Clarkkent's BroncoII project | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Clarkkent's BroncoII project

clarkkent

Explorer Addict
Joined
January 19, 2003
Messages
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City, State
san luis obispo, CA
Year, Model & Trim Level
McNeil Mountaineer
Hey watsup guys. I bought a 85 4x4 BroncoII two weeks ago for 300 bucks as a second truck since my mounty has a bent frame, smashed tranny cooler and split radiator due to a 3foot sand wall at the dunes.(long story)

Anyways, i finally got my mounty back up and running again, but have now decided that I'm going to spare the mounty from the jumping and my abuse. Since I have the BroncoII i was wondering where and what kind of suspension or BL could I find to fit 35+inch tires. I am guessing since the BroncoII is pretty old, it'd be alot easier to lift it. I want to go the cheapest route possible. The broncoII will be my new dune truck. I'm thinking about spraying it orange or some weird color.

Any BroncoII sites I should know about?
 



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same as the first gen rangers..... but its drivetrain sucks... weak rear, weak front, weak engine :( big bubbly windows....
 






Yeah...You can put explorer springs in it for 2 inches of lift, lots of other options, but basically just a cheaper version of a first gen explorer, D28 ttb weaker tranny (same one though)..and stuff, check out this site http://broncoii.org Was your bronco running and stuff when you bought it? Because my friend is looking into a 300 dollar BII but it's got a front tranny leak and ish.
 






Explorer leaf springs will not give you a 2" lift

Bronco II's do not make good desert trucks, the wheelbase is too short for thew whoops and jumps.

However they are awesome trucks, despite what people may think.
You do need to do quite a bit of work to get it up to par, your best bet is to buy an entire first gen Explorer donor, you can get the engine, trans, front and rear axles, t case, seats, etc etc...get it all over with in one shot.

I can tell you the BII is an EXCELLENT truck for wheeling and one of te best possible platforms from which to build on, partially because you can get started for $300.
The 2.8L you have in there is JUNK, if you got a C5 automatic you are in pretty good shape though, I would slap a 93 OHV 4.0L onto that C5 using C4 internals. Get a BW 1354 T case, swap out the D28 for the D35, convert the 8.8 to spring over, lift it, lock it, and wheel it.
 






cool thanks for the info guys. yeh the truck was running and its it runs really good, except for theres a power steering leak. the paint is a little oxidizing but i mean, all it needs is a little clearcoat.
Thanks for the info 410Fortune, i've heard of BroncoII's sucking in sand and stuff, i'm probably gonna use the Bronco for just 4x4 wheelin out on the trails since my mountaineer turned into the "2wd prerunner whoop eater" and sucks 4x4 but loves the sand. I'm not gonna really be heavy into the wheelin into that thing yet. I just wanna get some bigger tires under it, paint it and use it to tow my dirtbikes.

Hows the tranny and stuff if i put on 35's?
 






35's will kill the front and rear axles.
You will need to re-gear

You still didnt say what the truck has, is it a 4x4 is it a stick or auto?
 






Hmmm...if you got one running and stuff for 300 - I don't think I'd be getting a good deal for one that has a front tranny leak - same price...what does everyone else think?
 






I think $300 is an excellent deal for a clean body straight frame BII.
I mean what do you expect for $300?
For $300 you better plan on doing some repairs.
 






okay. so 35's will kill the gears. do i really need to regear? i dont care if i get 5 miles to the gallon. wat about 33's?

btw. its a 4x4 auto.
 






The 35's will kill the axles, hubs, driveshafts, transmission, clutch, engine, etc...

First you need to find out what gears the truck has, I will guess 3.55 most BII's have 3.27 or 3.55. For 33" tires you will want 4.10 gears.

Here's the deal, if you want 33's or 35's, skip re-gearing the stock axles, get some Explorer axles, a D35 TTB up front and a 8.8 in the back. If you do it right youc an get 4.10 gears in them already, heck I even see them with 4.56 on the board all the time now since the world has gone solid axle.

PLain and simple the 2.8L carbed V6 lacks alot to be desired, and by putting big tires on the truck you are going to make it 10's worse.
Now that doesnt mean you cant do it, plenty of people do.

Your best bet is to search and read...search and read

try:
www.therangerstation.com
www.bronco24x4.com
www.broncoII.org

and of course all the others....including this site, PIrate, Offroadrangers, etc....
 






thanks.
 






Clarkkent,

I was in S.L.O. last month, and I shoulda called you up... I took my T.R.#815 on the sand, and it did real well in that dept. I was real careful with the steep breakovers and stuff. Good luck with the buildup. I'm sure you'll have fun w/the new BII

-Ken
 






yeh, thanks ken. its been awhile since i've heard from you. gladd to hear u got the rubicon out. yeh the broncoII some kind might buy it from me, but he hasnt gaven me the money yet. im sorta shooting for the cheapest buildup on the BII since it wont be a daily driver and just a beater for the beach. probably gonna rattle can the whole thing and do a body lift. haha yeh,
 






Just as long as you don't jump the truck, you'll be fine. A nice set of 31"x12.5"r15 All-Terrains, and you will be floating across the dunes just fine. You don't have to build the most expensive piece of machinery to have a good time - I see 2WD fullsize vans driving out near the surf in San Felipe, Mexico all of the time, and these guys know how to drive, so, they're not getting themselves stuck - although I wouldn't advise that!

-Ken
 






yeh, i probably won't jump the broncoII....as hard. haha probably hit the ocasional bump a little hard, but other then that its just gonna be a cruiser. so i'll be fine with 31's? i dont care about MPG since it wont be a daily driver..
 






What size tires are you running on it now...LT235's???
I know a flotation tire will work much better in the sand. The faster you can spin that tire, the faster you'll get that truck on top of the sand, and float along at a decent speed. I was thinking the BFGoodrich AT/KO in a 31x12.5" size would be optimal for the sand. Either that or the Interco Thornbird 31"x12.5" tire - I've seen the 31" Thornbirds work well on a Jeep down in Mexico on the sand, and it just pulled itself with those big lugs up and out of wet sand like it waz no thang...

-Ken
 












thanks for the info on the baja suspension, but im sorta tired of that route. My mountaineer took that route and well, things got a little to Crazy!. I'll probably do the long travel suspension later on and have Chad McNeil do the suspension.
 






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