Just curious to see if there are any early ford Bronco nuts on this site? I know a ton of people used to use them as hunting rigs in the past before the values went up.
Yep. When I was a kid we had a 70 halfcab, a 74 wagon, and an 83. The halfcab and the 83 went down the road but the 74 stuck around. I drove it to high school when I wasn’t driving my 79.
It was copper colored, 200six/3sp with the J shift Tcase and factory 4.56 gears, do about 70 wide open and screaming. Last time I drove it it read 60063 on the odometer when I parked it, had never rolled over.
Dad called one day after I was grown and gone to ask if I wanted the 74. I told him I would like it but didn’t have any money. He said some dude was bugging him but he’d tell him to forget it and he’d just consider it part of my inheritance.
Well turned out some other guy came by with a pile of cash a couple years later and dad ended up letting it go. I wanted to be mad but really couldn’t but I think dad still kicks himself.
I do still have my 79 I got in high school, not an EB but the first gen full-size anyway.
I've always liked the early Broncos - was shopping for one when I came across a 71' Blazer in mint condition that I bought instead. Couple of guys I used to run around with when I lived in Arizona were big fans and each had one so I've spent some time around them.
I had a bone stock ‘69 1/2 cab with a 302 and three on the column. Uncut fenders. Single stupidest thing I’ve ever done was sell it. Second stupidest thing was to sell it just before the prices skyrocketed. I’m really smart that way......
Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. --Winston Churchill
My first car was a 1970 Sport Bronco...Engine was a warmed up 302, James Duff(Hurst) floor shifter, fender flares, etc...Of all the vehicles I have ever owned, it was my favorite...
I bought a nearly new 69 Bronco. It had almost 3000 miles on it. Original owner could not afford it. 302 with a 3 speed and posi in both ends . Closest thing to a billy goat I ever owned. Would climb out of almost anything. Hasbeen
hasbeen (Better a has been than a never was!)
NRA Patron member Try to live your life where the preacher doesn't have to lie at your funeral
Worked within a half mile of a Ford dealer in 1966. Went down on lunch hour one day and test drove the first Bronco they had on the lot. Didn't much care for the color, kind of a bluish green. Liked it after the test drive and figured to buy one in another color, when they had more of a selection. IIRC, had a 289, automatic, manual hubs?
Had just turned 20 then, living at home and my dad hated Fords, refused to have anything to do with me buying one.
Later years, a friend had one, think it was a '68? Decent critters for the time. Considered them better than the CJ5s of the day. There are still a few of the old original Broncs on the road around here. Some years ago a tenant had one that was heavily modded. Lifted, bigger V8, huge gums and cut fenders..
If three or more people think you're a dimwit, chances are at least one of them is right.
An old friend had a 68 he’d bought in 71 that he brought back from California with him. It was robin’s egg blue with a white top, 289 he’d swapped a hi-PO Mustang 4bbl intake and carb onto, 3 speed, uncut fenders with skinny mud grips, and a dealer installed PTO winch and bumper. Had 70k on it and he only drove it when the roads were bad as it was their only 4wd. I begged him to sell it to me for years but he wasn’t having it. When the retro body style Mustangs came out in 04-05 or so his wife wanted one and he swapped the Bronco straight across for a 6cyl Pony trim Mustang to a local dealer who collects old Fords.
I have a cousin who has a baby blue 69 with a 302 and 3sp in his barn. He bought it new at Milehigh Ford in Denver.
Sign up for the Ford Motor Company Bronco News Letter. Information about old and new including PDF files of literature pertaining to the original Bronco. The latest news letter has a you tube video of desert testing the new Bronco, it's as you would expect disguised. Appears to be very capable. They are going to be made at the Wayne Assembly Plant in Wayne Michigan.
When the retro body style Mustangs came out in 04-05 or so his wife wanted one and he swapped the Bronco straight across for a 6cyl Pony trim Mustang to a local dealer who collects old Fords.
Humm, what's that Bronco worth now and what's a 2005 6 cylinder Mustang worth now. Bet that dealer is still laughing his ass off.
"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same." - Ronald Reagan
Yeah it doesn’t seem like a very good swap does it?
Used to be a little Ford dealership in my hometown like many small towns. The old man who owned it and his best bud loved the first gen Broncos, I think they both had 67s. When he heard that 77 was going to be the last year they both ordered new ones. 302/autos, one green and one red. They both died shortly after they got them and the dealer’s son put the red one in the garage where it sat until the 80’s when it brought a big price for the time.
A guy stationed at the army base bought the green one and then got ordered to go down to somewhere on the gulf coast. Whenever his assignments there were over, 3 or 4 years he came back and had the green 77 for sale. 4 years in the salt environment down there had completely rusted it out, nothing but the top was rust free and the rockers and floors were gone.
Old guy who owned the dealership here used to take his 67 to Wyoming every fall to hunt deer and antelope. He also took his 18’ bumper pull camper that he towed with the little Bronco! It was a 170ci six banger with the 3sp. When asked about that he’d always say, “oh that little Bronco pulls fine, you just put it in 4lo with the hubs unlocked when you go over the big passes”.
I'd love to be able to get an EB but am seriously considering the new ones. The two door looks like it could have used 8-10" in front of the rear wheel, but if the 4 door is equipped to function off-road and not just on the pavement it might get the nod from me. We'll see.
I had a 72 with a 302 and 4 speed manual. I swapped in 456 gears with auburn lockers, added power steering and BFG mud terrains. 4" james Duff suspension lift was on it when I bought it. Was a good off road and hunting rig, but I got real tired of it being a daily driver. I still wish I wouldn't have sold it.
"243/85TSX It's as if the HAMMER OF THOR were wielded by CHUCK NORRIS himself, and a roundhouse kick thrown in for good measure."
I had a '69 Bronco, which I bought used in 1970. Great vehicle. Only problem I had with it was with soft valve inserts, which were replaced under warranty. I cut the fenders for flares, added a roll bar, bigger tires and wheels, and added aftermarket air conditioning, otherwise it was stock. Used it for hunting, fishing, commuting, off-roading, you name it, the Bronco handled it well. I put over 100,000 miles on it, and sold it when the company I worked for provided a new Ford 4wd pickup for me to drive. Like everyone else who had one of the early Broncos, I wish I still had it!
I'd rather be a free man in my grave, than living as a puppet or a slave....
I have a '73 with a 302 and automatic. Wind blue with blue interior, 1" body lift and 31.5x10.5x15 KO2s on bright polished aluminum wheels. I bought it in the fall of '14 from a guy in Fort Collins, it was originally purchased there. I bought it sight unseen, my uncle picked it up and delivered it to a local mechanic shop who put all new dual exhaust and body mounts in it, changed all the fluids belts and hoses and sent me on my way. We hunted elk for a week about 60mi NW of there and then on one of the great days in life, I drove it all the way home to Pierre. Blue bird November day, temps in the 40's. I never passed a gas station without filling, and never did I fail to have a Bronco conversation at one of the gas stations. In Lusk I had a crowd. All nice people.
Just past Hot Springs, the electrical gauge started to go nuts so I pulled into an auto parts store in Rapid City where I had them put an electric meter on it, they said I needed a new regulator so I bought one and borrowed their tools and put it in. The last place I stopped for gas was Philip, it was dark by then and as I came out for the final run home, a fat guy in a Suburban was waiting for me, and he asked, "How much do you want for your bronco?" I laughed and said he'd need to find his own. Rolled in about 14 hours after I left, and it had been one of the great days in life.
I put a new interior in it but my bride got sick that spring and as the kids got older and busier it was a project left undone. I have metal bought and a guy lined up to install and paint this spring, looking forward to that.
"Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin.'"
I adored mine. Very early 289 V8 at midyear introduction. Eventually trimmed the fenders for big wheels tires and flares with air shocks in back and airbags in front. I did split shifting with a trailer starting in low range. when necessary.
My wife was very disappointed with the purchase but accepted and even enjoyed it once I added a soft top for summer, to the hard top for winter and added a propane heater so it was warm when we got in. Clutch type posi front and rear with 3.50 gears. I had a backseat but it was never installed. Front bumper was a 5" channel iron with a trailer hitch front and rear.
The needle valve would sometimes jump off the seat and the carburetor would flood. Rusting was a major issue and I replaced the tail gate once.
The Bronco gave up nothing to a CJ off road and was vastly nicer than a CJ on the highway.
As my wife once said, she figured out why people looked enviously at us off road with the top down; they didn't know it was our only transportation; they thought we had something just as nice for on road at home. Eventually we did.
That's awesome...my wife didn't understand this at all at first either. The first time we went for ice cream with the top off, she turned to me and said, "Ok now I get it."
Her mother still doesn't get it. She looked at the Bronco once and said, "I bet people think you're the poorest lawyer in Pierre." I just laughed, she's well up in her 80's and her filters are shot. Too funny.
"Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin.'"
I had 2 Broncos and a rolling chassis. I restored the 68, it had a 302, 4bbl. 3 speed column shift and 410 posi. gears. Blue with a white top. It also had a bench front seat & the rear seat. Sold it on Craigslist to a guy in Florida. The other 72 I had I sold as is. I sold the chassis to the same guy. That was about 5 years ago, I haven't found another one since, seller's remorse.
I think the new bronco should have had a half cab option. I bet they could have sold more than a few of them. My 16 year old daughter saw a Jeep Gladiator for the first time and commented on how they should have built it with a single cab. She's right.
"Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin.'"
I'm not a Ford guy, but still recognize the first gen Bronco as one of the greats. The last few years of them got disc brakes on the the front & the front drive axle went from a Dana 30 to a 44. That in the front, with a 9" in the rear, is greatness, I don't care what brand was on the grill. And, once folks figured out was to fix the steering & front suspension, you could actually drive one at highway speeds.
Also a huge fan of others made about the same time, the Scout II, & of course, the first gen Blazer.
The prices all 3 of them bring theses days is proof of their popularity.
