[steveG]

I promised a few people updates on the Bronco when it got close to completion. Well, it's getting a little closer.... There are still a lot of unfinished details. Parts in single shear, tubes partially welded, coil retainers uninstalled, limit straps, bumps, etc.

The ultimate goal is to have a reliable daily driver that I can drive to work daily, prerun race courses, chase and pit for friends and just plain drive the hell out of without breaking. Except for the upper shock mounts (front and rear) that I built, the front and rear suspension is Autofab. Wheel travel is around 16" front and rear and the shocks are 2.5"x14" Fox in the front and 2.5"x12" Sway-A-Way in the rear.

EDIT: Both the front and rear shock mounts have been changed to Autofab parts.

Exterior pic:

Radius arms (coil-buckets not yet installed):

Another front end pic:

Front suspension:

Driver side shock mount. Ignore the c/o hardware, I've been too lazy to remove it:

Rear suspension. The rear shocks are currently internal bypasses, but I don't like the way they feel so I'm going to change the internals to make them into regular shocks soon:

A simple light bar to hold me over till I get around to building a real bumper:

A couple pics of the not-yet-destroyed interior:

 

[ToddACimer]

The body and interior look mint, the suspension is kick ass but I'm not too sure about that steering setup

 

[JB]

damn, thats a nice interior!

 

[Redwagon]

:stupid that is one clean interior

 

[monkeyhouse]

(long drawn out whistle) that is a slick bronco.

 

[xmeinherzbrennt]

whats with the bar coming off the rearend? is that just to prevent axle tramp?

 

[steveG]

The body and interior look mint, the suspension is kick ass but I'm not too sure about that steering setup

The steering works just fine the way it is. They key is to limit droop travel before the steering binds. Eventually I'll probably build (or buy Autofab's kit) a cross-over steering set up.

 

[LaNeR88]

Damn dude... that truck is NICE! Lovin the front autofab beams!

I'm leaning toward coilovers for the front and eliminating the coils and just buildings some tall ass shock hoops... but that's down the road.

sick truck man!

 

[steveG]

whats with the bar coming off the rearend? is that just to prevent axle tramp?

It's Autofab's 2-link kit. It controls axle wrap without binding the suspension.

 

[steveG]

I'm leaning toward coilovers for the front and eliminating the coilssick truck man!

I was really close to going with coil-overs. In fact the front shocks are coil-over shocks. Even after I bought the coil-buckets I went back in forth. But in the end the buckets won. It's really hard to correctly build an upper coil-over mount that won't destroy the frame after a few seasons of hard use. I saw too many beamed coil-over trucks with twisted & tweeked frames. You also have to relocate lots of parts including the master cylinder to place the upper mount in the propper location for good geometry at full bump. I decided to go with a proven set-up as part of the goal is a SIMPLE truck.

 

[408Bronco]

Killer info, and your interior looks mint.

I'm about to undertake a similar build.

 

[magnumpi]

So im guessing you TTB arms are modified...whats the info on those?

oh, sweet bronco...im jealous of your interior

 

[steveG]

So im guessing you TTB arms are modified...

The axle housings are from Autofab. The lower ball joint has been moved out and reinforced (not just welded back in like some). I reinforced the housings by welding 3/16" plate to the back to box them in.

 

[Bronco Rob]

damn dude, i wish my Bronk was HALF as clean as that thing, good job, looks nice, love the paint

 

[Sixlitre]

That thang is 23 model years old

Where's all the rust !?!?!?!?!?!

It's incredible Steve !

Sixlitre

 

[steveG]

That thang is 23 model years old

Where's all the rust !?!?!?!?!?!

It's incredible Steve !

Sixlitre

LOL, the truck was VERY well taken care of. Honestly, it was dirtier the day after I bought it than it had probably been in it's entire existence. I had to scrape the original undercoating off the outsides of the frame rails to weld on the frame. When I first saw the Bronco, about 80% of the interior carpet was covered by blankets as well as the rear seat. I wouldn't be surprised if no one had ever sat in the back.

Don't worry though. Sometime in the next couple years I'll destroy the interior to build a solid cage front to rear.

 

[adrianspeeder]

NICE! Please join me in the "mint interior club"...

But your blue is MUCH nicer to me!

Adrianspeeder

 

[Mogley]

Wow, dont you dare touch that interior:shocked ..or we will all come out there and hurt you!!!:twak

Nice TTB setup there for all those TTB haters out there!!:rockon :goodfinge :thumbup

 

[Nando]

I wish my 10-year newer truck looked as rust-free and new (interior)! I have enough rust and dirt for the two of us!

All I can do now is laugh at the giant rust hole that used to be part of my tailgate! ...still works though...

Awesome truck.

 

[steveG]

Wow, dont you dare touch that interior:shocked ..or we will all come out there and hurt you!!!:twak

Nice TTB setup there for all those TTB haters out there!!:rockon :goodfinge :thumbup

It took a lot of convincing from friends for me to actually use this truck as a project vehicle. At first I didn't want to cut it up because it was so pristine. I wish I had taken pictures of it when I first got it.

Now however, it's all fair game. the interior will be completely gutted when the cage is installed. I want a super-rigid cage so all the pretty and daily comfort will go out the window for the sake of structural integrity. I don't want a cage that will simply save my life, I'm planning on a cage that will allow hard roll and continued use (as long as the wheels stay on during the roll!).

Don't worry though. When the day comes I'll do my best to remove all the pieces in one piece and put them up for sale....