I test drove this 77 in CA wondering what you think?

[HunterW]

I hope this is the right Forum for potential purchase inquiries, if not please move this. I'm trying to put up pics of this 77 and would sure appreciate your collective wisdom as I don't know enough about the EB's to understand if something looks wrong or not and would prefer to not spend a fortune finding out. I have the obvious concerns about buying a car that's currently subject to the California smog laws and I wonder if post 1975's should be ruled out here for that reason alone. Any guidance is much appreciated and apologies if my post is a mess.
Looking for a Father Son EB and found this 77 which seems to have had quite a bit of work done to it. It's been Rhino Linered inside and is all very stock with original am radio working . I ran a magnet over most of the body which needs paint but is pretty clean except the tail gate and didn't find any obvious fill.They've cut off the forward tank and put a sgl 20 gallon in the rear. Is the tank too far back to be safe? Of course the rear bumper needs replacing. The 302 installation (which some how I forgot to get a pic of)appears clean and tidy and was supposedly rebuilt in the last couple hundred miles with a transmission which has an electric cooler that was also supposedly rebuilt but there's no receipts because the mechanic was moonlighting from his day job. It drives very nicely no vibration through the wheel no smoke on start up and seemed to run fine. The place that has it is a classic car lot so I can't talk directly to the owner and it is very far from my house. They're asking 17 for it , but like everything I'm sure that's real negotiable if they actually want to sell it as it's been on this lot alone for over 2 months. Thanks!

 

[HunterW]

More 77 pics

Here's some more pics

 

[Rox Crusher]

a lot of new looking stuff on it

new exhaust
new fuel tank
new looking suspension with bilstien shocks
new body lift
new winch and front bumper
inverted y steering linkage has been upgraded to "tie rod over" style
body looks straight

I guess they didn't put rear bumper on it so you could choose what style you prefer ?

couple things I didn't like

radius arm bushings look old / dry
flex plate inspection cover is missing

pretty nice rig but I would say 12k +/- since they can't verify that the engine and tranny have been rebuilt (although that oil pan looks pretty clean / recently painted)

 

[Heus33]

Looks great to me - not much of a father son "project" though - looks more like a turn key Bronco. If you could get it for 12 like Rox says you'd be getting a very nice deal.

To me it looks like a rig that had a new suspension put on a few years back. There's been a good amount of $$ upgrades thrown at this truck. Looks to be very well cared for and not hacked up like so many others.

 

[HunterW]

thanks

for taking the time to check it out. I originally had 'project' in the post but decided we'd rather drive for the most part than work and this seems fit for that mission. Is the fuel tank in that location commonly done? In a rear ender it looks very vulnerable I guess a heavy duty bumper is a must. Would you happen to know what brand the front bumper is? Does that look like the stock rear bumper attachment points? I 've never heard mileage figures for these is 12-14 mpg on the road a good guess?

 

[ilovemaui]

It looks like it's had recent work. It looks like it's an auto?

 

[HunterW]

it has

power steering, front discs with i believe the power booster and a supposedly rebuilt C4 automatic with electric fan on cooler under passengers seat. The engine has headers and looks new. One thing is it seemed to have trouble getting into the top gear but it finally did I don't know if that's because it was cold or maybe they're just like that. It has a tach on the steering column. It went into 4wd with out too much of a struggle and I know transfer case shifting can be touchy I have a new 4wd van with an atlas transfer that is always something of a mystery as to how to get it out of gear everyone seems to have a different technique.
I guess my biggest issue is the year and the smog requirements and oh yeah the price seems high did I say 17 I think they were asking 17900 that seems crazy but there sure is a lot of nice hardware on it. I don't want to make my usual impulse buy but there aren't that many around and how wrong could you go ? We have the Knotts Berry meet here and they draw 90+ EB's my brother just went and I didn't know about it and hadn't caught the bug yet but should I wait and learn or jump in?

 

[Rox Crusher]

for taking the time to check it out. I originally had 'project' in the post but decided we'd rather drive for the most part than work and this seems fit for that mission. Is the fuel tank in that location commonly done? In a rear ender it looks very vulnerable I guess a heavy duty bumper is a must. Would you happen to know what brand the front bumper is? Does that look like the stock rear bumper attachment points? I 've never heard mileage figures for these is 12-14 mpg on the road a good guess?

Yes, that is indeed the stock mounting location for a bumper, appears to be "unmolested" as we like to say

Yes, an oversize tank in that position is normal. They are usually made out of a heavy gauge steel and I think I can see a skid plate on the underside of that one. Given it is a 77, if you look underneath it you should also see a shield between the tank and the rear end. Ford added these after the infamous Pinto gas tank fiasco to keep the tank being punctured should it get shoved forward into the rear end.

you would be lucky to get 12 - 14 mpg..........and I imagine nearly impossible with a teenage driver behind the wheel

the more I look at this rig...........the more I think I might go as high as 14k

 

[farnorthdan]

Looks like it may have had a frame off restoration at some point, I think it looks super clean and straight, compared to my 73' anyways. knowing how much these things can be to restore, i'd give at least 15-16k for it...i say go for it;D



dan

 

[malonejy]

It's looks real nice and very clean but I think you're on to something with CA smog. I just got stationed in AZ but I'm a CA native (my 73 is CA registered) and I don't think having to smog it makes it worth it. Unless the price was under 10K I wouldn't do it. Too many nice Broncos to be found that are 75 and older. Unless you're mechanically inclined enough to tune it to pass smog and they tune it back to where it will run right again. I'm not about polluting our environment, but CA smog is ridiculous.

 

[HunterW]

thanks Malone

the smog aspect of this car really has me concerned. I had a 71 porsche that was a nightmare to smog when the law covered it. I don't mind and enjoy spinning wrenches to make nice things happen but tuning sure isn't my forte and there is a ton of crap that goes into the smog version. I wonder if the smog guys even know what all needs to be on a car of this vintage and if it got passed one time by a guy who wasn't that sharp maybe next time you've got a real problem. Ideally we would find a clean doesn't have to be perfect uncut 302, 75 or older that has p/s, power brakes and C4 that's not askin too much is it?

 

[thegreatjustino]

Some of the guys on the norcal board may be able to give you some insight to the smog issues:

www.norcalbroncos.com

 

[Stroppe-Envy-77]

As far as the smog inspection issue, two things:

1. You can check its smog check history here with either a VIN or plate #:
http://www.bar.ca.gov/pubwebquery/Vehicle/PubTstQry.aspx

2. Regarding the bi-annual inspection, it's not as much of a hassle as it might have been with your Porsche, as long as you keep the Bronco's engine fairly stock. I've had my '77 for five years, and it passes the test every other year just fine, as long as I remember to set the initial timing to where the standard says it should be. Too much advance makes it run much better, but it'll also blow high on one of the readings. With everything set to spec, the numbers come out way below the standard.

I couldn't tell from your pictures, but having the stock air cleaner is probably a necessity. Then again, if the Bronco has recently passed an inspection (see item #1), it's probably okay. You mention that it has headers, and I think those are allowed as long as there's a catalytic converter(s) in place, which one of your photos shows.

Now, if you have visions of major horsepower increases (big carburetor, etc.) you will run into trouble.

Another thing to keep in mind: Currently, California doesn't require inspections for pre-'76 vehicles, but technically they still have to be emissions compliant. You can still be cited for excessive emissions if you jump on the throttle in front of a cop and blow plumes of black smoke out the tailpipe.

Also, the laws can always change, so having a '75 or older Bronco doesn't guarantee you a lifetime exemption from smog checks. The legislature could always repeal the exemption and once again require that older vehicles be tested. The way the mindset in Sacramento is going these days, I wouldn't rule it out.

 

[Stroppe-Envy-77]

Okay, I went back and looked at the photo of the plate, and entered it into the BAR database. (Yes, I'm bored right now!)

Looks like it passed its last five inspections, the most recent one being September 2009.

I'd talk to the owner and see if there's some prep in getting it to pass. Probably the timing trick, which is pretty easy for anyone with a timing light to do.

 

[HunterW]

You guys are amazing thanks so much for all your comments. There is nothing better than an inspired forum!

 

[1970mule]

not sure if anyone commented on the shocks. they look like some nice 7100s but they have had the heim joints taken off. so they have no flex, so under stress they will be sheared off, so that is somthing that you should look into. not a big deal just something that can be avoided in the future.

 

[73azbronco]

lower transmission/flywheel access plate appears to be missing.

Seems like lots of little rust spots everywhere. otherwise looks nice.

 

[fungus]

not sure if anyone commented on the shocks. they look like some nice 7100s but they have had the heim joints taken off. so they have no flex, so under stress they will be sheared off, so that is somthing that you should look into. not a big deal just something that can be avoided in the future.

Looks like they're still there to me w/ spacers on both sides of the heim.

I'm a pre-smog fan myself but as the others have stated, not a big deal especially if it's passed the last 5. Not a ton you can do with big HP mods though which may be just fine for your intended use. Also makes an EFI upgrade extremely tricky but if you don't have those aspirations then no biggie...

 

[1970mule]

Looks like they're still there to me w/ spacers on both sides of the heim.

yup looks like your right i was looking at the rear ones. i did not know that the heims would fit like that in the stock location. but looks like they figured it out. seems kinda not so sturdy that far out. anywhoooo, looks like i am wrong yet again.

 

[fuzzy2133]

I have a 77 never had any trouble getting it to pass smog. the smog tech I go to claims the CAT makes the older engine pass so much easier than trying with out one. Only thing I change is removing the vacuum line to the EGR valve after the smog test is done.