This car may appeal not only to those who need an SUV or truck, but also to those who like cars in which there is much more metal than plastic. Here you will not see plastic wheel arch extenders. The ’85 Ford Bronco is a third generation, which was produced from ’80 to ’86. The cars were produced in Michigan and also in Australia. By the way, many of you could drive such a car, even if not in real life, but in GTA San Andreas. Where such cars were found in the suburbs of San Fierro and used by the police.
At first glance, 1985 Ford Bronco is very similar to the car of the second generation. The last one was only produced for a couple of years. But Ford had spent $700 million on developing a new, lightweight truck, which included the third generation Bronco. Ford was trying to make a truck with better aerodynamics and less weight to improve fuel economy and reduce aerodynamic noise. As you probably know, this SUV is based on the F150 pickup and some parts are unified with the F250 and F350. It is because of this unification that serious problems with parts are avoided even today.
The third-generation Bronco once again got in-line, six-cylinder engines for the base-equipped cars. Inline sixes were available in the first generation, but the capacity was 2.8 and 3.3 liters. The base engine for the second generation was the eight-cylinder, but the six-cylinder was not available.
The 1985 Ford Bronco was in competition with the Jeep Wagoneer. It was a large, but exclusively three-door SUV. It is believed that mainly because it only had three doors, the Bronco was removed from Ford’s lineup in the 90s. Moreover, by that time already successfully sold five-door Explorer, and a larger, five-door Expedition replaced the Bronco. In the ’90s, the American market demanded a five-door SUV. But let’s go back to the third generation Bronco, because it was produced in the first half of the 80s. During its production years, it was produced about 40,000 cars per year, and in the ’85 and ’86 it was possible to assemble 54 and 62 thousand of these SUVs, respectively. From this we can conclude that in the 80s the demand for the Bronco was stable and quite sufficient, although not record-breaking.
Sale and price of 1985 Ford Bronco.
In the ’80s, you could buy a basic Ford Bronco for $7,897. Additional options could raise the cost of the SUV up to $13,000. Today, the cost of a restored Bronco can exceed $50,000. The price depends entirely on the condition of the particular instance.
Appearance and photos.
In the last year of its release, the second generation Bronco received square headlights and visually, it is not so easy to distinguish such a car from the third generation model. If you look closely, the newer car has a larger angle of the windshield. Earlier second-generation Bronco had round headlights, and next to such a car, the third generation is easily recognizable.
In ’82, the Bronco has received a restyling. The updated car is easiest to recognize by the presence of a new emblem Ford on the radiator grille. Today it is known to all – “blue oval”. At the same time the inscription Ford on the hood lid’s edge has disappeared. There is a new frame. The fact is that during the development of the Bronco 3, the emphasis was made on reducing the weight of the car, and for this purpose the frame was made with holes.
Over time, it became clear that the rigidity of the frame is desirable to strengthen, because some Bronco even jumps from ski jumps. When examining the Bronco exterior, you might notice a horse emblem on the front fender, or on the spare tire cover. Yes, a similar emblem has long been used on Ferrari and the Mustang, but in the case of the Bronco, the stallion is not prancing or running, but preparing to land on its front legs after the jump.
As with the previous two generations, the third Bronco was available exclusively in a three-door body. The doors and some body panels were interchangeable with the Ford F150 pickup.
With a body length of 4580 mm (180.3d), the wheelbase is 2642 mm (104d). Compared to the second generation, the Bronco is 2.7d shorter and 1.1d narrower. Curb weight is 2115kg, which is more than 550kg more than the first Bronco in ’66. Ford’s SUV uses 235/75 R15 tires.
Interior and equipment.
All instrument dials are square. The speedometer is graduated to 85 miles, with 55 miles circled. Apparently, Ford felt that this would be the optimum speed for their Bronco.
The interior could be cloth or velour. The interior trim uses plastic and wood imitation inserts. There’s a gearshift and a transfer case lever sticking out of the floor. By default, the front row was made as a three-seat sofa with lumbar-type seat belts. As an option, the first owner could order two separate seats with a storage box between them.
On the crossbar of the steering wheel you can notice the buttons controlling the cruise control and they are quite tight to the touch. As an option, the Bronco 3 could be equipped with air conditioning.
The rear, side windows could be sliding. But they don’t go down, but back – along the window. This operation is done manually. The side of the third door is folded down – as on the car of the first and second generation. Before this it is necessary to open the window, which has an electric drive and goes down.
Engine and technical characteristics of 1985 Ford Bronco.
As we said above, the base engine was an inline six. But it had a cubic capacity of 4.9L, which was larger than some of the V8s of the time. It developed only 124 horsepower, which was the normal output for a big engine during the oil crisis. In the 80s, American manufacturers were just beginning to recover from the harsh effects of the fuel crisis. In addition, such a de-energized engine greatly improves the engine life.
In addition such overdrive engine significantly increases service life. More powerful V8 engine with almost the same cubic capacity (4.95 liters) produced already quite decent power of 190 horsepower.
The 351st V8 at 5.75 liters and a compression ratio of 8.0:1 produced an output of 156 horsepower at 3,800 rpm. The torque of the engine was 355Nm at 2200 rpm. The motor was powered by an edelbrock carburetor. From zero to 60 miles the Bronco with the 351 engine can accelerate in 11.6 seconds. The quarter mile was done in 20.8 seconds, and the one kilometer from a standstill in 38.6 seconds.
The 5.75 liter V8 Windsor was later increased to 210 horsepower. The crankshaft of this engine was mounted on 5 pillars, and not only the block was cast from cast iron, but also the heads of the engine block.
Yes – the V8 engine is big on its own, but in the Bronco’s engine compartment it doesn’t seem huge. There’s plenty of room on the sides and front of the engine, which makes it easy to service the powertrain.
The transmission was a three-speed, automatic. The front suspension was spring and the rear suspension was leaf spring.
The 3rd generation Ford Bronco was a good car for its time. It provided good off-road capability and versatility. It was reliable and maintainable. The car was bought for these qualities. Later, in the 90s, the concept of SUV began to evolve. Cars of this type began to turn from trucks, in a comfortable car for a large family, and under such a concept was necessary to have a five-door modification. Even the current Bronco, which came out in the 21st year, got five-place modification, which though does not have the charisma of a three-seater, but provides practicality and the iconic name Bronco.
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