Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Bronco of the Day '66 Restomod

 Today's Bronco is a 1966 Restomod.


I have always like the red and whit combo, probably made famous by the 1953 Corvette. I once owned a 1989 Polaris Indy 400 that was white, red and gray.

Anyway this '66 Bronco has had the original motor swapped for a Coyote 5.0 L V-8. The front axle is the original Dana 30, but it is hard to see if they upgraded the brakes to disk, although they did add a power booster with dual reservoir master cylinder. A combination body and suspension lift make room for the aforementioned Coyote motor and the tires.

The Coyote motor is backed up by an automatic transmission.

A Smittybilt rear roll bar, new tilt column, tuffy console and new seats round out the interior.













Friday, June 6, 2025

Bronco Babes #40

Kicking off this month's Bronco Babes is the beautiful Emily Reeves in her Daisy Dukes and puddle jumpers behind the wheel of her Betty Boop Bronco.

















Sunday, June 1, 2025

Bronco Cryptozoology #40: The Forest Service Bronco

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 Ford Motor Company has a long history of supplying vehicles to the U.S. Forest Service. For years they supplied just trucks, but when the Bronco was introduced, the Dept. of Agriculture began to think about purchasing the bobtail SUV for use in the National Parks.

Ford put together a program in 1973 to supply Broncos to the National Park Service division of the U.S. Forest Service. The initial order was for 780 Broncos.

The Broncos were stripped down models equipped a 302 V-8 engine, automatic transmission and power steering.

The special package came with 70A alternators, dual batteries, external battery jumping connections, heavy duty suspension & axles, trac loc differentials, dual fuel tanks and rubber floor mats.

There was also a special rear bumper, specified by the forest service, similar to what was supplied on the 1967 Military contract Broncos. They needed a heavy-duty steel bumper for towing and hauling items that would not fit in the rear cargo area.

Most noticeable though was the Forest Service Green paint. 




When the Broncos were retired from service their new owners often repainted the rig in a more popular hue. Occasionally these Broncos show up for sale, still wearing their original color.

The one below has a replacement top and custom front bumper, but the rear bumper and green paint prove its history.



23 of the 780 ordered were Ranger models, it is not known why or where those 23 were used. The Ranger Broncos came with chrome bumpers and trim, perhaps they were for senior Forest Service Officials?

The Bronco below is one of those 23 Ranger models, the owner liked the color enough, that when he rebuilt and modified the Bronco he repainted it the original color






Is this a true story? I am not sure, it was pieced together with information from a few different sources, still I could not find anything definitive.

Let me know if you have any 1st hand knowledge of this Bronco model.

Monday, May 26, 2025

Bronco Barn Find Caribbean '66 U14

 




Another great barn find! This one a 1966 U-14 half cab/pick-up in caribbean blue.

I sure hope someone restores this beauty!