Early Bronco Disc Brakes

With the exception of 1976-1977, all early Broncos came with good old fashioned drum brakes all around. But that was then and with today's highway speeds and larger tires it really makes no sense to not upgrade at least the front to disc brakes. They stop more consistently, don't fade when wet, stay cooler, cleaner and are easier to maintain.

Factory Bronco Brakes - If you're lucky enough to buy a 1976 or 1977 Bronco equipped with factory disc brakes already then you should be fine. Just rebuild and maintain the and they should serve well for all but the most hardcore drivers.

Chevy Disc Brakes - This is a popular do-it-yourself modification that involves combining parts from Ford and Chevy trucks into one cohesive kit for the Bronco. Although it may sound cobbled together or go against your true-blue Ford instincts, it really is a good system. It all works together because the donor vehicles all use Dana axles. Dana was a company that supplied several of the big automotive makers with components, including axles and transfer cases. So don't think of it as putting Chevy parts on your Bronco. Think of it as adding more Dana parts to those Ford already used at the factory.

Aftermarket Disc Brakes - There are several disc brake kits available from the different early Bronco vendors. They all vary somewhat in terms of components and new versus rebuilt parts. Some use all Ford parts which is important to certain buyers. Go with one of the several well respected vendors and you really can't go wrong. Just pay attention to exactly what comes with the kit so you know what parts you're getting and what parts you have to source yourself. This is critical when comparing disc brake kit prices too. Be sure you're comparing apples to apples.

Early Bronco Power Brakes

To get power brakes your basic choices are vacuum assist or hydraulic assist, also called Hydroboost.

Vacuum assist is what some 1976-77 Broncos came with from the factory. A large round housing holds a diaphram and is mounted to the firewall with an angled bracket. The bracket locates the large housing away from possible clearance issues with the engine valve covers. These original brakets can be hard to find today, but luckily several vendors offer aftermarket alternatives. A new master cylinder is always advisable when performing this upgrade. If you go with an aftermarket kit the vendor should already have the master cylinder properly sized for your application.

Hydroboost, or hydraulic assisted brakes use hydraulic pressure from your power steering system to apply the brakes. Obviously you'll need power steering to upgrade to hydroboost. Your power steering pump may also need to be replaced unless it's a newer style. The hydroboost needs an additional port on the power steering pump to connect it. The hydroboost body is much smaller then the vacuum canister, but a custom braket will still be required to mount it up to the firewall. These are available from several vendors. In addition to taking up less space under the hood the main advantage of hydroboost is the higher pressure as compared to the traditional vacuum assist. People generally report a significant increase in braking power after this upgrade, even when they already had vacuum power brakes.

Engine upgrades really are fairly subjective. So much is dependent on how you plan to use the Bronco. If you go mud bogging or dune running then flat out horsepower and high RPM's fit the bill. If you like to crawl through boulder fields you're probably more interested in low end torque. And if you spend all your time on the street and want pure reliability, then a stock 289/302 or fuel injected 5.0 could be for you. Even the stock Bronco 6 cylinder has it's place, offering good gas mileage and rock solid reliability. With all that said the guide below should help give you an idea of the more popular engine swaps and what they might be worth to you. Again, the info is given in general terms and how you drive your Bronco will change which engine is most valuable for your needs.

Stock 289/302 or 170/200 - OK, admittedly these aren't engine swaps. But I show them more to give a baseline. There's nothing wrong with the stock Ford Bronco power plants. They're reliable and will last hundreds of thousands of miles if maintained properly. Simply rebuilding your stock Bronco engine is straight forward and cost effective. The downside is you're using 30 year old technology and fuel efficiency isn't the best.

351W Swap - People have been swapping 351's into early Broncos since the late 60's. It's the oldest swap and still a very popular way to get more horsepower and cubic inches into your steed. You need to understand that there's the 351C and the 351W. The 351C stands for Cleveland and although you can swap one into a Bronco, it's not as common. The 351 more widely used in 1966-1977 Broncos is the 351W (Windsor). The advantages of the 351W over the 302 include a stronger block and larger main and rod journals. Oh, and that extra 49 cubic inches of displacement doesn't hurt either.

There are a few issues to be aware of with the 351W swap. The deck height is about 1" taller than a 302. This may cause the air cleaner to hit the underside of the hood. This can be solved by installing a body lift, cutting a hole int he hood (with a scoop to cover of course), or getting an aftermarket hood (typically fiberglass) with a scoop or raised section built into it. You'll also need 351W headers designed specifically for the early Bronco. A new oil pan and accessory brackets are also needed.

5.0 Swap - The term "5.0" typically refers to the 5 liter engines found in late model Mustangs. For a Bronco swap it means replacing your carbureted 289 or 302 with a more modern, more efficient fuel injected motor. The benefits are substantial including better gas mileage, lower emissions, more power, smoother starts, automatic adjustment for change in altitude and no more stalling or flooding on steep hill climbs or sever off camber situations. It sounds great, and it is. But the 5.0 swap is also vry involved and requires a lot of research and money. The more you research and source parts yourself the less money you need to spend. Inversely if you have more to spend the swap can be made easier by purchasing one of the very comprehensive kits on the market. They've done the research so you don't have to. Just be aware that the acutal swap and hookup still takes a significant amount of time.

390, 428, 460 and other swaps - Where there's a will (and lots of money) there's a way. And many an industrious owner has found a way to get less conventional power plants into the hoods of their early Broncos. Some make sense depending on the owner and the way they drive their Broncos. But many times these swaps are more for the "wow" factor then any practical purpose. Most of the lesser used alternative engines are more trouble and cost then they're worth.

The 390 & 428 are both members of the FE big block family of Ford engines. While they have plenty of cubic inches and gobs of horsepower and torque, they're also extremely heavy. This added weight up front doesn't compliment the short wheel base Bronco very well and can contribute to steering and handling problems. And a heavy front bumper and winch and the weight distribution problem gets compounded even more. The FE engines also don't bolt up to the stock Bronco engine mounts or transmission. And if you find a big block transmission, then you'll need to fabricate a custom cross member and figure out how to mate up the transfer case, or find a different one.

The 460 is typically found in full size Ford trucks. In terms of swapping into a 1966-77 Bronco it falls in the same category as the 390/428 FE. It's large, heavy and requires custom fabrication to fit.

A Chevy 350 in a Bronco? Gasp! - Ethical issues aside, people have actually done this swap, although again, it typically makes much more sense to use a small block Ford. One main reason would be to more easily use a Chevy transmission, like the 700R4. It's a desirable transmission because it's a 4 speed with overdrive and has one of the best gear ranges around for an automatic. But to use a 700R4 with a Ford engine requires multiple adapters to engine and transfercase. So instead some people swap out the entire drive train (engine, transmission & t-case) with Chevy hardware.

Lifts for early Broncos come in two flavors; body lifts and suspension lifts.

Body Lift - A body lift simply raises the body further off the chassis. The entire body of a Bronco, including everything from the floor pans and bed up is attached to the frame with 8 bolts. A body lift adds a spacer (1", 2" or 3") between these 8 attachment points to raise the body. Just remember that only the body (and anything attached to it) raises. The engine, transmission, drive shaft angles, suspension, steering geometry, axles and tires stay exactly where they are. A body lift won't affect the way your Bronco handles or tracks down the road, with the minor exception that your center of gravity is slightly higher. Body lifts are good for getting a couple more inches of tires clearance, more space under the hood for taller engines or more room to work for certain transmission swaps like the NP435.

Suspension Lift - Suspension lifts are available in many forms from several different vendors, usually in 2", 3.5" and 5" sizes. I'll just hit the highlights of the most common systems without going into any one specific vendor. The cheapest type of suspension lift (and for a reason) uses taller (and usually stiffer) replacemtn coils up front and lift blocks under the rear leaf springs. The lift blocks are cheap and easy to install, but also have a tendancy to get spit out under severe stress. The next step up uses add-a-leafs instead of lift blocks. This is a single stiff leaf the gets added into the existing rear leaf packs. These are more secure then blocks, but can provide a harsh ride and limit articulation. Also, with both blocks and add-a-leafs you're still using your original leaf springs, which may be worn and sagging. the third step up, and the preferred way to go, is a complete kit with matching components. These kits include progressive rate front coils and new multi-leaf rear spring packs. They also typically include matched shocks and may have replacement shock mounts or hoops to allow for greater articulation and longer shocks. Truely complete kits will also include all the parts needed to properly adjust for the changes in steering geometry caused by the lift, including drop brackets and/or adjustable drag links. A well designed lift kit can not only increase your off road articulation, but improve your street ride as well. Unlike body lifts, suspension lifts actually raise the entire vehicle off the axles. This increases drive shaft angles and length, usually requiring new shafts. It also affects steering geometry, which must be corrected to properly set alignment and avoid conditions like bump steer, wandering and wobbling. The higher the lift the harder it can be to track down and solve these conditions.

Power steering is certainly high on the list of desirable options for early Broncos. Regardless of whether you're looking for a hard core rock crawler or mild daily driver, power steering makes driving your Bronco so much nicer.

Factory Power Steering - Ford originally offered power steering on Broncos in 1973. Unlike Mustangs and other Ford cars of the era, there are no rams or valves to worry about. The hydraulic assist is all contained in the steering box. This typically makes for an easy conversion, especially if using a factory original Bronco system. It's just bolt in. The problem with the factory setup is finding the box and pump brakets at a decent price. Once you have the box it's not very expensive to have it rebuilt and even upgraded to a tighter turning ratio.

F150 Power Steering - If finding a stock Bronco PS box proves too difficult or expensive a popular alternative is the F150 swap. Basically you need to find a power steering box from a 1976-79 F100 or F150 4x4 truck, then swap some of the internal components with a 4x2 F150 box. In addition the F150 box mounts to the outside of the Bronco frame, which is opposite of how the factory Bronco box bolts up. A few mounting holes also need to be redrilled to mount the F150 box to an early Bronco frame. If that's a concern there are after market adaptor plates you can purchase to eliminate any drilling.

The last major safety item that should be at the top of any Bronco wish list is a roll cage. Some may argue that the factory steel top is sufficient and a roll cage isn't needed. But if you've ever seen what's left of that hard top after a severe roll you would see the light. the Bronco hard top will give some protection and might be OK is a slow roll on the trail, but it simply doesn't have the structural integrity of newer vehicles. Adding taller tires and a lift increases your center of gravity and your chances of flipping on the street or highway. A high speed flip or multiple roll down a hill with simply flatten or shear off a factory hard top.

Roll cages and bars of every style can be purchased several different ways. You can find a local ship to custom fabricate one specifically for your Bronco and your needs. You can order a fully welded cage from one of the major vendors that you just drop in and bolt up. You can order a kit that comes pre-fit, but unassembled and weld it together yourself. This of course assumes you trust your own life to your welding skills. A last option is to purchase the tools (chop saw and tubing bender) and fully fabricate and weld your own cage. Again, your welding and fabrication skills should be up to the task as your creation may need to save your life some day.