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First Bronco

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 9:36 am
by Madmaxwell87
Hi All. I just recently got my first bronco. I've driven mostly Fords my whole life with a few exceptions- 68 Camaro (first car I restored with my dad and still have, 97 F150, 2000 F150, 2002 Expedition, 2002 Focus (needed a commuter), 1994 Explorer, 2013 Colorado (inherited it), 2005 Grand Cherokee hemi, 2012 Grand Cherokee hemi (current) and now added a 1993 Bronco 5.8l xlt.

Its got some miles on it-210k- and a major steering box leak but overall it runs and drives pretty nice. I have a desolate motorsports 1.5" lift and heavy duty steering coming as well as a redhead steering box, full ignition maintenance parts, seat covers (drivers seat is thrashed, passenger seat is missing the arm rest), stereo and speakers, window and door weatherstripping and some LED lights.

Next up after maintenance and lift is to remove those sweet side graphics and step bars, get some new wheels, and change the exhaust (aftermarket muffler with dual side exits but with TINY pipe)

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 10:14 am
by ChaseTruck754
Welcome. Sounds like a sound plan and a fun new project.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 10:49 am
by Madmaxwell87
Thank you! I've been researching and planning through this forum for a while and its been a huge help.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2020 2:03 pm
by Becks_Bronco
Awesome plan! It's almost exactly what I've done with mine so far. There's something addicting about these Broncos.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2020 10:47 am
by Madmaxwell87
That's great to hear! There will be a full blown stage 2 with coilovers and 35s etc but for now it'll be perfect.

Got the readhead steering box and Desolate Motorsports heavy duty steering put on. Next up is the ignition maintenance and the lift kit.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2020 9:53 am
by Madmaxwell87
Leveling kit with 5100s is on, step bars removed, rear window key made and functional, new cap/rotor/plugs/ wires installed. Next up is some PRP seats and wheels and tires.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Mon Apr 13, 2020 12:40 pm
by Becks_Bronco
Madmaxwell87 wrote:Leveling kit with 5100s is on, step bars removed, rear window key made and functional, new cap/rotor/plugs/ wires installed. Next up is some PRP seats and wheels and tires.
Crazy how similar our builds are. Mine will be getting a Desolate C&T with coilovers and 35's eventually as well. The level kit and 5100's are just to make it livable in the meantime.

Glad you were able to cut a key to work the rear window. I did the exact same thing with mine. Saved me from having to re-cylinder the back gate.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2020 10:04 am
by Madmaxwell87
O man I wish I had the attention to detail that your build has (underhood lights, gps etc)! But plans wise they're similar. haha. Next big step is a trip down to So Cal for bumpers, radius arms, and under the bed shock mounts.

I had to take the cylinder out which wasn't fun as I had to remove the rear trim panel on the tailgate without being able to remove the outer edge bolts. After that it was easy for a locksmith to make some keys.

Ordered some PRP Daily Drivers and the Solo mounts to get rid of the ripped up, blown out foam drivers seat. I know there are better brands out there but for the money and with free shipping and 10% off they were pretty reasonable and its a toy, not a long distance road tripper.

Next is a set of 33's on 15s to fill out the wheel wells. Looking at some Vision Manx and General X3 (heavy) or BFG KM3 (expensive) or Falken MT/ Cooper Evolution MT.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2020 4:28 pm
by Becks_Bronco
Lipstick on a pig my friend! haha! I did my suspension in two stages so i could spend time working on the details, but still use it.

I've been eyeing a set of PRP's as well! They may not have the reputation of Mastercraft, but anything is better than the blown out factory seats.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2020 5:44 am
by Roberto74
Welcome to the Madness :) Great Starter Vehicle for you !

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2020 10:11 am
by Madmaxwell87
Becks_Bronco wrote:Lipstick on a pig my friend! haha! I did my suspension in two stages so i could spend time working on the details, but still use it.

I've been eyeing a set of PRP's as well! They may not have the reputation of Mastercraft, but anything is better than the blown out factory seats.
haha, thats how I feel every time I put something new on it. But eventually it won't be a pig.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2020 10:12 am
by Madmaxwell87
Roberto74 wrote:Welcome to the Madness :) Great Starter Vehicle for you !
Thank you! I've been throwing money at vehicle projects for a while now but this one should be the last one.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2020 10:16 am
by Madmaxwell87
Got a air filter, fuel filter, and all the PCV stuff. There was a bunch of oil under my filter coming from the valve cover breather so gotta clean that out and see if the new PCV helps reduce that. If not I might just get a cheap catch can like I run on my Hemi Jeep.

Next up is new heater hose from the firewall to the water pump as its cracking and new battery cables as they have been mangled by previous owners. Seems like its cheap parts store replacements or high end custom made ones that are expensive. Time to go research as I know a lot of people upgrade these cables.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2020 11:59 am
by Becks_Bronco
I've seen these cables first hand, and they look pretty good. Nothing fancy, but they appear OEM, and are well built.

https://www.custombatterycables.com/f150-bronco/

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2020 9:51 am
by Madmaxwell87
Thanks for the heads up and review. I saw them but wasn't sure if it was worth $160 for 3 cables.

I found these too. Maybe not quite as heavy duty as those ones but $100 and still an upgrade from stock.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/141219533810?ul_noapp=true

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2020 10:53 am
by Becks_Bronco
Madmaxwell87 wrote:Thanks for the heads up and review. I saw them but wasn't sure if it was worth $160 for 3 cables.

I found these too. Maybe not quite as heavy duty as those ones but $100 and still an upgrade from stock.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/141219533810?ul_noapp=true
wow, that's a nice set. Those weren't on ebay last time i checked.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Fri Apr 17, 2020 10:55 am
by Madmaxwell87
yeah thats gonna be the next purchase I think.

Just ordered wheels and tires- 15x8 Vision Manx 398 black with machined outer rings and 33x12.5 Falken MT. Tires are to get me through the next year or two until I can afford version 2.0 with 35s.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 9:47 am
by Madmaxwell87
Wheels got here yesterday, tires tomorrow. Pulled the awesome side graphics off and it's looking more like a Bronco and less like a wanna be hot rod.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:20 am
by Stan the Man
Great bones! Time to get some of Tony's retrofitted HID's and pull off that front plastic valence.

Re: First Bronco

Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 12:06 pm
by Madmaxwell87
Thanks! Got some more maintenance things like full fluid change, battery cables etc but after that is Tony's headlights. Already reached out to him. I'm gonna go with the Solo front bumper eventually but I might pull off the valence until then.

I'm actually just around the bay from you in Concord and lived in SJ for 9 years as a kid.