exbass94
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2007
- Messages
- 3,340
- Reaction score
- 39
- Points
- 48
- Age
- 36
- Location
- Guilford, CT
- Vehicle Year
- 2006, 1994
- Make / Model
- Ford
- Engine Size
- 4.0 SOHC, 4.0 OHV
- Transmission
- Automatic
I never thought I'd be starting my own build thread. This is my first project car. I recently bought a 94 Bronco from my fiancee's parents. They are the original owners. They recently tried selling it with no success. I've always wanted a project car, and Broncos are totally awesome, so I bought it. It has about 220,000 miles on it, but both the engine and transmission have been rebuilt and they only have 30k on them. It has a 5.0 and E4OD. My plans are to fix it up so it's reliable and safe to drive, then fix all the rust, then eventually restore it to like-new condition. I don't plan on off-roading it or modifying it at all; I just want it be pretty much stock, like the way it was in 1994.
Things I need to do first before I can even drive it:
1. Redo the whole front suspension (ball joints, bushings, tie rods, steering box, etc)
1a. After that: get an alignment, then new tires.
2. Replace clock spring and turn signal switch
3. Finish fixing tailgate (more details on that below)
4. Replace rear brakes
5. Fix leaking transmission lines
6. Add this truck to my insurance policy I'm holding off on this for now because I'm not going to drive this at all until I get the above issues fixed. As far as I'm concerned this truck is not drivable and unsafe in the condition it's in. It will take me a few months to get all these issues sorted out (lack of spare time) and it would be a waste of money to pay insurance on a car I'm not even driving.
7. Get the truck registered. I'm holding off on this for 2 reasons: 1. I need to show the DMV a valid insurance card when I register it (See #6) and 2. As of January 2014, this truck will be old enough for antique license plates. I think they look cool and the property tax is cheaper with these plates. So I need to wait until January to register it. Hopefully I'll have issues 1-5 sorted out by then (I doubt it though )
There are many many more things that need to be addressed, but I'm focusing on these first 5 things for now. The tailgate is my first project. The window was stuck closed and thus the tailgate cannot open. The tailgate hasn't been opened in years. Turns out the window regulator is bad. I had to take a sawzall and cut the arms of the regulator off so I could lower the window. Then I opened the tailgate. The driver's side latch is very sticky and the passenger side doesn't latch at all. I need to lube up the latches, fix the rods to the latches, possibly re-align the strikers and just get the talgate opening and closing properly. Then install new regulator. This tailgate will only be used temporarily until I start the body work and fixing rust. This tailgate is very rusted and too far gone to save. Also, the torsion bar spring inside has a bracket that rotted off (common problem), so if I were to open the tailgate with the window all the way down, the window would shatter. Good thing I discovered that before it happened. I disabled the spring for now and will leave it that way until I get a new tailgate. Whew, that was a lot of typing. That's all for now.
Things I need to do first before I can even drive it:
1. Redo the whole front suspension (ball joints, bushings, tie rods, steering box, etc)
1a. After that: get an alignment, then new tires.
2. Replace clock spring and turn signal switch
3. Finish fixing tailgate (more details on that below)
4. Replace rear brakes
5. Fix leaking transmission lines
6. Add this truck to my insurance policy I'm holding off on this for now because I'm not going to drive this at all until I get the above issues fixed. As far as I'm concerned this truck is not drivable and unsafe in the condition it's in. It will take me a few months to get all these issues sorted out (lack of spare time) and it would be a waste of money to pay insurance on a car I'm not even driving.
7. Get the truck registered. I'm holding off on this for 2 reasons: 1. I need to show the DMV a valid insurance card when I register it (See #6) and 2. As of January 2014, this truck will be old enough for antique license plates. I think they look cool and the property tax is cheaper with these plates. So I need to wait until January to register it. Hopefully I'll have issues 1-5 sorted out by then (I doubt it though )
There are many many more things that need to be addressed, but I'm focusing on these first 5 things for now. The tailgate is my first project. The window was stuck closed and thus the tailgate cannot open. The tailgate hasn't been opened in years. Turns out the window regulator is bad. I had to take a sawzall and cut the arms of the regulator off so I could lower the window. Then I opened the tailgate. The driver's side latch is very sticky and the passenger side doesn't latch at all. I need to lube up the latches, fix the rods to the latches, possibly re-align the strikers and just get the talgate opening and closing properly. Then install new regulator. This tailgate will only be used temporarily until I start the body work and fixing rust. This tailgate is very rusted and too far gone to save. Also, the torsion bar spring inside has a bracket that rotted off (common problem), so if I were to open the tailgate with the window all the way down, the window would shatter. Good thing I discovered that before it happened. I disabled the spring for now and will leave it that way until I get a new tailgate. Whew, that was a lot of typing. That's all for now.