Towing with and old Ford Bronco

[jumpjets]

I am currently pulling my boat with a 2002 ford explorer. The boat and trailer weigh ~4600lbs, and the trailer has titan surge disc brakes. The exploder pulls the boat OK, but it's a little down on power, and when my rig is fully loaded, it's right at the truck's GCWR of 10,220 lbs. I've modified the explorer with a very large trans cooler, EBC performance brakes, and a rebuilt HD transmission.

I'm thinking about replacing it with a ford Bronco. The bronco's of the 80's and 90's were rated to tow 7500lbs. This truck would be a dedicated weekend toy and tow vehicle, and not a daily driver. I'm not worried about gas mileage, but I am worried about tow safety. I've heard that these trucks were squirrelly tow trucks due to their short wheelbase. Is this true? How dangerous would it be to tow with a classic vehicle like a 1978 Bronco without ABS?

I normally tow 50 miles or less on 55mph roads. I would like the option to tow long distances on the interstate though. I don't trust the exploder to do that.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

Nope....they handle great. I had two of them and used them both to tow with - one was a 1984 with a 300 I6 and the other was a 78 solid front axle (I MISS THAT TRUCK!!) with a 351M. I towed a 23' boat w/o any problems and I also towed a 25' camper too. I would not have any concern on using one again. I never should have gotten rid of my 78.

The camper had electric brakes and the boat had surge brakes....no problems.

 

[robert graham]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

Sounds like a Ford F-250 or similar would be about right for your purposes....

 

[alldodge]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

Should not be an issue so long as it has good shocks and standard size tires, height wise. Wider tires OK, taller tires throws things off

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

AND don't skimp on tongue weight... shorter wheelbase tow vehicles are less tolerant of low tongue weight than longer ones

 

[Fleetwin]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

I towed a lot with a 96 Bronco/5.8L.

It towed 5500 pounds well. I had factory 10"X 33" tires. It was sensitive to rear tire pressure. As long as it was correct, it was fine. Stopped straight, no issues.

I wish I still had it. Great truck. Fuel economy was not as bad as you'd think.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

They are very competent tow vehicles, but a lot of the versions came with some fairly underpowered engines. The v8 302 put out from 130 to 190hp or so. Quite a bit of torque, but by todays standards, underpowered. They tow well, as long as you don't need to go anywhere too fast.

 

[NSBCraig]

Re: Towing with and old Ford Bronco

There really isnt that much of a difference becayse of wheelbase. Sure a nice long wheelbase makes highway towing a little easier, but it also makes every other situation harder. It's why most tow trucks are single cab short beds. Personally Ive towed just about everything with a 76' blazer up on 38" ground hawgs w 16#s of air in them. Sure I didnt run 80 on the highway like in the international rollback, but that blazer sure towed great. (got me missin my old truck now)