'92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

zachwabbit
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'92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

Never owned a '92-96 Fullsize Ford so not too sure about the specifics, but I do know that their frame horns have those crumple zones, so my question is will a bolt on tube bumper for one fit my '89? Obviously the front end shapes themselves are slightly more rounded, but I have the chance to get a nice tube bumper, supposedly made by Autofab for a pretty good price. It's bolt on with supports bolting to the sway bar mounts and of course the frame horns
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zachwabbit
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Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:48 pm
Bronco Info: '93 F150 XLT, '89 2wd B2(Smurfette)
Location: Jamul, CA

Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

Should I buy it? I'm close to pullin the trigger on this, might pick it up after work today
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ChaseTruck754
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Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by ChaseTruck754 »

I think there are some differences, but don't know exactly what off hand. PM Robert Craven if he doesn't see this & reply as I think he has some experience with a bumper & the differences.
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zachwabbit
Posts: 767
Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:48 pm
Bronco Info: '93 F150 XLT, '89 2wd B2(Smurfette)
Location: Jamul, CA

Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

Thanks ChaseTruck, sent him a message. The guys askin $100 and for that price I am open to doing a little mount modification if need be, just wanna know how much before I drive all the way into town.
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robertcrav
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'92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by robertcrav »

Hey..

The front of the frame is different. Besides the crumple zones, the sway bar mounts in a different location. On the 87-91 frames the sway bar mounts directly under the frame on the 92-96 frames there are tabs that are inboard due to the crumple zones. So if the bumper was made to bolt to the sway bar mounts of an 87-91 the lower tube will be too wide. The frame horns are also going to be an issue.

Nothing is impossible with fab work but just be conscious of how much of the existing bumper may have to be changed

I had a similar issue with a bumper I had purchased ...it was beautifully made but it would have had to be hacked in order to work on my 96
zachwabbit
Posts: 767
Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:48 pm
Bronco Info: '93 F150 XLT, '89 2wd B2(Smurfette)
Location: Jamul, CA

Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

So do you think it's worth the extra cost and time? I already have a custom prerunner bumper that was built by another guy for his '90 Ranger, got it ridiculously cheap and same lines as my '89 Fullsize so I figured I'd just chop the thing and add a few inches of pipe to widen it and enlarge the mounts to make it fit. Obviously if I buy the 'Autofab' bumper I'll sell the other one, and if not I'll stick to plan A and widen the first one I got. They're basically the same design, the one I'm looking at now just has a large hoop and light tabs on top of the bumper as opposed to the old one which is just a simple straight bumper with light tabs and no hoop
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zachwabbit
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Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:48 pm
Bronco Info: '93 F150 XLT, '89 2wd B2(Smurfette)
Location: Jamul, CA

'92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

Image
This is the bumper I already have

Image
And this is what I'm considering buying
zachwabbit
Posts: 767
Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:48 pm
Bronco Info: '93 F150 XLT, '89 2wd B2(Smurfette)
Location: Jamul, CA

Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

Nevermind, seller just texted me saying there was a mistake with the list price, he actually wants $350 for it-_- Welp Plan A it is! Thanks for the info guys
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robertcrav
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Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by robertcrav »

the one you have already, if meant for a Ranger is going to take a considerable amount of work in my opinion... as splicing 3 tubes to widen it, and then fab some sort of frame horn mount...you'd be changing most of the bumper and I personally don't think makes sense.

The other bumper, doesn't look like an autofab bumper for a Bronco...I suppose it could be, but it doesn't look like their bumper kit.

Granted that the lower tube is just a straight tube instead of a curved tube like mine was, changes to the lower tube mount may not be that bad. From this angle I can't see the frame horn mounts, but those might now be too bad.

Something else to consider is that the front of an 87-91 is pretty straight vs the curved from of a 92-96...might want to see how that main tube would fit to the front of the truck before committing.
zachwabbit
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Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:48 pm
Bronco Info: '93 F150 XLT, '89 2wd B2(Smurfette)
Location: Jamul, CA

Re: '92-'96 Bronco tube bumper, will it fit an '89?

Post by zachwabbit »

Yeah the '92-'96 bumper is a no-go, mainly because of the different sway bar mounts and the price increase. But yeah when I bought the other bumper I knew I'd have to widen it, and as far as mounts I'm welding it straight to the frame anyway. My buddy said when he finishes building his camper/chase truck he'll widen it for me if I buy him lunch lol so I'm just waiting on that now.
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