I bought a 92 Bronco 5.8/E4OD with a locked engine and mashed front cap for $400 about 2 years ago. I finally got her on the road and think I want to keep her, even though she has some rust. That is were I am having trouble, deciphering where she came from, or more appropriate, where she was sent when new so I can guesstimate how much rust I might have hidden there.

Where is DSO code of 89? I have found on older cars that this code is a Ford Transportation Services designation meaning this truck was used by the Ford guys but where, up North where the road salt is murder on these things? I sure hope not, might have to sell her if this is the case.

I have rust through on the body seam right above and behind the driver side rear wheel (non limited slip diff) and I already replaced the radiator support and the rear wheel wells are about to get a good working over with the Bondo or new metal, but not until I can either figure out if I want to keep this truck or not. Anywhere else these trucks are prone to body rot? I have never bought one with it so I don't know where to look first other than the rear wheel wells.

Thanks guys and gals.

 

I grabbed a Ford manual to look, and under District Codes in the 80 numbers, I saw:

83 Government
84 Home Office
85 American Red Cross
86 Recreational Vehicle Pool
87 Body Company
89 Transportation Services

Back in the early/mid 1990's I saw the border patrol was using Bronco's, so I would expect those to be under DSO 83 Government. With that in mind, I'm thinking that these DSO codes that were not sales office areas, were big fleet sales to different organizations under contract. Not something like a company going to a dealer and getting a fleet deal on 10 trucks. So I'm thinking that code 89 doesn't mean that Ford people were driving them.

Some rental car places used to rent Bronco's in mountain areas of the country, they were a favorite for field service people who had to drive up trails to maintain equipment.

I wonder if "Transportation Services" could have been a euphemism for "Rental Fleet".

 

If you are worried about rust on a 19 year-old truck because of where it was used I wonder why. Where it came from and/or where it was used is history. Its current condition is a result of that but no longer a factor in what will happen to it. If it has rust and you want to keep it, fix the rust. It will only continue to rust if you let. Its not like it will rust into oblivion simply because it used to live in a certain environment. Remove the rust is has and seal it and it will stop rusting. Done. If it has already rusted beyond a point where you feel comfortable dealing with it, then let it go.

 

Thanks Torky2, I have some 95 manuals and did not even think to crack them open for the info, I guess I have come to rely TOO heavily on Google and forgot about my own bookshelf, or is it laziness....

 

Are you serious? Its History is EXACTLY what I am after, Where it was used is definitely a factor as it will determine how much exposure to the rusting agents it had, that is why I want to know. A truck from Michigan is going to be exposed to so much more corrosive agents(road salts!) than a truck from Arizona. Who wants a truck from Michigan? Not I! Even the folks from Michigan come down here to get trucks to take back up North, because of the harsh, corrosive environment the Northern trucks are exposed to. The current condition will continue to degrade with continued exposure to moisture, if it was used in a corrosive environment it will have much more damage that the moisture can continue to cling to interact with. True, if I never drove it in the rain and kept it in a low humidity environment it would not rust anymore, that's not happening.

It has some rust that I have found, more than I realized when I bought it because it is not in obvious places, the very reason I need to know where this truck came from, if not from my region. It most certainly will rust into oblivion if it has been a Northern truck or exposed to corrosive road salts for a prolonged period of time. The humidity alone in the air will react with the iron molecules and oxidize them, simple basic principles of chemistry at work here. I have removed some rust by replacing the core support and was going to replace the rear quarters above the wells until I found the rusted seam while cleaning out under the carpet and I am trying to find more, SO, I asked you fine folks that have more experience with this stuff where the common areas of rust are so I can look at those specific spots. As far as sealing, I had a truck that had been sealed and it just made it worse as it actually trapped the road salt and moisture as it ran down into the cracks that the sealant missed or could not get too, NO THANKS ON SEALER! It is not rusty to the point of no return but I don't want to have her 20 years down the road fall off the frame because I should have let her go long before then.

I apprecciate your not so humble opinion, but I AM trying to determine if I want to fix the rust or let her go and part of that determination is from the questions I asked, so please, fix and drive all the rusty trucks you want and let me do with my trucks what I please.

 

I understand your concern about rust. I moved from a very salty area to the land of no salt. Before I left, they had been dumping so much salt on roads, that after the snow/ice melted, 4-lane asphalt roads were white with salt. So much salt, that salt powder was laying all over. As cars went by, they stirred up a white salt storm behind them. The oldest car I took with me to the south was about 6 years old. I saw areas continue to rust versus the same make and model car here. Whether that was sodium ions lurking in every panel, or areas that had rusted, therefore no paint or sealant barrier left and continued to rust with moisture/water, I don't know. I think I can say that the rate of my ex-northern car rusting in this environment here was a lot slower than still-northern cars. Which makes sense, as it was no longer eating a steady diet of salt.

Nonetheless, after having southern cars and trucks for many years now, I would not touch a northern one now. That's my feeling, it's easy to get spoiled when you look under a 10 year old car or truck and it's all painted, and the bolts aren't all rusty. And you stop thinking or seeing rust.

I look at pics on this website in the newer trucks section, and I wonder "what did they DO to that poor truck to get so much rust?" I have to remind myself of how another part of the country lives. There is a leveling force, however... it's too blasted hot for me to work on car stuff till winter here, unless it is a real emergency, then I'll die while working on it.

A few years ago one of my kids wanted to buy a particular make and model of car, used, about 2 years old. Some of that model could come from rental fleets. Wanted to avoid a northern car. Most of the dealer cars had the VIN check thing that showed history online. Some of the cars were from New Jersey and places like that. Avoided those. Found quite a few that were local to our area, went with one of those.

So I'm thinking that your best bet for history would be to pay a few $ for a VIN check. Some of the cars on Ebay use them, there's different companies offering it. In our state, all cars and trucks have to be safety inspected once per year, and emission tested also in my local area. All of that contact shows up in the reports, like: 35,789 miles 9/24/11 Inspection Anytown Texas etc.

Even if it costed $25 to do it (I don't know the cost) I think it would be worthwhile. You may decide to throw in the towel on the Bronco with the news + what you have already discovered on it.

BTW, greystreak is a senior and well-respected member here. But that doesn't mean that we all have to agree on everything here, as long as we are (pretty well) nice

 

Oi vei... if rust was the biggest issue to be concerned with, NO ONE would drive an old Ford truck! Despite what the jokes may say, they rust as readily as any other make and if its gonna die from cancer its not because of its exposure, its from the lack of care given to treat the disease simply because its a disease they ALL suffer to some degree or another. If you aren't willing to put as much energy into stopping the corrosion as you are to tuning the engine then its a lost cause already. Steel + exposure to the elements = corrosion. Fix it or part with it.

I'm not arguing that any vehicle "living" in a harsh environment will not suffer the effects much more rapidly than others that were not. I'm saying you will have to deal with it sooner or later no matter where it came from. So how is its point of origin at age 15 (and that's minimum for a full-size Bronco) going to make so much difference? Most vehicles see cancer start in some form within the first 5 years of life. Its not like this stuff is irreversible. You just have to put a bit more TLC into it if the disease has progressed further. Guess I just don't understand the line of thinking that says you put a vehicle out to pasture because you aren't willing to fix anything but the actual drive-systems. The quarter panels and floor boards are just as much a functional part of the thing as the rotating assembly or the brake systems. If they break or corrode, fix 'em. You would do the same if the battery tray rusted through and wouldn't hold it anymore!