For once, a cheap Early Bronco

Tim Odell

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1966 ford bronco for saleBroncos made from 1966-1977 are the Hot Girl at The Party of classic 4x4s. People go crazy for them, bend over backwards, jump through hoops, pay through the nose, and several other cliches just to have one in their possession. Once acquired, they learn Early Broncos offer few advantages over their half-price competitors (Jeeps, Scouts and Land Cruisers). This isn’t to say they’re not great midsize trucklets, it’s just that all the reasonably priced, slightly rough examples seem to have disappeared.

Well…maybe not, here’s one starting at $500. Let’s see what we get for our money…

1966 ford bronco for sale1966 ford bronco for sale

In short: not much. This one’s a first-year example with a 170ci straight six and three on the tree. You can assume it’s got manual steering and drum brakes all around. The front axle is a light duty Dana 30.  It doesn’t seem to have a straight or fully painted panel anywhere.

But then again, maybe it’s not so bad. It looks to be mostly surface rust, with most of the panels being flat and easy to patch anyway. Knock down the worst of it and rub the rest in WD40. The half-cab is pretty rare, meaning you could sell it on eBay for the price of a nice, new soft top. Nostalgia and under-statement are great, but there’s a line somewhere. A 170ci straight six breathing through a one barrel carb is on the other side of the line. Luckily Ford small blocks practically grow on trees, with 4-speed transmissions being pretty easy to locate. That’s the easy route, of course. Just to piss people off, I’d recommend yanking an EFI 4.0L from a Jeep. Throw on a small lift, some skinny mud tires and call it a day.

Most curiously, with 5 days left in the auction what do you think it’ll go for?

[sc:ebay itemid=”130913709641″ linktext=”1966 Ford Bronco for sale” ] – eBay motors

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Tim Odell

Tim Odell

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30 responses to “For once, a cheap Early Bronco”

  1. MVEilenstein Avatar
    MVEilenstein

    Get it running, slap on a few cans of Rustoleum, find a trail.

    Reply
  2. Slow_Joe_Crow Avatar
    Slow_Joe_Crow

    Uncut rear fenders are highly valued by collectors so this may do OK based on the value of the rear tub alone.

    Reply
  3. Tim Odell Avatar
    Tim Odell

    It just dawned on me that with that headlight, this thing is looking very close to a real-life Mater.

    Reply
  4. scoudude Avatar
    scoudude

    Landcruisers are similarly overpriced and both are 4-5 or more times the value of a Scout. That is one of the reasons I, while being one that bleeds Ford blue, actually own Scouts.
    I'd be all over this one despite it having a Falcon 6 since you don't need to swap frames to stick in a V8 like you do in a Scout.
    I'd bet this one sells for at least $2000 and could go for up to twice that.

    Reply
    1. wisc47 Avatar
      wisc47

      I couldn't agree with you more. I especially like this one.
      <img src="http://image.4wheeloffroad.com/f/14879930/131_0901_07_z+january_2009_4x4_trucks+1977_international_scout_ii.jpg"&gt;

      Reply
      1. scoudude Avatar
        scoudude

        Nice looking truck. That is a strange grille guard on that front bumper though.

        Reply
        1. dead_elvis Avatar
          dead_elvis

          Looks more like Aussie roo bars than what you usually find here in the States.

          Reply
      2. BobWellington Avatar
        BobWellington

        That thing is art.

        Reply
      3. HTWHLS Avatar
        HTWHLS

        "International Scout..anything less..is just a car." Remember that song?

        Reply
        1. scoudude Avatar
          scoudude

          Remember it, I've got the bumper sticker and use that phrase frequently.

          Reply
  5. racer139 Avatar
    racer139

    Im gonna say its gonna go for $8000 -$10000. Two people are gonna get all nostalgic and bid the crap out of it. After one of em wins he's going to wounder what to hell he just did and why he payed so much to do it.

    Reply
    1. dukeisduke Avatar
      dukeisduke

      And his wife will divorce him.

      Reply
    2. Peter Tanshanomi Avatar
      Peter Tanshanomi

      That wouldn't surprise me too much. The owner was asking $33K for this resto-mod.
      <img src="http://hooniverse.info/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/IMG_0352-320×240.jpg"&gt;
      <a href="http://hooniverse.info/2010/08/16/1966-bronco-pickup/” target=”_blank”>http://hooniverse.info/2010/08/16/1966-bronco-pickup/

      Reply
      1. scoudude Avatar
        scoudude

        33K is a great deal if it is as good as it looks from that picture.

        Reply
  6. Rover1 Avatar
    Rover1

    What about the?… Borgward Isabella? next to it? Is that for sale?

    Reply
    1. dukeisduke Avatar
      dukeisduke

      The guy has like a dozen cars that were saved from the crusher years ago, but only four on eBay right now.

      Reply
    2. dukeisduke Avatar
      dukeisduke

      There's a red Vega hatchback behind it.

      Reply
    3. M44Power Avatar
      M44Power

      Someone's been reading Hemmings S&E…

      Reply
  7. JayP2112 Avatar
    JayP2112

    Gas Monkey got into a mess with one. Changed out about every panel.
    Ended up selling it to the guy who started Twin Peaks for $40k and a $5k beer tab. We saw it at CarsCoffee last this month.
    Tell me that crap isn't scripted.

    Reply
    1. Alcology Avatar
      Alcology

      It looked pretty nice, was it actually 45k nice?
      I enjoy that show even though it's totally scripted! They make some weird calls and do some questionable things to cars. All about the $$ I guess if they keep finding buyers.

      Reply
      1. JayP2112 Avatar
        JayP2112

        It was really well done. Not just sand-paint-wheels but the suspension was pretty well done. I was impressed. $45k? I don't know Broncos.
        The show is fun to watch. It may have jumped the shark with the model welder.

        Reply
        1. Alcology Avatar
          Alcology

          Yes… that is for sure. Did she get hired? I didn't get a chance to watch anymore after that one episode where they brought her on.

          Reply
          1. JayP2112 Avatar
            JayP2112

            I think she came in as needed.
            Fast n Loud was to be the US version of Wheeler Dealers. Yes, really.

  8. Van_Sarockin Avatar
    Van_Sarockin

    Nice beastie. But, you have to be careful with the roll center on them.

    Reply
  9. HTWHLS Avatar
    HTWHLS

    I'd like the Lincoln next to it..

    Reply
  10. Batshitbox Avatar
    Batshitbox

    Current bid : $1,741; 29 hours left to bid.
    Current bid on this fully functional Scout 800A (well, you wouldn't drive it on the road with no windshield, but still, it goes and stops!)
    $1,075. Or buy it for what that Bronco will probably reach tomorrow, $2,800
    http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/International-Harv…

    Reply
    1. scoudude Avatar
      scoudude

      Nice 800 and good proof that Scouts are not worth anywhere near what an early Bronco is. Bonus points for the (presumably Warn) OD, though minus points for the 3sp trans.

      Reply
      1. Batshitbox Avatar
        Batshitbox

        Bronco's bid at $1,826 now.
        The only reason I can find a Scout 3 speed that doesn't pop out of 2nd gear like that one is because I drive 2WD Scouts and some of those trannys have survived. (I did notice this was for sale as a 'FWD' Scout.)
        I wonder is the purchase price worth it given the price of replacement parts? A $2000 running Scout will make you cry trying to find the simplest of parts. But Bronco parts are all down at the local NAPA. Even if your $2000 basket case is missing the whole distributor, there's a billion Fords out there waiting to donate one.

        Reply
        1. scoudude Avatar
          scoudude

          What kind of parts are you talking about? Most of the common parts are in stock at a decent NAPA. In stock at my local store I've purchased points, condenser, plugs air filter, fuel filter, rotors, pads, shoes, wheel cyls, u-joints, carb kit, power steering pressure hose, rag joint kit and I'm sure more, that I'm forgetting off the top of my head, off the shelf at my local stores for my Scout II, Traveall, and Travelette. Sure most of the time the person behind the counter says there is no way we will have parts for that and I insist they do and lo and behold they are sitting on the shelf. Fuel pump, water pump, brake booster, distributor, radiator hoses engine gaskets, starter, clutch and hard engine parts are at the local NAPA warehouse. The only things I've had to wait more than a day for is wheel cyls and master cyl for the very uncommon 1510 I have.
          Then of course you have all of the authorized Light Line dealers many of which stock every other part you need from resto decals to odd NOS and lots and lots of used parts of every type. Ebay is also full of IH parts I've picked up good distributors for $10 plus shipping and rebuildable carb cores for similar prices.
          So I've never shed a single tear when looking for the parts for any of my Internationals, though I did gulp a bit buying that master cyl but still not that out of line for brake parts for a 2 1/2 ton truck.
          Since the 3sp trans are just a T90 as used in so many other vehicles rebuild kits are cheap and plentiful.

          Reply
  11. scoudude Avatar
    scoudude

    Well the final bid was $2,111 with an unmet reserve, right about where I expected.

    Reply