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It took all of maybe five minutes at the SEMA Show this morning to realize that 2019 is, in fact, the year of the Bronco. Everywhere we looked, someone was showcasing or unveiling one of the beloved steeds of yesteryear. We won’t lie – it was a welcome surprise.
At this year’s Ford Out Front display (which is open to the public, by the way), a stunning display of several Broncos with storied histories were on display. Along with the beautiful collection of trucks in Ford’s corral, countless manufacturers used the Bronco as its vehicle of choice as a base for SEMA builds. Early on Tuesday, Jay Leno and Ford’s Dave Pericak unveiled Leno’s 1968 Bronco complete with a new GT500 engine swap and six-speed manual transmission at Ford’s inside display.
Out front, however, many of the Broncos stayed true to their histories.
This beautiful Bronco was sitting outside in Roush's booth at Ford Out Front. We were told it belongs to Jack Roush Jr. Fittingly, it has been Coyote-swapped and, you guessed it, Roushcharged.
This 1971 Bronco (named "Bronky") was built by Fun-Haver Offroad and is owned and driven by Vaughn Gitten Jr. It's powered by a 720-horsepower Z427 engine from Ford Performance paired to a TH400 Gearworks transmission. It is raced in King of Hammers, Ultra4, and Dirt Riot.
This particular 1968 Bronco by Samco Fabrication was driven to a Baja 1000 victory by Rod Hall and Larry Minor in 1969. After being sold and raced by friends of Hall, it sat and rotted for decades before Samco Fabrication recovered and restored it. Two weeks after the completion of the restoration, Hall and his granddaughter Shelby (his co-driver) returned to Baja and finished second in their class.
The 1971 Marcel Bronco was purchased in 2007 in a state of disrepair. It was rebuilt in stages, first by replacing the body with a Terra Comp fiberglass tub and hood with a 4-inch suspension lift, before the axles were upgraded with chromoly shafts, with fresh gears and spools. It is now powered by a 477ci V8 Ford engine built by Mike Shelton, making 750 horsepower.
Built in a home garage in 1999 by a pair of brothers, this Bronco has been racing ever since. It’s powered by a 5.8L Windsor topped by an Edelbrock intake with Holley 500 2-barrel carburetor. The team rows gears via a Ford 3-speed manual transmission.
This SCORE Class 3 champion of four years was built entirely in-house by Moss Bros Racing in Sacramento, California. It’s one of the winningest Broncos in history.
“The Joker” comes from the garage of Ray and Mary Amp. It was built in 1985 to compete in East Coast sanctioned events. It has a combined 7-time first place overall championships in Men’s and Open Competitions Series. It achieved top ten finishes every year from 1990 to 2000.
This 1966 Bronco now named “Thunder” was built by Holman, Moody, and Stroppe in 1966. It was dubbed the “Hearst.” It was rebuilt for full race in 1975 by Karco. It won the Baja 1000 in 1978 and 1979, the Mexicali 250 in 1980, and the Mint 400 in 1981.
The Lovell Bros Racing Bronco features a 427ci V8 engine from Roush, C6 transmission, and Atlas transfer case. It's seen a top speed of 117 mph, and races in Mint 400 and was a three-time class winner of the NORRA Mexican 1000 Vintage Class.
Stay tuned to FordMuscle.com this week as we hunt down all the best Broncos of the show!
