1988 Ford Bronco II Advice?

S

spyder10

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Dec 19, 2005
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I'm currently living in the city (Madison WI) and going to school. Found a Bronco for a decent price. V6, manual, 4x4 and not too badly beaten up.

I love going kayaking and just being outdoor but not sure on the practically or worth of an older truck like this.

Any advice or opinions?
 
My advice is to have a trusted mechanic check it out. You could easily spend as much again as the purchase cost bringing it up to dependable user condition. Hubs, u-joints, gears, steering, a lot of wear points on old 4x4s. That said, I drive a '91 F-150 2wd every day and have a '63 Ford car as my toy driver. I have a late model Impala as my dependable non-work transportation. Do you have expendable income or just want a cheap driver? A sedan will carry a kayak most places and on less fuel and maintenance costs. But old Bronco II's a cool!
 
The only advice I can offer is: Don't roll it like I did mine...:eek::eek:
 
Well I currently have a Kawasaki Ninja 250 bike which is fun but I can't ride in the snow and prefer not to be out in the rain. So I might be looking to get something more practical.

Smaller 4x4s seem to be priced way below smaller sedans since everyone is looking for better fuel economy. I don't mind 20mpg or so since I won't drive far.

I have heard of the rollovers. Is that somthing that is worse on the Bronco 2 versus other short wheelbase SUVs?
 
The Bronco II's were pretty tippy but in normal driving they should be fine. One of my buddies had a couple of them after high school. They took a hell of a beating. If you plan on doing much off roading with them you'll be replacing u-joints and axles in the front end often. Motor wise they are pretty solid. The 2.9l V6 tends to develop lifter tick but they still run forever, it's just annoying. Don't expect 20mpg out of one.
 
I had a 85 with a manual. Drove it all over. Handled great in the snow. Too small to sleep in the back unless you are about 5'5".

Make sure the drivers seat isn't bent to one side - makes you sore after a while.
 
The more I read about it, the more I want to pick this thing up. It's priced that I could spend $1k or so to fix it up and still be under my target budget.

Don't plan on doing much real offroading but the 4x4 is nice snow and gravel roads.

My Dad's Jeep Grand Cherokee only gets 15mpg or so with the I6 so I'm thinking this would be similar or a bit better with the manual 5 speed
 
Have you driven it? The 2.9 has 0 torque, it can be a pain in the butt with a 5-speed. I drove a ranger for a while with that engine, I would have to put it in 4-low to get up a steep driveway (maybe a slight exaggeration).

Any 20+ year old vehicle could turn into a money pit, especially a 4x4. What is your budget?

My last thought is to not make an emotional decision. Study it out for a while and sleep on it a night or two.
 
ElConquistador said:
Have you driven it? The 2.9 has 0 torque, it can be a pain in the butt with a 5-speed. I drove a ranger for a while with that engine, I would have to put it in 4-low to get up a steep driveway (maybe a slight exaggeration).

Any 20+ year old vehicle could turn into a money pit, especially a 4x4. What is your budget?
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I haven't. I'm going to try and check it out later this week. I'm not expecting a sports car or v10 truck or anything but it'd be nice to pull a small (<500lbs) trailer.

Cost is always an issue, living in the city ,parking will be about $1k for the year, then at my age insurance is a couple hundred so it eats into the vehicle/repair budget.
 
Spyder10
I bought mine new in 1990, 5 speed 2.9L, owned it for 7 years and 120,000 miles. Ran great, original clutch, didn't go through brakes. One fuel pump. No complaints as far as the mechanical. Fantastic in the snow. Something about the weight distribution in the footprint, I think, made it hard to get stuck. Yes i was a little tippy so don't corner like your in a race car.

This was the first vehicle I ever purchased and I bought it new. Every time I see one the nostalgia hits me like a brick.

I loved mine and was sorry to get rid of it but it really isn't a family vehicle.
Best of luck in whatever you buy.
trldad
 
I had a Bronco II back in the day. Pretty good vehicle for me. I remember the engine getting a little "tired" with more mileage, and was burning oil. Also, the back gate was fiberglass, and developed cracks from shutting the gate all the time. Served me well, though.

Glenn
 
jstewart16701 said:
The Bronco II's were pretty tippy but in normal driving they should be fine. One of my buddies had a couple of them after high school. They took a hell of a beating. If you plan on doing much off roading with them you'll be replacing u-joints and axles in the front end often. Motor wise they are pretty solid. The 2.9l V6 tends to develop lifter tick but they still run forever, it's just annoying. Don't expect 20mpg out of one.
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I was getting about 26 mpg highway on an trip I just took in mine 1988 broncos 2 the five speed really helps out for gas mileage
 
Don't turn really sharply, and don't break the rear side windows.
Have fun, I always thought they were cool.
 
You are in school and in the city.

Are you in the city because it’s close to school and you don’t need a car?

If you don’t need a car, don’t get a car. Focus on school. Pay your bills.

In school or not, living in the city has the advantage of not needing a car. That’s why so many people live there.

I recommend an old Jeep over a Bronco II. Easier to maintain better parts available both new and used.
 
I expect he's graduated, and moved on to another vehicle. This thread was from 2012
 
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