Bronco Cryptozoology #6: Alaska Pipeline Broncos

Cryptozoology is the study of mythical creatures that may or may not exist.

This applies to Broncos how? Well, there is a lot of mystery and myths surrounding certain Bronco models and specialty-built Broncos.

So, this new segment at the blog will focus on these prototypes, one of a kind, special editions and the most historical Broncos ever built.

To keep the posts short, we will include only a brief story of each

We will try to separate fact from fiction and possibly come up with more questions than answers.

At first, I was going to compile this into one post, but it got waaay too long.

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline was constructed in the mid-late 1970s. The construction went year-round and was no doubt slowed by the severe winter weather Alaska gets.

The project was not without its detractors. To appease the environmentalists the contractors had to agree to a host of rules and provisions including doing minimal damage to the "fragile" tundra in the north.

Ford was contacted early on to see if they could offer F-series Trucks as well as some Broncos specially equipped for the job.

The contract was finalized in 1974 and fourteen 1975 model year Broncos & twenty F-350 Crew Cab 4WD trucks were supplied to the host of contractors working on the pipeline.

Knowing that the tundra was both fragile and soft, they built the Broncos and trucks with very large implement tires (said to be more than 3 feet tall and 1 1/2 feet wide) to spread the weight out. This would prevent the Broncos from sinking into the north Alaska mud, getting stuck and doing unnecessary environmental damage.

To fit the tires the Broncos needed a suspension lift, cut out fenders with massive fender flares and heavy-duty axles.

Ford utilized the Dana 60 axles front and rear, equipped with 5.38 gears, the transmissions were the New Process 435 4-speeds.

Of course, there were other items included, like dual heavy-duty batteries, heavy-duty 100amp alternator and block heaters, similar to the "Northland Package" Ford offered in the northern states. 

I have been told that no pre-delivery pictures of the Broncos exist. I was able to find several pictures of the Alaska Pipeline Broncos that are now in private hands.

If you haven't figured it out by now, Ford never built this model (at least as far as I know), the Broncos shown above are from Iceland, where they build the Broncos this way to stay on top of the ice and snow.