Most desired Bronco

[DJBRONCO]

Hey Guys, I'm new here and new to early Bronco's. I've been looking a lot recently and I'm ready to buy. I'm curious about what I should be looking for? I prefer an uncut truck but I'm not hung up on 100% original. What models should I be looking for? What's the difference between a sport or a ranger? I know I could probably search some of this info but this was a good way for me to get on the board here. Thanks for any info you guys can give.

DJ

 

[rellimgneb]

None of that sport or ranger crap really matters. It's all trim and headliners and other things you can buy to make it look however you want.

 

[Clint]

Stroppe.

 

[rellimgneb]

Well yes stroppe, sorry wasn't thinking about that. Though I don't personaly feel it has anything worth the price of finding one. Other than bragging rights.

 

[77Bronco636]

Welcome DJBRONCO! It all depends on what you want to do with the truck. Rock crawl, mud bog, trail rides, cruise around town, or all. Get the truck you want for your needs or interests. I think the 1966 U13 roadsters are the best and most fun to drive. There are about as bare bones as you can get and tons of fun. I also have a 77 and it is night and day between the two. Its amazing how much the trucks changed in 12 years and still looked the same!
Paul;D

 

[texastreasures]

Most Sought After

I would say look for a 76 77 because of the stock options such as Power Disc Brakes, 4 turn Power Steering , Automatic Transmission , Big Bearing 9 inch rear. They are hard to come buy. Another thing to look for is just a good Solid Bronco everything else is obtainable. My first bronco was a 76 no chrome 302 3spd I worked at a dealership and another salesman didnt offer to take it in trade so I offered $500 for it after the sale and they accepted 3 weeks later that was in 1997. I sold it to my brother 2 monthes later for $1700 he drove it about 4 years and sold it for about $3500 to someone in Houston and they offered it back to us three years after that for $6500 amazing how they became so popular. Good luck finding the right bronco.
Hang around here long and someone will put you in a bronco.

 

[cbearly]

One of the main things to watch for is how much rust the body has. A lot of other things are pretty easy to fix, but bad rust can be a pain. Some of the main areas to check are the doorposts, floor pans, rocker panels, bottom of the tailgate, and inner fenders just in front of the firewall. To check the floor pans, get under the bronco and look at the seams from the bottom.

A couple of other things that are nice to have are power steering, and front disk brakes. Both came on the 76 and 77 broncos, but have often been added to earlier broncos.

An EFI motor is also a nice upgrade especially if you plan to do much 4 wheeling with it. None came with it, so they will only have EFI if a previous owner swapped it in.

Hope this helps.

 

[DJBRONCO]

Thanks for the info guys. My main use would be to cruise. I don't see me taking it off road too much. If it's a clear trail maybe but, I like my stuff too much to beat on it. I have kids so it will be more of a family truckster. I also found an article on the different packages. Great site guys!

 

[76 bronco J]

---one other thing is the track bar brackets were redesigned on the 76-77 frames & are bigger beefer dropped units compared to the 66-75 & the track bar itself is slightly longer-- this supposedly improved handling along with the quicker steering ratio-- also lots of people complain about the Y-steering on the 76-77's ,but in stock form they handle very well ----- I'm partial to the 76's ecspecially for uncut resto mod/camping cruisers cause they have all the good stuff without the fuel filler doors or those crazy up & down side marker lights on the rear sides so they still look like the older models

 

[wildbill]

Then for you it should be a 66 to 77 66 to 68 1/2 had the 6 or 289 and after that the 6 and 302. I would suggest getting the one you like best me its a 66 it was first but they didnt make a bad one good luck. Bill %) ;D

 

[Scoop]

Thanks for the info guys. My main use would be to cruise. I don't see me taking it off road too much. If it's a clear trail maybe but, I like my stuff too much to beat on it. I have kids so it will be more of a family truckster. I also found an article on the different packages. Great site guys!

Welcome!

For what you describe you want to do I will suggest 2 options, both have been mentioned already, because they stand out as "desriable" among the Bronco crowd. (I am going to skip Stoppe since it's a given they are very desriable but also carry a high premium - like a Shelby Mustang.)

1. '66 Roadster - As mentioned the very basic no frills Bronco. A nice one will stand out in any crowd. No power, 3 on the tree and many features not found on any other year. Similar to a 64 1/2 Mustang.

2. '73 to '77 Ranger. These are the Eddie Bauers of their time. I think they are undervalued. A nice uncut Ranger with the original graphics is very desirable. Yes the Ranger package is a trim option, but since most of them were "loaded" many of them come with the higher GVW suspensions, big bearing 9 inch, limited slip front and rear, auto tranny and power steering. My '74 Ranger has all these options - it only lacked power brakes (not available until '76) and dealer installed AC. '76 and '77 are most desirable since they have power disc brakes and some other improvements. Although some of the last years also had some cost cutting by Ford for example some later Rangers didn't come with the belt line brite trim moulding.

HTH

 

[mike.l]

I think the 1966 U13 roadsters are the best and most fun to drive. There are about as bare bones as you can get and tons of fun.;D

I agree.Paul and I a little biased though.

I think finding a good solid truck would be first priority.Any options the Bronco doesn't have could be found on CB.When you buy your second or third(most do)you will probably have a preferance on model,trim package,or year.

 

[Broncobowsher]

Several years ago I was looking for a replacment for the first bronco I sold. Found an original '66 half cab with a bench set that had everything. Low mileage, but rust. It was extreamly complete. Horn ring, hub caps, not a part was missing or beat up. It was also the 2nd ever sold by the local dealer.

I passed on it. I wanted a toy. Something that I could play with without destroying. That truck had too much history behind it and was in need of a restoration to stock. Not what I wanted, which was a hot rodded, mildly tricked truck.

As for the rarest vehicle? It is the survivers. Original unmolested vehicles. They can only be original once. Anybody can restore one or hack one up. It takes a lot to find an original and keep it that way.

I can open the auto trader and find a dozen toys/beaters anyweekend. I can search aa little harder and find people restoring them like new. But the used and not abused, survivers are becoming more and more rare everyday. That is because you can't build a survivor, it must be one. They get rarer everytime someone gets one without realizing what it is, then goes out and starts putting a lift on it and reworking the engine. Thn they want fresh paing and custom seats. Poof, another survivor gone forever.

This isn't just a Bronco thing. All cars are suffering it. I looked for a model T a while back. I thought it might be a fun toy. Drive to work on nice days (only a few miles now), run to the local store. Went shopping. All I could find were T-bucket hot rods, restored cars, and bucket-o-parts cars. I found 1 survivor out of 150 cars I was looking at in 1 day.

 

[77Bronco636]

broncobowsher is so right, they are origianl once!!! They are nice to see and nice to own. It takes a special person to want to keep the truck that way and not cut it all up or lift it. Its a peice of history and a guide to go by when people are doing restorations. Not many of them left anymore!!!

 

[66broncofan]

most desired

One thats completed and paid for!

 

[SaddleUp]

If this is going to be a project rig then look for any clean one you can find. I.E. Little or no rust. Everything mentioned can be added to them and in most cases there are newer upgrades to improve upon what they had originally. For instance 4 wheel disk brakes with hydroboost and EFI (Which is a big improvement for daily drivers as well as off road rigs). Drop in an Overdrive automatic and upgrade the suspension and cruise around in style. The options are endless and a project rig allows you to make it your own. As to what they originally came with it is fun to use that as a basis for figuring out how close to original yours is but otherwise it isn't a good yardstick for choosing one to purchase since so many of them have been modified since they rolled off the assemble line.