1990 Ford Bronco: Bug Out Vehicle

Discussion in 'Functional Gear & Equipment' started by Brokor, Sep 25, 2009.


  1. Gun Nut

    Gun Nut Proud Veteran


    I had the same problem while towing my 25' camper. I talked to a few off-road outfitter shops, and ended up installing coil over shocks on the back end of my '84 Bronco. Got them from Sears for a little over $100. The ride did get a bit stiffer, but it was no where near as squirelley on the highway.In fact shortly after putting them on I pulled my f150 loaded with a barracks room full of junk about 500 miles on a construction trailer. Other than the sluggish throttle response due to the weight, I never new it was behind me...
     
  2. OzarkSaints

    OzarkSaints Monkey++

    hey GN, thanks a lot bud, I appreciate that, never though about getting coil over shocks!
     
  3. SoCal09

    SoCal09 Monkey++

    MY BOV is an 89 Bronco...good choice Brokor
     
  4. Monty

    Monty Monkey+++

    I purchased a 86 CUUV Blazer, same deal I was looking to build it into a BOV/ Hunting truck. I was looking at swapping out the running gear to 1ton parts so the truck would have stronger axles, bigger brakes, etc. I also have a M101 3/4 ton trailer to tow behind it sense the carring capacity of the 1009 is limited by it's size. The trailer has a pintle hitch which is very helpful off road allowing more angle between truck/trailer, if you get to much angle on a ball type hitch you could have bad problems.
    I've sense upgraded to a duece and a half which is another story in itself.
     
  5. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    Our $1,200.00 1988 Bronc is sure ugly, but after spending a month in the shop and $2,600.00 on parts and $1,050.00 on labor, shes a tank!
    I had to buy this 'beastie' for the current situation and winter that is approaching...
    It's the only thing that will be able to get in and out of the land in winter, when the rain and snow turn the roads to mud! ( seems it's always UPHILL!)
    For the most part we use our big Dodge vans, 1973, B-200 and 1989 B-250, to move supplies in during the warmer months and when we go shopping....(bi-monthly)
    As far as "bugging out", we are "bugging in"!
    Different scenario.....
     
  6. Monty

    Monty Monkey+++

    You could also install air bags on the rear of the truck, they install between the leaf spring and the frame. You'll have around 500.00 to 600.00 if you do the instalation yourself. Thats complete bags with the air compressor that allows you to inflate or deflate the bags from inside the drivers compartment.

    If you installed just the bags and used an outside compressed air source then you could get by with around 2600 in costs.

    Firestone Ride Rite, Coil Rite, Sport Rite 2071 - Firestone Ride-Rite Air Helper Spring Kits - Overview - SummitRacing.com

    A bonus with the bags is you can deflate them and the truck will drive/handle as normal. Yes you still be limited to what you deem safely loaded, you can judge that by how the truck drive when it's loaded.

    If you load it and you still have more stuff to haul you can always look at a trailer.
     
  7. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    FWIW, air bags do nothing to increase load carrying capacity. They level the chassis, and more than that is not to be expected. Load limits are usually set by something else, like rear axle bearings, or maybe brakes or shocks. Use with care, and be prepared to deal with funky handling because of rear spring rate changes.
     
  8. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    FWIW, air bags do nothing to increase load carrying capacity. They level the chassis, and more than that is not to be expected. Load limits are usually set by something else, like rear axle bearings, or maybe brakes or shocks. Use with care, and be prepared to deal with funky handling because of rear spring rate changes. Air loaded shocks do the same thing.
     
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