Dreamsicle: 1987 Ford Bronco II
It’s nice to see vehicles that are actual colors rather than tones. We’ve all seen enough white, silver, black, and gray vehicles, or I have. I mean, I still like those tones but there’s something fun about seeing a vehicle like this 1987 Ford Bronco II in orange. This one can be found here on craigslist in Kirkland, Washington. The seller is asking $5,000 or best offer.
I thought that this might have been a railroad track safety or maintenance vehicle when I first saw it in this color. Actually, from what I can tell, Ford didn’t offer orange on the Bronco II in 1987 but it would have been available when they first came to the market in 1984. I love it. Actually, I love this whole vehicle, it looks like it’s in outstanding condition.
Some of you may be wondering about the Dreamsicle title name, why not Creamsicle? A Creamsicle has ice cream on the inside of an orange sherbet coating but a Dreamsicle has ice milk. Since this appears to be a base model Bronco II with a base interior rather than one with a fancy interior like an Eddie Bauer edition, Dreamsicle it is. If our leaders spent as much time thinking about world peace as we do on titles, just think what we could accomplish! I’m kidding, I just thought I’d explain the title on this one. Back to this great looking 4×4.
What we see of the interior looks great, and best of all is the manual transmission. This would be a fun winter vehicle for those of us who live in snow and salty-roads country. It’s cheap enough to last for a few years and maybe it would save our regular vehicle from rusting out. Not that I ever want any vehicle to be subjected to road salt. The back seats look like new and the rear cargo space looks great and it would carry most loads.
The engine is Ford’s Cologne 2.9L V6 which would have had about 140 hp, more than enough for this little Bronco. Are there any fans of the Bronco II out there? Have you ever seen an orange one?
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Comments
I’m with you Scotty, anything not white/ gray/ silver/ black is fine with me. Just took the dog for a walk. A few houses down: garage had two vehicles, both gray; two vehicles in the driveway, both gray; and one of those big golf cars in the garage, you guessed it, gray.
I had an 85 Bronco II, Eddie Bauer. Nice little rig, served me well. Trimmed out nicely, dark blue with the tan trim was especially eye-catching. This one looks pretty good, even though a base model.
Seems like most anything “Bronco” is bringing solid prices, even the II’s.
I’ve always had a thing for these and came close to buying a couple. I never realized these had a split rear bench. One of my minor gripes with my Cherokee was the solid fold down bench, sometimes the split would have been handy. As far as color add me to the list of people sick of black, grey, silver, and white (as I stare at the two black Toyotas in my driveway). I even like orange, but not on this vehicle. It needs something to break up all that pumpkin. maybe some silver down the bottom, or a pin stripe. Nice find and reasonably priced.
I’ve always liked the Bronco ll, it stayed more to it’s original roots. Too bad the public didn’t see it that way. Kind of like the Mustang ll, I think this model is one Bronco lovers would like to forget. I never cared for that V6 either, tissue paper head gaskets, but the rest is all Ford quality. The farm I lived on in N.Wis. the guy had a Bronco like this to “run around the farm”. Naturally, it was in deplorable condition, but still did it’s job, got him out to “back 40” through the slop. Now,,,seeing where 1st gen Broncos went, should we buy every Bronco ll for the future?
This is a Bronco I’d buy if I needed one. Nice rig.
These are great little trucks, especially with the manual trans and hubs. Very underrated imho.
Nice little rig, perfect for a pumpkin farmer. I remember seeing these everywhere in the late ’80’s and into the 1990’s, they were very popular. Here is something you may want to consider before buying it, though:
It was estimated that 260 people had died in Bronco II rollover crashes, a rate that is several times more than in any similar vehicle according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. By 1995, Ford had paid $113 million to settle 334 injury and wrongful death lawsuits. A class-action settlement with owners of its controversial Bronco II provided “new safety warnings and up to $200 for repairs and modifications.” Ford ended production of the Bronco II in 1990, but “always contended that rollovers are overwhelmingly caused by bad driving or unsafe modifications to the vehicle.”
The safety record showed that “one in 500 Bronco II’s ever produced was involved in a fatal rollover.” Automobile insurer GEICO stopped writing insurance policies for the Bronco II. By 2001, Time magazine reported that the “notorious bucking Bronco II” rollover lawsuits had “cost the company approximately $2.4 billion in damage settlements.”
I heard it was, in reality, 261.
& then they found out it wuz da oem tires…
I remember Explorers were crashing from tire explosions in the late 80s and early 90s and beyond. Was it the same issue?
My roommate in college had a 1993 Ranger in this exact color. Its 4-cylinder was nasty, coarse and slow but reliable. This one looks tippy, and it’d be on its side within an hour if driven like a lot of people drive today’s CUVs. Don’t really see the appeal here but I suppose it’s an interesting relic. One of the first crossovers.
Not a crossover. Its body on frame.
My wife had an Eddie Bauer Bronco II in the late 80s. She complained of “strange electrical noises” coming from the engine. I told her it was her imagination……
A few days later, she stopped at the mall on her way home from work. She was in a store for about 15 min and when she came out, it was ablaze, 20ft high flames. Apparently she was right.
Over the next several years she has reported other strange sounds and smells coming from vehicles.
After a few more “incidents”, I have learned to take immediate action on her reports.
Your wife sounds like essential safety equipment in any motor vehicle. She has skills. She could do well serving with the Insurance Institute and maybe NTSB.
It’s too bad, I was actually kind of hot for this little Ford, but between the rollovers and the up in flames, maybe not.
Good commentary, fordguy1972, this was a big problem with these, you could tell by looking at it its a rollover waiting to happen, ford didn’t do enough homework, or just didn’t give a rats@ss. I remember putting a clutch in one of these; what a bear and the problem wound up being the hydraulic throwout bearing. all plastic, even the lines. Just a bad idea at the time, and the bugs on this type of setup seem to have been worked out It took me 5 hrs just to get the tranny out. Rest in Pieces. Good luck and beware the popsicle!
Well now, that’s a lot of info that makes owning one of these cars a bad option. Nevertheless, I really like these Bronco II vehicles. Licensing, registration, and insurance is becoming more of a problem on all classic cars. Yesterday I went to register my 64 Buick Riviera and found the laws are different now than the last time I registered it. I lived in Henderson county, Texas when last registered five years ago and I was able to register it with antique plates and drive anywhere, but now I live in Harris county Texas where if I register it as an antique I don’t need inspection but can only drive to and from parades and shows, but if I register it as a classic car I must get inspection but can drive it anytime anywhere. Changing counties required me to go to a tax office where there were 50-100 people waiting, it was take a number and wait. I didn’t want to go get an inspection then come back so I registered it as antique, which is okay for the time being but will want to switch to classic registration at some point since I like to drive the car for pleasure. Because of the restrictions being forced on owners of cars older than 25 years I must stay with just one classic at a time.
God bless America
Don’t let other’s bad experiences sour you on anything. You may have better luck.
Westinghouse gave me a Ranger of this vintage as a new work truck. I turned it in 2 years later with 105k miles on it and it still looked and ran like new. 2.9 auto, 4×4. Cab was tight for my 6’4″ frame but it went everywhere I needed to go.
This one’s a good deal but it will rust out if used as a winter ride.
not USA – TX. Try Cali ! Gettin as bad as Germany (almost impossible 2 have a classic or any mods).
Is it that you think the car won’t pass smog, or pass a safety inspection?
I’m confused somewhat with the add (I’ve mentioned before that I am indeed dumb). Does he invite trades or not?
I think the color is Competition Orange, matches my brother’s 2015 Mustang GT’s factory paint.
This is actually pretty plush for a Bronco II, at least an XLT. Velour seats, alloy wheels. I’d call it a Creamsicle.
“It’s nice to see vehicles that are actual colors rather than tones.”
Thank you for saying that!
With well over 250K on our 1987 Bronco II I feel it is safer than a soft top CJ. Ours has a reconstructed title due to a rollover. The inspection mechanic failed to put the lug-nuts on correctly. The 16 year driving it didn’t notice any thing until the wheel flew off. A 2wd rust free from NM became the body, its somewhere between a Eddie Bauer/XLT/Ranger I seam to remember counting parts from seven different vehicles to put it back on the road.
Is the rubber area of the carpet worn through under the pedals?
I had a friend that was painting a Corvette for me that owned one of these Bronco ll’s . He was taking a long time to finish my car and I needed a vehicle to get around other then my Sportster. To buy himself some time he offered me the use of his Bronco ll, o.k. so the first day I used it I was on my way to work & the whole dam truck started shaking like a wheel was ready to fall off, so I stopped and found both front wheels had lug nuts that were loose. I tightened them back up and drove off. On my way home after work the same thing happened. When I got home I called him up and he said, “oh yeah, I forgot to tell you about that, it happens all the time, but once they are tight its good until you stop and things cool off”, I had to threaten him to get my car finished sooner, but the lugs still loosened up after a ride, even with tighting them before the ride, they were always found to be tight. BTW, the Corvette came out excellent but 2 weeks later I hit a deer with it and split the seam on the r/s fender, nose to door. This Bronco ll looks like it needs a logo on the doors for “KILOWATT ELECTRIC COMPANY”.
Put 229,000 miles on an 86 Bronco II. Never touched the engine, besides the routine maint. Still running last I heard. Would be tempting if it was closer.
funny, the 2.8L bent6 is the same displacement as my ’66 (170 ci i6) & same name, Bronk. I’d go for the 2WD model & use as DD (quite weird, they still hada x-fer case, it wuz just empty! ). My other bronk is more multipurpose – ie real good at no thing, able to do several (inc plow sno, auger out 1.5×4 ft earth holes & skid logs outta da swamp and upa very steep hill ).
Lub the price/condition. May B / may B not da color !
CL Seattle listing: “expired”.
Makes it a moot point~
This truck has a 2.9L which worries me.
I once bought a beautiful ranger pick up with this engine. It ran perfectly.
When I went to smog it to register it, it maxed out the machine. Nobody could figure out why it did that so I had to sell it as it was.
I miss my baby so much! I’ve had a ton of vehicles in my life time, but Leeloo was definitely one of my favorites! I had to sell her a few years ago to cover some medical expenses… I still have seller’s remorse over it. I hope whoever buys her, takes care of her like I did.