Hi, I am looking at a 94 Eddie Bauer Bronco for my son for his 1st car.
I know the gas mileage will stink, but I want something that he can use to drive to a job so he can afford a car and learn how to do repairs/maintenance, but will be safe for him to drive.

The truck is currently a daily driver, but the 4WD does not work. Owner got it that way and claims he never looked at having it repaired.
It has the electric dash button for 4WD and manual hubs. I was wondering if there are some "common" issues with this setup and if repairing it might be something that doesn't cost too much?
If the 4WD can't be fixed inexpensively, that's OK, after all I grew up with Rear Wheel drive only... Even in the Michigan winters.

What I would like to know about, is what to look for before we buy it? I read the FAQ web site and am aware of the cracks at the back of the gutter rails, the rust around the rear wheel wells and tailgate, the rear tailgate window, but wanted to know if there are other major issues that would be expensive to repair that may be lingering just below the surface? Or if there are common items that usually need to be replaced?

The truck has 194,000 miles, but starts and runs well.

Thanks in advance,

Eric

 

Check the Red Link in my signature. There is more info for prospective buyers there than any of us can post here in the forum.

 

Grey the link to the faq in the page you link to is broken.

http://www.off-road.com/ford/bigbroncos/faq.html= 404 error

I suggest you ask about brakes, shocks, struts, and tires. I bought my 95 for 2500 and had to put 3000 into the aforementioned items. My fault for not looking and/or asking, since I plan on keeping it forever it didn't much matter in the long run.

 

Works for me... and its the second thread at the top of the forum anyway.

 

It's the biography / timeline link that's broken

 

Ah ok... I will see if I can find it again. It has move a few times on me and since its is part of a third-party website, it goes away from time to time. I should consider putting one together for the site myself.

 

Greystreak92, the link worked fine. I did check out the site and there IS a lot of info there. I think I found my answer about the transfer case not working.
Thanks.

Just a subjective question, would the members here be concerned about one with almost 200K miles? I know I am not giving any info on past maintenance, but I honestly don't know.... What are some of the higher mileage Bronco's out there?

 

Avoid the 302 like the plague with that kind of mileage. Even the 351W gets pretty tired with that many ticks on the clock. Now the 300 on the other hand has been known to go 300K before needing anything. (Yes I am biased towards the 300 but there was a reason every UPS truck and an overwhelming number of emergency generators in hospitals and large building are and in many cases still are run by the "big 6 that could").

 

Definitely check the struts and motor mounts. Might also check the drive shafts for excessive movement. Bought mine with 241K miles and have since put about 2k on it. The 351 is a great motor and can go 300K if taken care of.