1966 Ford Bronco
U13 Roadster
For Sale/ Up For Bid
Title: Clear
Drivetrain: 4x4 or 4 x 2
Mileage: 45,000 (on the odometer- I've driven 17k of those)
VIN number: U13---517
Exterior Color: Blue, Silver
Doors: 0-3
Interior Color: Blue (lined) Undercarriage: Grey (lined), Silver Accents
Location: Orlando, Florida (Melbourne, Palm Bay)
Flat tip - Straight edge front and rear bumpers - an Eyebrow Grill - an Eyebrow Tailgate - and A Cross Supported Hood- The Greatest Bronco Story Ever told with thousands of pictures and receipts-
Below is a log of the the blood, beer money and the crap load of time i've spent with/ on Ol' Blue in the last 14 months getting him ready for something BIG!
Great care and concern was given during the replacement of all worn panels. I've spared no expense and have nearly 1600 hours into his rejuvenation--- so far. There is ONLY 1 piece of metal left to replace- The bottom of the tailgate. Just a tiny bit of bodywork and cosmetic touchups and a paint revamp and this truck will be 100% restored.
That's right. I am still upgrading and restoring The AdFor.US Bronco right now-- Slowly, but surely. What's he worth? You Tell Me-- I can tell you that the lowest offer I'll take for him increases with every new upgrade, modification, repair and even with every new article on this website.
Ol' Blue is my daily driver. If Cindy Crawford was yelling my name, begging me to come visit her in Seattle today- (because I'm to broke to fly from central Florida) I'd drive Ol' Blue and be brushing her hair in under 7 days.
Make an offer before I install the parts I already have on hand: Power Steering ($1600), Electric Fan ($300), HardTop ($1700- in progress), Doors ($1600), Heavy duty Cargo Rack ($800- in progress)
Interior & Exterior:
- OEM Bench Seat (I believe this wasn't standard for U13 Roadsters- instead they had a bulkhead) Missing Bulkhead
- Antique/ Custom 4 point Roll Bar- looks 30 or more years old- almost homemade- entirely unique
- OEM Pushbar
- Tow Bar with #4000lb hooks
- OEM Heater Box. Upgraded Blower Motor & Squirrel Cage (1979 F100) doubling airflow with dash switches (Comes with OEM also)
- Dual Wiper Motors and Wiper Arms (Early 1990's Cherokee) Upgrade that doubles usability and durability (Comes with OEM Vacuum Wiper Motors)
- Raptor Lined x 2 coats over all new freshly reworked & resealed metal
- Bikini top (leather Kayline with Channel)
- 1965 FoMoCo radio (missing faceplate- NOT Installed)
- Gauge Set- Volts, Temp, Oil (comes with tach- Not Installed)
- Front Seatbelts
- New One Piece Fiberglass Inserts (comes with OEM Doors)
- New turn signal switch (upgraded with 1968 version with column Hazard switch)
- Hood Scoop (non Functional)
- Dashpad
- Dual Sight/ Alert Beacons or CB antennas (not wired currently)
- Aluminum Bedrails (Also fit inside and hold down- quick release Hardtop)
- Wants / Needs
- Paint Job (limited body work)
- Rubber Fender Flares
- Wants / Needs
Under Carriage, Suspension:
- Transmission: Manual Dana 20 OEM
- HOOKER Exhaust headers
- Wild Horses 3.5 inch lift coil springs (red)
- Wild Horses 3.5 inch lift ROCK CRAWLER 11PACK LEAF SPRINGS
- RANCHO Steering Stabilizer
- 2 RANCHO 9000 five way ADJUSTABLE shocks up front (lifetime warranty)
- 2 RANCHO 9000 nine way ADJUSTABLE shock in rear (replaced under lifetime warranty - which renews - installed June 2015)
- 2 Additional shock mounts in front. Can install 2 shocks per side up front
- Dana 30 Front Axle (gears ??)
- Jan 2017- Replaced All Fluids, Seals, Bearings (Timken components)
- Jan 2017- Replaced U-Joints with heavy duty MOOG components
- Ford 9" Rear End with 28 Spline Small Bearing Axles (gears I am told are 4.11)
- Warn Heavy duty 8080 Hub locks (new late 2013- should be covered under lifetime warranty)
- Jan 2017- Fresh grease
- Matched Drop Pitman Arm
- 23 gallon steel fuel tank
- Poly Urethane Bushings (body mounts, strut arms, and kings- top and bottom)
- Dual mufflers each with a copper collector gasket
- Heavy Duty Clutch
- Replaced 4000 miles ago March 2014
- FRONT DISK BRAKES,
- Jan 2017- Replaced Calipers (Napa Lifetime Warranty), hard & soft brake lines
- 2 new Firestone Destination A/Ts added to the 3 Hankooks (with 65% good tread) on clean alloy rims (ascetic bead lock)
- Wants / Needs
- Emergency Brake repair ( missing Snag wire?)
- 1-2 inch transfer case drop for better driveline angles
- Bigger Tires!
- Seal and Sending Wire on Fuel Tank on list to replace
- Wants / Needs
Engine Compartment:
- 302 V8 from a 1969 Ford Fairlane
- Feb 2017 Services Performed- Changed Oil, Oil Filter, Air Filter, Coolant
- I was told it was rebuilt with zero miles on it when I purchased in 1997odometer read 24,000 then
- Motorcraft 2BBl carb
- rebuilt April 2015 - 1st & only time since purchased new in 1999
- 65Kv H.E.I. Distributor (red) -
- installed 2014- an end to points and condenser-
- 8mm wires- plugs (April 2015 - 2500 miles)
- 3 core, Triple Flow aluminum radiator
- Installed New in 2012 or 5k or less miles
- 65 Amp Alternator (1 wire GM model- no voltage regulator needed (lifetime warranty installed mid 2014)
- OPTIMA YELLOWTOP BATTERY (recharge even if 2VDC--Awesome!)
- Water Pump (replaced 2014)
- Heavy Duty Dual Timing chain (Comp Cams) - installed 2014 with water pump
- Heater control valve- installed 2014 with water pump
- Upgraded Power Distribution Box (2000 Explorer), Relays, Blade Fuses and lots of extra power spots for Off Road lights, winches, compressors, etc.
- New wiring (2016)
- Brake Hydraulic Booster Upgrade, Chrome (installed 2014)
Extras:
- Doors with glass and upper & lower rubbers (Driver is ' 66 - Passenger is post '68- both missing door locks)
- Steel Hard Top
- Dual CB Antenna's
- Heavy duty Safari (cargo) roof rack and ladder (500lbs)
- Push Bar (original add-on) -- Super Rare!
- Electric Engine Fan (Adjustable temperature setting- Can be overridden ON or OFF from switch on dashboard for water towing or deep water crossings) Also adds +25hp- Not Installed
- Power steering $2000 Upgrade- Parts on hand include pump (Saginaw), single v-belt pulley, gear (2002 pathfinder), pre-drilled frame reinforcement plate, all pressure hoses and AN connectors... {the only missing component(s) are the steering rod linkage- the v-belt and also the pitman may need rekeyed}
- Manual Gearbox works fine- it will stay with Blue- Not Installed
- OEM Vacuum Wipers
Restoration 2016- $3000 in New Metal Panels, Bolts, Liners, dual electric wipers and heater upgrades during 1500 manhour rejuvenation/ restoration:
- Door inserts, 1 piece fiberglass (Bronco Design)
- Drivers door post
- PS & DR rockers - top and bottom
- Seat panel replaced back portion with 1/4 inch steel instead of 18 guage
- PS & DR bed brace, behind rockers
- DR outer brace (replace with aftermarket 18 gauge replacement and it bent within a week- Reworked and installed a 1/8 inch thick reinforcement plate.
- DR Front and rear floor pan
- PS Rear floor pan
Like all Early Bronco builds.... ...we've run into quite a few snags along the way... and we'll update you on them here on this page when a little more time becomes available to us... Honestly, I thought Blue was in pretty darn good condition. I was entirely upset when I pulled up the rubber undercoated carpet I installed to protect the 98% intact original floor pans almost 2 years ago while visiting family in Seattle. ...i'll elaborate on this later... (hint- be cautious which adhesive to use) I'll also eventually get to my utter dismay when repairs from -who knows when- caused me to CUT THIS CLASSIC BRONCO IN HALF!!!! -Well, essentially 1/4 inch of sheet holding Ol' Blue together....
Bronco N Buck Story The Sergeant & The Roadster – From Coast to Coast and Canada To Texas
People ask me all the time why I call my Truck "Ol' Blue" and I say "'cause he's my boy". Almost immediately afterwards they always ask why I call Ol' Blue a "Him" - I respond- "cause my mom taught me not to cuss at females!"
Ol' Blue and I have been friends for near 'bout 2 decades now. I have rode him hard and put him away wet more times then most people have seen reruns of 'Friends' Episodes-
You can't Buy the bugs out of a vintage box Ford Bronco, you have to Build them out.
Ol' Blue is a trusted friend whose sale is going to help me change the world.
The first 12 years or so, we really got down and dirty. 3 of his 4 mounted tires have fallen off while driving. The first year and some more we were together, we didn't even make it 6 blocks before breaking down- over and over and over and over again... Blue even caught on fire once for nearly 15 seconds until I was able to reach in the engine compartment and tear out (with my bare hands) the flaming wiring harness and throw it on the ground- I punctured his radiator about 3 miles from the top of a Glacier mountain in Idaho. At the top, I decided to keep with the plan and go fishing 'cause the license was only good that day. Nearly completely drained of coolant 5 hours later when a 70 degree day turned into 20 degrees and snowy I jumped in Ol' Blue and coasted the 20 miles back to town only turning the engine on to traverse the same washouts and fallen trees that likely stabbed him earlier.
That's been our relationship. I upgrade and refurbish him the best way I know how, sometimes taking months to save up for the strongest most advanced parts- even modifying as necessary to ensure that he's quite reliable and "happy". He lets me know when he's hurting- but that hasn't stopped him from making it the distances we need to get to the places we should be-
Trust Me- We've Been There & Done That!
A U.S. Army Veteran with 10 years of service, I left the Army as a Buck Sgt. 'Ol Blue was one of very few possessions I owned after a divorce. After two years of intermittent repair work between gunneries, national & joint training center rotations, numerous field and swamp exercises- it was finally time to buck on down the road and to transition to a new duty station.
I loaded my gear into Blue and put him into a shop to figure out the last piece of the puzzle- which was the hooker header installation. I had 3 sets that refused to go in. I processed out that day just before Memorial Day, got dropped off at the mechanics and waited like a father in a maternity ward. After approximately 15 months and less than 6 blocks- I jumped in and drove nearly 333 miles. We were driving down a mountainside in Tennessee when the clutch rod fell loose- I just kept going- coasting when all of sudden... the wheel came off- That's right the wheel- well, actually- THE WHOLE AXLE FELL OUT... it gets interesting after that....
TN breakdown The AdFor.US Classic Early Bronco- Our First Road Trip
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