My Stroppe Journey . . . I Took it Wheeling!

[fatboy]

I have been thinking about adding one to my Wildtrak so I can hang a bike off the back of it or support a canoe on the top of it.

 

[Glass Pony]

I have been thinking about adding one to my Wildtrak so I can hang a bike off the back of it or support a canoe on the top of it.

I added one to my wife's Bronco (no wiring) for a hitch haul basket. Cost a little over $100.

 

[ep67bro]

I did a hitch on my wife's 2022 Black diamond. I just did the basic 4 pin harness as I knew it was never going to tow anything big. The wiring harness wasnt hard just had to run a wire up to the firewall for a power lead. The rest was just plug and play into the factory light harness. I was planning on using it for a bike rack but never did. I wish my Badlands had one as I might be having a small Kayak trailer to pull around with it shortly.

 

[Scoop]

@ep67bro , good point. Not sure if I will add a connector but if I do, a 4-pin would probably suffice for the towing I would do with this Bronco. Towing would be limited to a small utility trailer for hauling an ATV or short dump runs. Main use will likely be a hitch basket or bike carriers for our e-bikes.

 

[ransil]

I got my Ford receiver and module from eBay for my 24 wild track they were way cheaper than everywhere else.
Found a dealer that knew what they were doing and had then program it for $100 .
The modules have changed over the years if you go that route get the correct one for your year.

 

[ssray]

Also I'm struggling with the clutch lever - how to access it??

Air operated option? They are out there, but I dont remember what they're available on. Even if you used a portable pump to air up tires you could likely use a small tank and a manual air valve from a truck for simplicity.

 

[Scoop]

Not really a Cactus Smasher, but on a Stroppe that's what I'll call it!

Eventually I want to paint it Code Orange to match the Stroppe color.

 

[toddz69]

I was surprised they didn't put those on them stock as an ode to the original Bajas.

Todd Z.

 

[mdainsd]

It's a noticeable improvement over the 2022 Badlands SAS. It's smoother, quieter and seems to handle better. I'm really liking the Stroppe.

Only downside here in Colorado most people see it as being painted Denver Bronco's colors as most know nothing about Bill Stroppe. So they think I'm a rabid Denver fan who painted my Bronco the team colors! I am a Broncos fan but not to the point I would paint a vehicle!!

You do know that there was a Denver Broncos Bronco? Very similar to the Stroppe in appearance except white flares and hood. None of the offroad mods.

 

[Scoop]

@mdainsd, Yes. Funny thing is !that here in Colorado very few people nowadays know about Stroppes, so many people think I painted the Bronco in Denver Bronco colors! I get a lot of "Nice Bronco" comments but also a lot of "Go Broncos!" comments.

 

[Scoop]

Just want to add a 4th of July pic to this thread!

 

[BluebroncoNC]

@mdainsd, Yes. Funny thing is !that here in Colorado very few people nowadays know about Stroppes, so many people think I painted the Bronco in Denver Bronco colors! I get a lot of "Nice Bronco" comments but also a lot of "Go Broncos!" comments.

Yup, have had folks stop me to talk Denver Bronco football and I am in North Carolina... Don't want to even imagine Stroppe owners in Colorado.

 

[Scoop]

I was hoping to post an upgrade but . . .

I ordered and received a set of rear shock skid plates from Metal Cloak. Went to put them on and and looked at the instructions on line. "Fits 21 to 26 Bronco EXCEPT Hoss 3!" I called MC and they said yup, does not fit Hoss 3. But that I might be able to modify them to fit. Nope! I looked at modifying them and it would take a lot of trimming to make them fit. So much trimming that it would compromise the skid plate. So I opted to return them.

Metal Cloak does not make them for the Hoss 3 suspension and my search did not find anyone who does.

Has anyone found them that will work with Hoss 3?

 

[Scoop]

Teaser . . .

I'm thinking about starting my hidden winch installation. I have the Rough Country kit but haven't decided on the winch yet. I've read the instructions and looked at several Youtube videos. It's pretty straight forward with the 2.3 I4 but it's more complicated with the 2.7 V6.

To make room for the winch, in addition to cutting the frame horns, you need to move the oil cooler up to a new bracket. The 2.3 does not have this cooler.

 

[BluebroncoNC]

Teaser . . .

I'm thinking about starting my hidden winch installation. I have the Rough Country kit but haven't decided on the winch yet. I've read the instructions and looked at several Youtube videos. It's pretty straight forward with the 2.3 I4 but it's more complicated with the 2.7 V6.

View attachment 966159

To make room for the winch, in addition to cutting the frame horns, you need to move the oil cooler up to a new bracket. The 2.3 does not have this cooler.

Also, the louvers need to be removed as well. I started on the hidden winch by RC on my 2.7 equipped Outerbanks, then Ford announced the Stroppe Edition and I stopped due to the trade in of the Outer Banks.

 

[Scoop]

Frame horns and louvers removed!

 

[Scoop]

Here's the frame where the horns were removed.

Raw!

Smoothed and Painted!

I reattached the cooler so the Bronco is drivable until I do the next step.

 

[904Bronco]

Brave man cutting frame components off a relatively new Rig

 

[Scoop]

A little work done today. I got the aux coolant pump removed and pulled the coolant lines from the tranny cooler. Getting the coolant lines off the tranny cooler was a PITA.

Next is mounting some supplied brackets to relocate the cooler and the pump and shortening one of the coolant line. Tomorrow! That should make room for a winch.

 

[Scoop]

I got all the prep work done to make room for installing a hidden winch. Not for the faint of heart! For the 2.7 L it takes a lot of moving components around, (as shown above) cutting the frame horns off, and cutting a number of coolant hoses to shorten them. All this to have a hidden winch so that I don't mess up the looks of the front end of a Stroppe! It would have been much easier to install a bumper mounted winch tray like I had on my '22 Badlands.

Install note: The instructions call for removal of the intercooler down pipe. I called Rough Country to ask why this was needed. Tech person said probably to make access easier to do the component relocations. He said I could try to do it without removing the downpipe and it would then be obvious of why it was needed. I found no issue with leaving the downpipe in place. So no need to remove the downpipe!

That said the mods went well and I checked for leaks - none.

Aux pump relocated and hose marked for cutting.

Bracket relocation.

Cutting one of the lines.

RC bracket relocating the cooler. This shows the area opened up to install a winch.

Relocated pump with the hoses shortened and installed.

Next is selecting a winch and installing it! Issues to still be resolved: 1. How to access the clutch lever; and 2. Will I need to relocate the control box on the winch I select? There have been various solutions for both of these issues but I need to research more for the best solutions. One thing I want in a winch is a cordless remote.