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General build cost

bax

Contributor
Old Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2005
Messages
14,498
Lets take a hard look at the build cost of a Bronco. lets just say "You" the customer, wants a Bronco and you know nothing about them. You are not that mechanically inclined. So you will hire the work done. Lets just say the shop you choose is perfect and does great work. You are very happy with your finished product and there are no problems at all. ( yeah Thats going to happen but we can dream) To start off you have nothing for a truck. You just saw one on the street and wanted one. What you want for a finished product is a modernized street truck,no lift, stock looking daily driver. You want EFI,overdrive auto,a/c. hydro boost. 4wdisk, sound system leather seats. You know everything to modernize the truck to make it comparable to a new truck.
keep in mind your builder has to supply the truck and do all the restoration to it along with all the upgrades. This is a first class shop your truck will be acid dipped and the build will start from there. The big question is what would you expect to pay for that finished product? the truck is done on time it's everything you wanted, it's a first class build. What would you pay? lets also assume you have big cash and dont worry about money from month to month. like most of us.%)

HOW MUCH? and how long do you think it should take to do this build?
 
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fordguy

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Jan 23, 2005
Messages
5,845
20K in parts alone, no labor. we are finding building street rods that is about what you can expect. some will speak up and say nah you can build it cheaper but put the pencil to paper and you will see. you can do it cheaper but not much if you have a customer
 

Devin

Bronco Kineticist
Joined
Apr 29, 2004
Messages
3,956
If you are having someone else do all of the work, I would think it would be in the $50K ball park. 6 to 8 months on the build time.
 

72-Madisyn

Jr. Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2007
Messages
211
Loc.
Medford
my shop just got done with a 74, customer supplied own bronco and paid seperate to have the motor built, more or less bronco described was delivered, only a lift kit installed as well, and parts alone were close to 22k, total build for a bronco with injected built 5.0, auto, custom and new everything and a perfect end product was about 53k. customers only complaint was the way passenger side weather stripping fit, other that happy to have his truck back that would never see dirt.....such a shame!it is fully a hot rod in a bronco body.
 

ghost66

Bronco Guru
Joined
Jan 19, 2005
Messages
2,321
I agree with the 20k for parts alone to build the type Bronco Bax is mentioning, I kept all of the receipts from my 66 build a few years ago and the parts total was near this figure. If you are leaving the sourcing of all said parts to the builder then your labor will increase by at least 25%. Depending on how bad of a start vehicle you have the labor could be anywhere from 10k to 20k. Best case scenario is to start with a semi rust free Bronco, do all of the parts hounding yourself and pick a reputable builder. I say minimum 30k for a vehicle as this thread suggests including the start Bronco. Time 8-12 months if changes aren't made to the Bronco midstream.
 

bighorn

Full Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2007
Messages
324
To do a fantastic job without cutting corners I think it's a year build time of a year, bare minimum. Cost will be in the mid $60K at least.

At the carolina bronco meet and greet I saw Nicktrix's latest creation. The dark blue, tan leather interior.....Stunning to say the least. No detail left untouched. It had to be over 60K in my opinion to put that rig together.
 

chris

No more Rock Crawler
Joined
Nov 27, 2002
Messages
1,893
Frame and Title $150
Fiberglass body $5000
Body work and custom paint to fiberglass body $2000
Good crate engine $4500
Rebuilt Trans $1500
Atlas or Stak $2300
Rear with new gears, shafts and traction device $2000
Front with new gear, shafts, joints and traction device $2500
Disk Brakes all around $1200
Drive shafts $800
Rebuilt Steering and linkage $700
Seats, front and rear $1400
Roll Cage $1200
Soft top $700
5 Tires and good rims $2300
Front and rear bumpers with tire carrier $1000

$29250.00 so far

Plus all the little things like console, stereo, gps, seat belts, carpet, trim and so on.

Wow, that adds up quick.
 

tasker

Contributor
all knowing of nothing
Joined
Jun 2, 2006
Messages
21,118
Loc.
NH
I would think 50k plus...i can dream of having something like that!
 

bfoldy

Contributor
Sr. Member
Joined
Sep 13, 2004
Messages
718
Loc.
Torrance, CA
Thanks for laying it out there, Chris. Yep, we're at $30K invested already with just parts. This project could EASILY go north of $40K by the time you add labor costs.

Just think, if you went with a rust free Bronco instead of the fiberglass body, you're looking at least $5,000 for the Bronco and then bodywork and paint would be much greater than the $2,000.
 

bmc69

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Jun 11, 2004
Messages
11,915
I thought I read somewhere that there is a company out there 'building' 'new' vintage FJ40 Yotas to order. Same kind of thing Bax described,,a 'modern' vehicle wrapped in vintage tin. I wonder what one of those typically costs for comparison..
 

av8rds

MAhole!
Joined
Dec 26, 2005
Messages
3,637
Loc.
2300 mi East of Moab
No they cant be that expensive! why not? I see all the time how people here think that someone over paid or over-listed the asking price of a bronco.

MUST be in the 10k range. ;D ;D ;D
 

TN1776

Bronco Guru
Joined
Oct 24, 2006
Messages
2,632
I have to agree with the others. I've done all the labor on my rig and I'm somewhere north of $15K in parts and I'm not done yet. I can't imagine paying a shop to do some of what I've done. This is not a cheap hobby!
 

needabronco

Bronco Guru
Joined
Jul 2, 2004
Messages
6,411
Loc.
Prescott/Farmington
According to my spread sheet if you went with a built 4r70W, efi and replaced the suspension, only replace floor pans and the body is perfect your looking at $28K in parts, powder coating and body work. Now add in about $100-150 an hour for shop labor, and I'd say your looking at spending at least $50k by the time the shop buys the rig and makes a profit.

I'd also say a dedicated shop could do it in less than 6 months if your rig was the only thing they were working on, but be honest, they are building other peoples rigs too, so your looking at about a year+ or so turn around time:eek: .

Roger I need a job, do you want a rig built???
 

73stallion

Bronco Guru
Joined
Mar 5, 2004
Messages
16,786
Loc.
Eugene, OR
when i built jones' bronco, we had around 65k in parts, body work, and paint. we also went all out with unbreakable (yeah right) parts. it took me 3 years to complete, working 1 or 2 days a week in his garage.

if it were a pro shop, i'd have to agree on between 40k and 50k total. that's including finding a bronco to start with for about 3k or so. that's for a street bronco without all the HD off road add ons.
 

ArmyCOL

Sr. Member
Joined
Feb 7, 2007
Messages
407
Like so many of you I am doing the labor on my Bronco. My wish list added up to $18K and that did not include wheels, tires, sound system, interior, and paint. I am easily looking at $25K just to get it where I want it. I just wish I had the $25K laying around so I could finish mine.

Chuck
 
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