Bronco Babes #31

 

Bronco Cryptozoology #31: Harley Davidson 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 Harley Davidson Bronco, fact or fiction?

Most of you reading this have no doubt heard of or seen the Harley Davidson edition F-Series trucks, but this was not the 1st time a Ford wore the Harley colors.

During the summer of 1968 word got out that Harley Davidson was in financial trouble and was looking to sell. Bunkie Knudsen was the head of Ford then and immediately saw an opportunity. 

He began making moves at Ford that would help him convince the Board of Directors that Ford buying Harley would be a strategic move. The two companies had a lot in common, they were both founded in the Midwest and in the same year (1903), and both still carried the name of their respective founders.

Knudsen saw the opportunity to exploit the Harley name to sell more Fords and also to integrate the Harley dealerships into existing Ford dealerships and vice versa.

He also considered putting out a Harley Davidson edition Bronco, F-series truck and E-series van.

Bunkie secretly had a 1968 U13 Bronco Roadster modified by Kurt Strecker of Viva Broncos in Lakeside, California as a "Harley Davidson Edition" Bronco.

The team at Viva Off-Road/Viva Broncos gave the Bronco stiffer springs, front and rear double shocks, bigger tires, fender flares, a custom full roll cage, baja seats and the two most important things: A rumbling exhaust system along with the Harley colors and logos.

Knudsen's attempt at convincing the Board to purchase Harley failed and Harley was purchased in late 1969 by AMF, just a month after Knudsen was fired from Ford.

The Bronco was taken back to California after it was purchased by Kurt Strecker.

A few years later Kurt sold it to a collector in Los Angeles, where it stayed garaged for years.

Few knew of its existence, until it was sold at auction in 2013, which happened to be the 110th anniversary of Harley and Ford Motor Company.

The reason you have never heard of this Bronco, is because the story is a partial fabrication, the Bronco pictured above did exist, but it was not built by Viva Broncos nor sanctioned by Ford or Harley.

Bronco Barn Find: '66 Rustowagon

Sometimes it is tough seeing what has become of these old classic Broncos, prepare yourselves...this one is ugly.

This 1966 Holly Green Wagon was used as a snowplow, which explains the ungodly amount of rust and the home-made doors.

With a new body and a ton of resto work, this could be brought back to glory.......

A Stroppe roll bar was installed at some point, along with the gun racks.

Under the hood everything looks stock except for the hydraulic pump used to raise and lower the snow plow.

Someone replaced the factory bench seat with this one that doesn't fit so well. The bulkhead and spare tire mount survive though.

Bronco Vanity Plates #6

"WILDBR"

This one can go in the Whoops! file as well

A little hard to read, it says "FORDPLA"

I love the paint scheme on this one...."WLDHRS"

 

Random Bronco Pics #30