Anyone remember the days when...

[bmc69]

I remember back in the early 90's a policeman stopped by while I was in the yard to comment about the 74 sport I had. He told me that a dealership near Raleigh had an early bronco that was in showroom condition in the showroom and the dealership owner wanted 10 thousand for it. I thought he was crazy asking that kinda price. Who's crazy now?

A friend called me to let me know about a clean '68 sitting in the front edge of a Ford dealer lot. I swung by to check it out..ended up paying $1700 for it after they refused my offer of $1500. This is a pic I took after I got it home. Stock 289 with a 4-barrel intake and carb added..and dual exhaust.

I sold it some years later to a buddy in NC. More than doubled my money, so I was happy. :-X

 

[yamar73]

I looked at several on dealer lots in 1996. I remember a dealer had sold the EB before I got there and he tried so hard to talk me into a Bronco II.

 

[ssray]

Mine was 1 year old when I got it in 73. Not a Ford dealer, but a VW lot of all places. Had 8000 something miles and seems like I gave low to mid 2k range. I kinda wonder what it got traded in for when I think about it now.

Scott

 

[BRONCITIS74]

You still see them at dealer lots once in a while. But now they was 10X the new price.

 

[nvrstuk]

ssray.... I would be willing to bet in '73 that it was traded in for something that got better mileage... "kids" nowadays have no idea what happened to the economy in '73. OPEC, 14% interest rates on a HOME loan!! Inflation rate was over 11%... wasn't a great time to be driving a 12mpg Bronco when gas went from 22 cents/gal for 102 octane to over 50cents/gal and you had to wait in line EVERY day to get enough because the next day they might not have any and getting to work was important back then- not like now! lol

 

[Glass Pony]

getting to work was important back then- not like now! lol

Sad but true.

 

[blubuckaroo]

When we ordered our '77, Broncos were the cheapest Ford besides the Pinto.
They were very unpopular toward the end of production. Buyers wanted bigger and more options.
We had to wait over three months for delivery because the assembly plants couldn't get all the parts. Some parts had to be ordered back from the dealerships to complete the last orders.
We ordered ours in Midnight Blue Metallic with the Ranger package, just like the one on the brochure.
When it arrived at the dealer, there were three identical Broncos on the transport. The three brothers were all in the same town for many years.

 

[nvrstuk]

Cool story...

When we ordered our '77, Broncos were the cheapest Ford besides the Pinto.
They were very unpopular toward the end of production. Buyers wanted bigger and more options.
We had to wait over three months for delivery because the assembly plants couldn't get all the parts. Some parts had to be ordered back from the dealerships to complete the last orders.
We ordered ours in Midnight Blue Metallic with the Ranger package, just like the one on the brochure.
When it arrived at the dealer, there were three identical Broncos on the transport. The three brothers were all in the same town for many years.

 

[BroncosvJeep]

Brand new for me, good to know those stories. All that memory.

 

[66ranger]

Summer of 1967..was just out of high school. Needed a vehicle to take to college in Colorado. Decided to get a new bronco, found one at a dealer 50 miles away. Drove up to look at it. It was setting on the lot next to a new mustang gt 390 fastback. Crap… tough choice. “It snows a lot up there” says father. Bought the bronco. Put 200k miles on it by 1972. Lots of stories. Brother bought a 68 off of a used car lot in 70 identical to my 67 wagon, bench seat, bulkhead, inside spare, peakock blue. I bought it from him and still have it. Built 351w, 5 spd, power steering, power brakes, bigger fuel tank, 4.11 trac lock, bucket seats, a/c, carpet. A never ending project.

 

[nickgp]

Lots of great stories and memories. Buddy had a 73 I believe. Had K Bar S build it back in mid to late 80s. A real nice complete, built rig from a nice survivor. Said he'd sell it to me for 20 k back then. I though he was out of his mind. He probably had double that in it back then. I did get to drive it for about a month or so while he didn't have a garage to keep it in. Shoulda coulda !

 

[ssray]

It's crazy to remember paying 20 something cents for gas back in those days and when it went up like it did back in those days it was a pretty big hit to the wallet. I had a 66 Fairlane GT HP 390 that got 8 to 10 mpg before and I think my Bronco would do 14 to 15 with the original carb etc. And related to fuel economy maybe it had been traded in for a VW van….someone that exceeded their Bronco family planning goals.

Scott

ssray.... I would be willing to bet in '73 that it was traded in for something that got better mileage... "kids" nowadays have no idea what happened to the economy in '73. OPEC, 14% interest rates on a HOME loan!! Inflation rate was over 11%... wasn't a great time to be driving a 12mpg Bronco when gas went from 22 cents/gal for 102 octane to over 50cents/gal and you had to wait in line EVERY day to get enough because the next day they might not have any and getting to work was important back then- not like now! lol

 

[EB70]

My buddy in college bought a 71, 3-speed 302 in the early 90's. Didn't shift good etc. He paid $1700 and I thought he was mildly nuts. Another buddy had piles of them. I kinda got interested in them a little later but they were never a huge priority until much later.

Same Bronco would easily be over 20K today.

 

[Pa PITT]

Funny you guys are young. I was in the parts business in 1967 & We sold part to the local Ford dealership .. I got ARA under dash AC units for them. .
I also sold DuPoint paint So I've mixed every color our Broncos have ever been.
.... Even when I see colors I think that's the same color as OLD SO N So's.
EVEN Jay Will the local game warden had one of the BoxWood Greens ones. I believe it was truly his, not the States. He kept it about 2 years . But he didn't make much money so It was sold off too stay ahead in life.

 

[markatherton]

My dad purchased the very first bronco sold in the State of Ohio. He was on a waiting list forever. It was a turquois U15 6 cylinder wagon. He would go on to purchase a new bronco every 2 to 3 years, so I saw a lot of them. In 1975, while attending Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky, i was able to purchase a raven black sport bronco with quasi trac (auto and limit slip) with help from my dad. It was a "lot truck" used to push cars around in the snow in Springfield, Ohio. I promptly cut the wheel wells and installed flares and 33 inch tires which did not make him happy. I wish he were alive today so he could visit my shop at Beach City Broncos. Mark in San Diego.

 

[nvrstuk]

"Quasi trac"?

Who coined this?

 

[anoblefox]

I remember the first 73 ranger (1st year of production PS and auto trans) I seen was in Wilmington Calif on Anaheim Street. It was lime green with the stripes and really got my attention. I was in the Navy in Long Beach, Calif and rather than arrive at the Navy yard by way of the Vincent Thomas Bridge and pay the toll (50 cents as I recall) instead I traveled Anaheim Street and crossed over the Henry Ford Bridge to get to Terminal Island. It was within weeks that I placed an order for a new Bronco with Hot Ginger Metallic paint. I got impatient and found a Midnight Blue Metallic one at another dealer and had the rear fenders cut and 10 x 15 wheels with Armstrong Norseman tires from Dick Cepek (South Gate, Calif) that was in vogue at the time. With the exception of 3 years, I have owned an EB since that time in 73.

 

[nvrstuk]

These are great stories... ")

 

[markatherton]

Quasi trac was actually on the original sticker from Ford. It was limit slip front and rear with an automatic transmission.

 

[half cab]

I remember they were easy to steal and get retitled.A Ford dealer in Tupelo had a new one come up missing off their lot in 1975.

Chop shops had a heyday around here.