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1996 Ford Bronco "Moose" Build

77K views 306 replies 79 participants last post by  BroncoJoe96 
#1 · (Edited)
So in late May I picked up a 1996 Bronco that I decided I wanted to fix up for my first car. I liked trucks and when I did some research and found Broncos I knew what I wanted. It would be a perfect off roading truck and a nice daily driver since I don't need to commute too far to school.

It needs some work but nothing too bad for over 150,000 miles. I got it for a decent price and it will be a nice project. She needed some transmission work, body work, maybe some new paint, and some other TLC. Just the normal Bronco stuff. My dad used to have a few Blazers back in the day so he's excited to give me a hand with it.

5.0 L
Automatic
Two sets of tires, 42 inch Super Swampers and a set of 35s.
Paid $2,700

I've been watching some forums on the site and finally I'm getting around to posting its been about 5 months so I have a lot of progress to share, so I'll get started.

Here's a few pictures of the truck when I got it:





The big 42's





I had to put some stock tires on the front to get it to fit onto the car trailer.



So after we loaded it up we brought it home and I had the urge to see it with those 42's since I knew I wouldn't have them for too long. So me and my dad made it our first job to put them on.





The next thing on the to do list was to play around with it and ended up finishing off the transmission in the backyard so we had to limp back to the driveway in reverse. :beer
 
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#7 · (Edited)
Next thing to do was to start tearing her down and get the transmission out so we could get her driving again. I had some free time so I took off the fender flares and power washed her so I can see all the rust.



The PO cut the front fenders to try and fix the rubbing that occurred with the 42's. Also there was rot over rear wheel wells and a few assorted rust holes around.

Took off the bumpers and was playing around with a grill guard off one of my dads old trucks, I think when I get around to putting it all back together I'll weld it on.



Here's another view of the rot. Isn't too bad compared to some trucks, but still isn't pretty. Also was the last time I had on the Super Swampers before I sold them.



Opening up the can of worms be removing the tailgate. Also realized the back was sagging down because it was just hanging. It rotted right off.







Also discovered the rear body mounts weren't doing much. We were able to pull them right threw the frame. (Sorry about the fuzzy picture.)



So there she sat.



Up next was the transmission.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Transmission

Before we tackled the body work and rust, we had to get this beast moving again, so it was time to pull the trans. First we got the drive shafts and transfer case out of the way.



Then was the transmission, me and my dad built a cradle to hold it that fit into the jack, and a big U to hold it on the engine stand with 3 bolts to hold it on there.











Pulled off the torque converter and it was time to stat the rebuild. :rockon

We went online and got a rebuild kit along with a manual and DVD.

Here's some pictures with it all opened up. And I forgot to mention its an E40D automatic overdrive transmission.







The shifting linkage













After the tear down and rebuild, it looked like everything was fine except the first forward gear drum. This wear ring in it popped out and shredded the spring and welded all the clutch plates together with the heat it generated. Found a whole used drum on eBay for $20. Then it was time to get it back in the truck.

 
#9 ·
very nice holding fixture!!!!!!!
 
#10 · (Edited)
Onto the Body

I forgot to mention that while I had the trans out I got in there and painted the frame and replaced an O2 sensor.

But I finally got it all back in there...

And it worked :rockon

I spent most of an afternoon driving it around and it was a blast. But then it was back to work. Time to make her look pretty. Started by pulling the gas tank so we could weld with out much worry of a fiery explosion.



In some places it was rusted pretty thin so I decided to pick up a new one off eBay. I think I got it for $65. Then I replaced a rusted out shackle.



While we were working on the frame we also fixed the body mounts.


A fresh coat of paint never hurt anything.


And then it was time to start on the wheel wells and body. I got replacement panels off LMC trucks.

Area to cut out


Rear rotted cross member cut out








Also picked up a visor for my birthday. So this is now about Septembers pregress.


Patching holes


More body mount holes to fix.


New panel welded in.


To be continued...
 
#15 ·
Nice build. Where you get the trans rebuild kit and how much?
 
#16 ·
Nice job.
I also have to replace my rear cross member as well as rear body mounts. Can you get a few pics of the cross member you build as well as the install.
I am sure I am not the only one that they would help.
 
#19 ·
damn i remember seeing this on craigslsit a while back when i got my last bronco looked clean but boy was i wrong lol good to see her get a new lease on life
 
#24 ·
Oh very familiar ad .. Btw where you live? Maybe of close I could stop by sometime and help you wrench on that thing
 
#26 · (Edited)
First up was test fitting the fender flare.


After that we went on to playing with the rear cross member. My dad had some stainless plate and a friend of his had a break so we used that. This is the cross member bent all up. We welded pipes in around the bolt holes so when we tightened it up we wouldn't crush it. We also welded in the pieces inside to give it some stability.


Then we slapped the top on and welded it in along with some gussets.



Also we patched the inner wheel wells.


Here are some other views:


Other side


And the other panel:


Later on we decided to do away with an inner wheel wells in the back since it caused the rot in the first place so we welded in a few bars to reinforce the panels. They're solid now :rockon

Next up was some more house cleaning stuff. Mostly painting things on the undercarriage to make it look nice.
 
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