possibly buying an 87 bronco 2 tomorrow....

[grncivicdhr]

i'll be checking it out tomorrow morning around 11am. i'm super excited, but want to know what i should be looking out for. its seems to me that it'll need new shocks. i haven't taken a look under the hood, seen the mileage or driven it yet. it has a manuel trans.

My other question is, if i do buy it. where do i go for after market and replacement parts for it. is there anyone that specializes in this vehical?

i'm trying to compete with my bros wrangler

[0tobe60in10minutes]

well i can tell you to look out for any slack in the drive line or rear end. just the normal stuff, make sure theres no engine light etc.

also there are all sorts of aftermarket suppliers (atleast for 4x4's, haha try looking for aftermarket parts for a 2wd yeah right) that make lifts and parts to make the BII a better offroader/all around truck. GOOGLE

good luck

[grncivicdhr]

thanks for the responce. it's 4x4. i found some cool sites already. www.broncoII.org and www.jamesduff.com . i'm gonna have trouble sleepin tonight, waiting to see if i'm gonna buy this thing.

[scuba4321]

well, how did it go, did you buy it?

[Truck]

Oops. Sorry I was AFK for awhile. Check for 'cancer spots' around the rear wheel wells, under the doors, etc.

One of the biggest mechanical points to look for is the greasable "king Pins". They're located on the front wheels, at the axle. The King Pin holds the steering joint on the axle. There is a rubber bushing involved. If you have a sealed King Pin, you really have to jack around with the bushing to get it lubed properly. (Ford's front end and steering should be lubed WEEKLY-but not weakly...) If you have a little 'grease fitting' under the king pin, you're all set to actually do the lubing as needed, not just run it like it is until something else goes. (My 88 doesn't have Greasable King Pins, but my 87 does. that's why I'm going to take the frame from the 87 and replace the stocker 88.)

Check the brakes, but plan of replacing them, anyway-just like the shocks. Those are 'replacable wear' parts, so they're always the first things I do when I get a vehicle.

EDIT-oops, sorry I was talking Big Bronco. The same pretty much goes for the BII-the worst thing about that age is going to be the rust. (Check the FIREWALL!) If you see rust at the doors, check to see if the rubber/plastic drain plugs are still in the door. Not removing them can cause the condensation to sit inside the door. My BII actually had some damage done by this, but the previous owner painted the lower portion of the door with TAR! Brilliant!

[stangbuster]

DUDE, my advice is by a k5 Blazer if you want to compete with a Jeep. Remember Jeeps are made for off road. Bronco 2s are too but in an urban way.

[grncivicdhr]

the trucks rust free for the most part, other than a few places the paint has chipped away. i drove it this morning. i has 116,000 on it, and runs very well. i theory, i did buy it this morning, but thanks to presidents day, i'll be picking it up tomorrow. i can't wait.

as far as competing with my brothers jeep, all we're gonna do is maybe go off roading together. theres not gonna be any real competition.

so, everything went fine and i'll have pics posted tomorrow. this is my first 4x4. i've always been an import car kinda guy, it'll be an interesting change. and yes, i know, i'll have to drive slower around turns, lol.

[Truck]

The original "Jeeps" were Fords, btw. The BII is pretty well-suited for off-roading, mine did it fine. The only thing is that the hard-top makes it top-heavy. Mine had a 4" body lift, and 235 series tires, so It was as tall as a K-5 or any other Full-size. the 2.9 doesn't have the "stump-pullin', mud-boggin'" power of a 305, or 350, but the light body means that you probably shouldn't need it.

I love my Full-Size Bronc, but if I were ever to roll one, I'd rather be in a BII. So, you've got a good machine to learn in, but your learning curve will be a little steeper. Just don't make any sudden switch-backs.

For example, I was playing around on a 'deep gravel' road not too far from my house-throwing the wheel from side to side when the hard-roof's weight started kicking in. What was a 'fun road game' almost turned into a 'one-car accident' really quickly. The BII doesn't have the square stance of the Wrangler, and it may give up some HP if the Wrangler has a 4.0-but it's not incapable as an off-roader.

EDIT- Did you look under the thing at all? Did you count the grease fittings? There should be three on the steering (One on the Center link, and one on each tie-rod. MAKE SURE they're not missing!!!) Two on the king-pins, if you're lucky. Did you notice any sway bars? or count the number of shocks? (My 87 F-150 Bronc has 6, but it's got the 4x4 package underneath. I don't know if the BII has similar options available, but it's worth a look.)

[grncivicdhr]

i didn't check out the grease fittings or sway bars, but it does have 4 shocks, i have found 6 shock upgrades as part of some lift kits.

ohhh, my bros wrangler is a 4 cylinder.

[Truck]

The rear sway-bar (or, more properly, ANTI-sway bar!) does a world of good, and would be the first upgrade, IMO. It keeps the thing much more inline than most anything else.

[Truck]

I need closure on this anecdote!!! DId you buy it? Are you happy with it? Is it a monstrous POS?!?!?! I can't sleep.