I will soon be looking for a used bronco that I will use mainly for going to the cabin, light off roading and up north on the lakes ice fishing. I may want to modify the engine some, and would like to know what was the last year for the ecu's that are easier to work with. I doubt I will need mass air, but may want to change heads, intake and a cam without too much overlap. I will consider the 351s better than the 302s for my purposes. I won't be using it for a daily driver, probably used 10 to 20 times a year plus a little running around town to keep it from 'settin' too much. Also because there is a lot of rusty ones in Ontario, are the bushwacker cut out flares good for minor rust at the rear wheel wells, I mean are they solid enough once installed? Or does 'stuff' get inside and start the rust process again? Thanks.

 

The only Broncos that are mass air are a select number of 95's with the 302 and the entire 96 model line-up. The rest are speed density. The cam is the limiting factor on these engines because there is no way for the ECA to compensate for drastic changes in duration and separation so IF you decide to swap the cam, you will simply have to make certain you make certain the design is speed-density-friendly. This isn't really a major issue because they are available but your selection is obviously more limited.

As to what is "easier to work with" its a toss up. Mass-air gives you a wider range of options on the cam but has a bit more electronics to deal with at least as far as the injection since its true sequential-port injection and mass air sensors can be tempermental.

Speed density has the limited cam options and is bank-fired injection but the rest of it is straight forward and none of the speed density models use ODB-II diagnostics so you can still retrieve fault codes with nothing more complicated than a paperclip. 96's are OBD-II across the board.

The rust over the rear wheels affect TWO parts of the body because the moisture settles between the inner wheel well and the outer skin of the rear quarter. the worse the problem the more the gap between the two metal pieces as a result of the "cancer".

 

Mass air is something that can be had from Ford Racing for the Speed density Broncos. Last catalog from summit that I received showed the upgrade for EEC-IV speed density to Mass air near $700.00 for Broncos and Ford trucks.

 

I had a 94 w/5.8 that was mass air.......I think it was a "California" model...????

 

94 was the first year with mass air on a 302 in the bronco.

 

Thanks, I knew you guys would come up with the info. Now I can start looking for a truck.