Funny, I won't buy anything but Ford, not because of the brand itself but because of the Dealer guy that has taken care of our vehicles for 25 years. He has some sort of hypnotic effect on our vehicles, we've gotten 100s of thousands of trouble free miles out of vehicles everyone else says are troublesome junk.
I would not be interested in an undersized, overpriced faddish whatever that thing is.
My 2008 F250 work truck (employer issued) had the dash knob, it got problematic in its old age.?ÿ Never quit working, but backing in 4 low it would pop out, so had to go back to 2 wheel then back to 4 high, then 4 low then back some more.?ÿ That is annoying.?ÿ At least it had automatic/manual hubs so when the hubs got older they could be manually turned in.
The new Dodge RAM2500 they issued me has automatic hubs, no way to turn them in manually.?ÿ Also the dash knob.?ÿ The fit finish and just general quality is lower, it already has an annoying rear end whir and a sort of seal yelp coming from somewhere on mountain roads.?ÿ You couldn't give me a Dodge, little better than pretty junk.
I'm not doing any real serious off-roading in a 3/4 ton pickup, though.
What do you call a cow that doesn't give milk?
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A milk dud; or an udder failure.
A bull.
I'd get an old Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser anytime over any new 4x4. Although I think the restored FJs are now more expensive than a new 4x4
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We'll see. Hard to believe that they will start under $30,000.
My son's Jeep Willy's, new in 2017, is a work in progress, making it "his own." The cheaper Broncos might well serve their owners in the same way
It's a brand they're trying to sell. But they're not the only ones..all automobile manufacturers have been doing it for years.
Here's the skinny:
I supplemented my meager surveyor's salary for years by working in auto parts and shops after hours. Since the '60s automakers have utilized what they call a "platform" system. They put a lot of money into tooling and mfg. for a specific auto. It can take years before the sales of that car are profitable. Any "platform" parts or assembly line process that can be duplicated is money in the bank.
A good example is the old Ford Falcon, produced (I think) from 1960 to 1970. If you think those old cars just went away, you're wrong. As public interest in them declined they just changed up the "tin" and the interior. The old Ford Falcon morphed into the Ford Maverick. A lot of the car was the same parts as the Falcon, especially the suspension and drive train. The Maverick went away and the "platform" was transformed for the Ford Fairmont. There is no doubt in my mind that there is a good deal of hardware on a '80s Taurus that is actually the same parts from their predecessor..maybe a new part number, that's all.
As for a "new" Bronco? I'm gonna make a guess that the auto is built on a previous platform with some stylish tin and plastic added for sales. Not saying it might not be a good car, just saying auto makers haven't really came up with anything "new" for years.
Funny anecdote:
Remember the American Motors 2WD postal "Jeeps"? American Motors was notorious for buying warehouses full of parts and stuffing them into whatever car they would fit. Some had AM powerplants, a few had Chevy engines, a few had Ford engines. Some had Fomoco starters with Delco-Remy (GM) solenoids. They were truly a nightmare for the parts counter. "Bring in the old one" was my standard request.
And I use to get guys at the parts counter all the time wanting to buy parts for their "Jeep". Some would get a little heated when I referred to their car as a Rambler.
One fella needed a bunch of front suspension parts for a postal Jeep. The reference material said it was special order. As I was writing down the part numbers I thought something looked familiar. I got to cross-referencing part numbers and came to realize the postal Jeep of that particular year used a front end from the AMC Pacer (and Gremlin).
He got his parts. He also got tired of me asking how his Gremlin was doing every time he came in to the store. 😉
ahem most men are hard on stuff, why close a door when you can slam it? No finesse.
the way my fellow men treat stuff makes me cringe. One time I was visiting a surveyor at one of our sister agencies, he was supposed to give us a level, he took the box out from under the counter and overhanded it down on the counter top like a hammer, I was amazed.
but it's just a "gun," I guess.
Owned an AMC Hornet back in the 1970's and I understand quite well what you are describing. They assembled parts into something they put their name on. That was about it.
That brings back memories. Remember the Chevymobiles; Oldsmobiles with Chevy engines? GM bean counters took over and standardized a lot of stuff between brands. Oldsmobile had always been known for engine development (Rocket 88) and when owners had to take the Olds to the Chevy dealer for service, the lawsuits flew.
Apparently, the 4-door Bronco is sharing the new Ranger frame. But the 2-door is a unibody; that'll make lifting them complicated.
Lots of info in this article, but, like covid-19 info, it may not be the complete truth: https://www.motor1.com/news/133270/new-ford-bronco-facts/
I've seen a few really nice restored local ones for between 40-50k.
They are cool looking.
Same price as the lower end Wrangler.
@jt50 My father bought a new FJ40 in 1966 (same year that I got my driver's licence). After years of careening around in his hunting buddy's WW2 jeeps, it was definitely a step up in every way. Over the years I have owned two FJ40s (a 1966 & a 1973) as well as an FJ60 (1983) and spent thousands of hours in company or friends FJ40s (at least a dozen 1976-1980 models). Several friends had FJ40s with small block Chevy V8s, and when mated to the Chevy SM420 4 speed, they were even more awesome. If I really wanted to get back into SERIOUS off-roading, I would be looking for an FJ40 (which I would slap a small block Chey & SM420 into).
Loyal
