot of the competition. The bones are everything when you are looking to upgrade and modify your vehicle, especially with suspension. Making a bad suspension good can be next to impossible, but making a good suspension set up great can be fairly easy as long as you take the time to make sure the upgrade you are looking to buy is actually an upgrade.

Knowing this variance will also be very crucial for us determining how much additional height is needed to clear a specific tire size. Although real-world fitment can always vary, if we base our estimates on existing concept vehicles from aftermarket suppliers, Ford’s forrays with test mules, and compare them to factory tires sizes and “lift” heights we can come up with a somewhat accurate idea of what may fit.

First, let us start with how much room for activities there are under that shapely body. Ford offers the Bronco with two separate fender flare options from the factory. One being standard and the other being wider and slightly taller for the Sasquatch models, however, the actual fender opening without the flare is the same on all models. This means with the right lift height and trimming, or by simply removing your base flare, it does not matter what package you have as far as tire clearance is concerned. From the factory, flare size does matter though, as the largest stock tire size offered on the “standard” flare is a 285/70/17, which comes on Non ‘Squatched Badlands models. That works out to be around 32.7” tall and 11.2” wide in ‘Merican, so we can be certain any model below a Badlands can clear a 33x11.5, 285/70/17 or equivalent tire size on an 8 wide wheel with a +55mm or lower offset or 8.5” wide wheel with a +35mm or lower offset. To be safe, at least 0.6” of lift would be a good idea. It remains to be seen if they will fit at stock height on a base model, however, this is deep within the realm of possibility. Ford has also tested Sasquatch models with their factory 315/70/17 (34.4x12.4) tires and optional 17x8.5 +30mm offset beadlock wheels using the “standard” non-Sasquatch flares without issue. It is generally understood that Sasquatch models run a little taller bump stop than other models to keep the larger tires from topping out on the fenders. With that information we can assume a base model with 1.15” of lift or Badlands model with 0.55” of lift, a 17x8.5 +35mm or lower offset wheel, and a small amount of bump stop spacing, you should be able to run a 315/70/17 or even potentially a 35x12.5. If that is not enough, 4WP has proved that with around 3” of lift on Base models, around 2.5” on Badlands or around 2” of lift on a Sasquatch, you can run a 37x12.5 with ease. They did end up using their soon to be released fender deletes, so we can likely assume some trimming may be needed on the factory flares to get all of your bump travel, however other companies have claimed fitment of 37s on Sasquatch flares with just a 2” lift. Nonetheless the 4WP factory was able to make the tires fit using a 17x8.5 +35mm offset wheel, or a wheel that narrows the track width by 5mm per side, so there is definitely more to be had in terms of steering clearance with a lower offset wheel. Method Race Wheels’ recommended wheel size is a 17x8.5 with a 0mm offset, which leads me to believe there is definitely more room to party for those of you willing to cut into your stock fenders, or replace them with higher clearance options when available. In this case with a lower offset wheel, and the right lift, one can assume a 37x13.5 should clear with ease, and a 39 might clear if you trim into the fenders a bit. More importantly though, those of you with the Sasquatch package should be able to run a 37x12.5 on your stock wheel as long as you have at least 2” of lift, which is huge.

That is all peaches and cream, but how does one actually go about lifting their Bronco and what parts do you actually need? Well since Ford decided to package the springs and shocks into a single, neat and tidy coilover at all four corners technically all you would need to lift the vehicle is a set of aftermarket coilovers or struts that are either adjustable in height or are simply built longer. However, just like any vehicle, there is a point where you exceed the amount of alignment adjustment and range of motion of your factory control arms and other suspension components, as well as start to introduce more extreme drivetrain angles. This is where knowing the factory “lift heights becomes crucial” as you need to be aware of how much you are elevating the vehicle from its most basic configuration. Furthermore, even if lift heights are moderate, the amount of travel generated by a particular set up may exceed what is possible on your factory components.

Starting at the front, similar to most IFS off roaders, after around 2.5” of lift on a base model, 2” on Badlands, or around 1.25” of lift on a Sasquatch, or even if you are coilover capable of this much lift and run less, an aftermarket upper control arm is definitely a good idea. As far as CV angle is concerned, if you are running the stock front crossmember, I would not personally attempt to achieve more than 3.5” of lift on a base, 3” on a Badlands, or 2.25-2.5” on a Sasquatch. In the rear, a good rule of thumb is, you will likely not need a new track bar or any arms as long as you have less than an inch or inch and a half of lift over the tallest factory model. Translated to English, that means that base models should be able to handle up to 2” of lift, Badlands can take 1.5”, and 1” on Sasquatch models before you need a track or panhard bar to keep your rear axle centered. As you lift the vehicle or greatly exceed factory suspension travel, you will start to increase your pinion angle, so for the preservation of your U joints and rear suspension geometry either an upper or lower rear arm is definitely a good idea on coilovers able to achieve those lift heights. Even if lift is more minimal, it is often advisable to still correct pinion angle if you are running a coilover capable of achieving taller lifts, no matter how minor the adjustment as to protect your driveline at full droop. Conversely, you should be able to run at least 3.5-4” of lift with the right arms, however higher heights will likely require a track bar drop bracket.