The Hard Talk, Wrangler (TJ or JK) over Bronco

[zonian]

I echo "Germand's" comments, patience and effort. I enjoy working on mine, but there are things I can't or don't want to do, so I save and pay a reputable shop. I've never understood the view that if you can't do all your own work you shouldn't have an early bronco, any more than I understand the attitude that if you can sell your rig for a heap of money your not a purist. I'm on my second eb and I enjoy my weekly drives, but don't expect perfection, which I'm fine with. I understood the limitations when I bought it. Its my fun car and if its down for awhile until I can fix it or afford to get it fixed, so be it. That's why I have a newer 4runner. For those needing reliable, safe, dependable every day transport anew wrangler would be excellent.

 

[matts460]

Couldnt somthing be said for the fact that during the production run the early bronco is very differnt compairing a stock 66 to a stock 77 Ranger. Alot happend in those 12 years! I drive many differnt cars/trucks/suv every day my 77 is pretty good driving for its age especailly compaired to even the new jeep CJ body types including the 4doors. But the Bronco doesnt have the airbags or shoulder harness or head rest although some of that stuff can be added well these days. When my sons get old enough to drive they will probly both end up in some sort of used Ford or Toyota pickup truck. We will see what the future holds, of course there lots of 90's stuff with no airbags! So i dont worry to much about the airbag part but the rest is defenatly future must haves. The 76-77 Bronco is pretty modern even today when you stack up the standard componants. Just my little opinion.

 

[nathan_1970]

I echo "Germand's" comments, patience and effort. I enjoy working on mine, but there are things I can't or don't want to do, so I save and pay a reputable shop. I've never understood the view that if you can't do all your own work you shouldn't have an early bronco, any more than I understand the attitude that if you can sell your rig for a heap of money your not a purist. I'm on my second eb and I enjoy my weekly drives, but don't expect perfection, which I'm fine with. I understood the limitations when I bought it. Its my fun car and if its down for awhile until I can fix it or afford to get it fixed, so be it. That's why I have a newer 4runner. For those needing reliable, safe, dependable every day transport anew wrangler would be excellent.

This is a very good post in my non credible point of view ;D. I work on what I feel comfortable with, try and learn how to expand my skill set, save for what I currently don't feel comfortable with and just enjoy building memories with the family. It has been working for me the last 6 years I have owned it. It also doesn't hurt that I have Driven (plug) right down the street and feel very comfortable with their skills and honest pricing to fill in my knowledge gaps.

 

[blubuckaroo]

Since we bought ours new, I've done all the repairs and mods myself. The co-owner has suggested several times that we replace it with something more reliable. My argument was that this car has never needed a repair that cost as much as each monthly payment on her car.
I can still make that statement, as long as you don't count a couple of elective investments that had nothing to do with a break-down.%)

 

[AxlesUp]

every time someone mentions how unreliable old cars are it makes me giggle.

i think about the move i made two years ago. Seattle WA to Memphis TN. 2300 miles in three days across 7 mountain passes in a 1978 k5 blazer i bought for $1500. beyond fully loaded. sure i spent a second $1500 on new seats, a new carb, new brakes, u-joints, steering box and a custom radiator. It only had 270k miles on it. practically brand new for a vintage car. sure my alternator died in the cascades. i only drove it all the way across WA state and half way across Montana before it got down to 8 volts and I stopped to replace it. no biggie its just an alternator and i needed a stretch anyway.

that's what i love about old cars. if it breaks just look under the seat, check around in the bushes. you're likely to find something that will cobble it together to get you home. even if home is half way across the country.


PS:
the JK is a force to be reckoned with on and off road.

 

[jckkys]

It seems odd to hear people boast about Jeep Wrangler safety. When compared to my Crown Vic, they don't come off as a choice for safety. The Crown can do 90 all day effortlessly and always be ready to perform the most extreme maneuver. The police often wish they still had theirs. On snow or ice covered roads the 4WD Wrangler comes in handy, but when the snow gets deep the Bronco is far better. My CJ3A did have safety issues. No role bar or even a steel top, no seat belts and an inability to go highway speeds, ever. On the other hand it was the most fun to drive off road. My '77 Bronco works as well off road with twice the room 4 times the power. It could use shoulder harnesses, but it will get them. No short wheel base utility truck can compare to the Crown Vic for safety, but it just gets there comfortably and safely. In other words it's boring. So are Wranglers. There's something special about a 4x4 with the top off and windshield folded down. I have no problem keeping the Bronco as reliable as any late model that's been driven a few years. Keeping an EB is far less expensive than new car payments, once you get to know them.

 

[kb6677]

another take on your heep vs. eb

Driving and having ebs in the family since '76, I have modified my share of ebs. We did the typical '80s deal for a long time- cut and 33's, engine mods and in the 90's we figured out the benefits of changing gears, trannys etc.

With that said I have had several ebs over the years on 33's and 35's that I thought handled well- drum brake rears limited their stopping of course. Current stable includes a pretty diverse herd............. The '74 which is like "many" ebs, 3.5 long arm, 4 corner dual shocks, rock crusher style heim joint steering, db dana 44 etc... bla bla bla is my pick of the "best handling" street modified rig. It still rides rough and you have to look ahead to stop briskly( rear db conversion is in its future....sometime

I typed all that to type this. A couple winters ago, we were looking for my wife a "snow mobile"/ winter rig to drive on bad mornings. Unlike my job as a teacher-we have delays for three flakes of snow, she has to be at work regardless. Where we live is close to the line of two counties and many times the county she drives into for work is very slack on clearing their side of the "mountain". If we have 2" or a foot, or ice, it WILL be on the road at 6am when she leaves initially. We looked for a used F150- basically from '76-'96. Did not happen, they were either WAY over priced or WAY high on miles or both!! Could not make myself jump on the local "trend" and get a subbie! So, we found a 2004 Heep TJ Sahara with 30.5k on it at an estate sale in central SC. No rust, owner history etc. so we bought it for 11k. We have had to fix some stuff from sitting- TPS, couple of O2 sens, front brakes and that is about it except for the complete 30k service we did. As has been mentioned, parts were easily available and cheap-front rotors, disc, lines complete both sides for $280 with my manager bud at Advance Put new stock size BFG ATs on it 9.5x30, bumper and 9k winch, KC lights, a rear "trunk" that locks behind the seat and she drives the piss out of it. It gets salt and sand on it and I don't care because it is a heep!!

To the original post- the year of the heep in question was not really mentioned but I can tell you, the years of the 4.0 straight 6 are not special at all. We have the auto OD tranny and I am not at all pleased with the pwr of the 4.0. My 5 speed Focus even seems more peppy and it is a dog. The mpg is TERRIBLE on the jeep-17ish (remember OD and stock size tires), may ride just a bit better than my '74 mentioned earlier. Does stop better with the stock tires. Can't speak for the V6, LJ and Rubi models because I did not want to spend that much on a snow beater. I also will not type the Heep is a mud monster and show you 33" tires on it. I will say it goes well in the snow and I like the shifting of the tcase into and out of 4wd. In closing, I could not imagine have a heep of my vintage as a DD- that would suck!!
Good luck

 

[matts460]

My 77 Bronco feels/drives like well a normal little pick up truck. Any CJ type heep I have driven even the newer 4door types feel oooodd to drive I cant tell if its the short wheelbase or just funky steering but I cant stand driving any of em. There just so squirrely feeling even with stock tires. Then here lately we have had several newer 4door jeeps get traded in with MT tires on em and they just drive and feel like sh&t. Just when I thought my EB was loud on highway (wind wistle) now get to hear major tire roar! LOL Even the new Heeps have a slick built in rollbar BUT its a simple bracket from hoop to the windshield frame wouldnt hold up to nothing looks like to me. And there factory roll bar padding doesn't seem like enough to me either. And newer Heep hard tops are like a composit plastic too I noticed or atleast it looks that way.

 

[Bronco007]

I think if you wanted to make an older Bronco as comfortable
and nice as a newer car, with money put in the right places
you could have a serious competitor. And as safe if not safer
then some of the tin coming out of Detroit or Germany these
days. Other then air bags (which to me I could live without)
you could make a first gen Bronco as quiet, smooth and reliable
as anything new on the market. Esp with todays technology.
This would include a 89-93 Mustang 5.0 HO motor swap and
possibly an OD transmission combined to a plush, modernized
interior and suspension. In the end, your Bronco will always
be worth more then the Jeep and while the Jeep value goes down..
your Bronco wouldnt seeing as how the trend has been for the
last 7 or 8 yrs. And you wouldnt see your twin driving down the
road everytime you go to the store.
IF you have kids and need a babyseat, then things change
dramatically to be honest, but it would still be do-able.
I love Broncos, always have and try to buy one every few yrs to
keep the feeling alive, but I have to say , instead of a Heep, this
has been my daily for the last 7 yrs and I love it.

 

[TheGanzman]

I think if you wanted to make an older Bronco as comfortable
and nice as a newer car, with money put in the right places
you could have a serious competitor. And as safe if not safer
then some of the tin coming out of Detroit or Germany these
days. Other then air bags (which to me I could live without)
you could make a first gen Bronco as quiet, smooth and reliable
as anything new on the market. Esp with todays technology.
This would include a 89-93 Mustang 5.0 HO motor swap and
possibly an OD transmission combined to a plush, modernized
interior and suspension. In the end, your Bronco will always
be worth more then the Jeep and while the Jeep value goes down..
your Bronco wouldnt seeing as how the trend has been for the
last 7 or 8 yrs. And you wouldnt see your twin driving down the
road everytime you go to the store.
IF you have kids and need a babyseat, then things change
dramatically to be honest, but it would still be do-able.
I love Broncos, always have and try to buy one every few yrs to
keep the feeling alive, but I have to say , instead of a Heep, this
has been my daily for the last 7 yrs and I love it.

Me too - for 6 years and 53K miles:

 

[Bronco007]

Yeah, love my VX ..its a modern classic

 

[73azbronco]

Remember, the JK of today is a different beast than ones from 20011 and especially pre 2008.

 

[flint_knapper]

If they can't work on it, can they afford to pay for all of the maint.,
repairs that an old truck needs? If so good for them, if not, might want
to get a land cruiser, or something that is more in their comfort zone.
I drove mine for years as a daily driver and they will let you down at times
from being old, and well old shit breaks sometimes.