Vintage Bronco Restomods Explained A vintage Bronco restomod is a first generation Ford Bronco rebuilt with modern mechanical parts underneath original styling. The body looks period correct. The engine, brakes, steering, and suspension are not. That combination is why a 1970s Bronco can now be driven daily instead of trailered to shows. This guide covers which years to look for, what actually gets replaced in a build, what it costs in 2026, and what to inspect before you buy one. What is a vintage Bronco restomod? It is a restoration plus an upgrade. A straight restoration returns the truck to factory specification. A restomod keeps the look and replaces the parts that make an old truck difficult to live with. The usual result is a Bronco with modern horsepower, modern braking, and a drivetrain that starts reliably in any weather. Nothing about the exterior announces it. That restraint is the point. This is restoration with purpose, not just restoration for appearance. Which years count as a vintage Bronco? The first generation ran from 1966 through 1977, and that is the body style almost every restomod starts with. It is the short wheelbase truck with the flat sides, round headlights, and removable top. Wheelbase is 92 inches across the whole run. A few mechanical dates matter when you are shopping. The front axle was a Dana 30 through 1970 and a Dana 44 from 1971 on, which is the stronger unit and the one you want under a lifted truck. Power steering became a factory option in 1973. Front disc brakes did not arrive until 1976, so every Bronco built before that year left the factory with drums on all four corners. The second generation, 1978 and 1979, is a full size truck on the F-100 platform. Those get built too, and they carry more presence, but they are heavier and parts support is thinner. Rust is the real year filter. A 1972 from Arizona is usually a better starting point than a 1976 that spent forty years near salt water. What gets upgraded in a vintage Bronco restomod? Six systems account for most of the work. Engine. The common swap now is Ford's 5.0 liter Coyote V8, which puts modern fuel injection and around 400 horsepower into a truck that originally made 105 with the base straight six. A built 302 or 351 Windsor is the traditional route and costs less. Transmission and transfer case. Modern automatics, often a 6R80, replace the original three speed. Overdrive is the reason. It turns a loud highway truck into one you can drive four hours without shouting. Brakes. Front disc conversions at minimum, four wheel discs on most serious builds. Original drum brakes are the single biggest safety gap on an unmodified early Bronco. Steering and suspension. The factory manual box took six turns lock to lock, which is why power steering goes into nearly every build. Suspension goes either coilover for road manners or leaf with modern shocks for capability. Lift heights typically run 2.5 to 4 inches, enough for 33 or 35 inch tires without wrecking the geometry. Interior. Modern seats with real support, sound deadening, air conditioning, and usually a discreet stereo. The dash stays period correct on the better builds. You can see how that balance looks on finished trucks in our Ford Bronco gallery. Electrical. A new wiring harness is not optional on a truck this old. It is also the part buyers ask about least and regret most. Every upgrade should be evaluated for fit, function, and long term reliability. A build that adds power without addressing brakes and steering is not finished. How much does a vintage Bronco restomod cost? Three tiers, and the gaps between them are wide. A DIY or owner assisted restoration on a solid truck generally runs $20,000 to $60,000, and that assumes you are doing the labor and the truck did not start out rotten. Rework erases the savings fast. A mid tier professional build lands between $50,000 and $120,000. That gets a driver quality truck with proper rust repair, sorted mechanicals, and good cosmetics, without extensive custom work. A premium frame off restomod starts around $150,000 and climbs. At this level the chassis, powertrain, suspension, and electrical system are all replaced or re-engineered, and the interior is bespoke. Fully re-engineered builds regularly clear $200,000. Labor is the variable that moves these numbers, not parts. A Coyote crate engine and the supporting hardware can be bought for a known price. The hundreds of hours to make it fit correctly cannot. Should you buy a restomod or an original restoration? Buy the restomod if you intend to drive it. Buy the numbers correct restoration if you intend to collect it. An original spec Bronco appeals to purists and to certain auction outcomes. It also has drum brakes, manual steering, no air conditioning, and a carburetor that will remind you what it is every cold morning. Owners who buy original and drive often end up modifying it anyway, one system at a time, which costs more than buying a finished build. The auction record supports the modified trucks too. A modified 1966 Bronco sold for $112,200 at Barrett-Jackson, and that was a wagon, not a headline roadster build. What should you check before buying a vintage Bronco restomod? Ask five questions before anything else. Where did the body come from, and how much is original steel versus new panels or a full aftermarket body? Was rust cut out and replaced, or covered? Ask for teardown photos, not finished photos. Who built the drivetrain, and is there documentation on the swap? Is the wiring a new harness, or the original circuit with additions spliced in? How many miles are on the truck since the build was completed, and was it road tested? A build with no photographic record of the teardown is asking you to take its word for it. Reputable shops document everything, because the documentation is part of what you are paying for. Where can you buy a finished vintage Bronco restomod? Through a specialist builder or through a dealer that carries finished trucks. Builders like Velocity Restorations in Pensacola, Kindred Motorworks in California, and Kincer Chassis all work in this space, and each does serious work. The tradeoff with a from scratch commission is time. A full build runs months, and you are buying from a rendering until it is done. FL Auto Sales Group works both ways. We carry finished custom vintage Bronco builds ready to drive, and we build to order for buyers who want to spec their own. Our vintage work follows the same approach as the rest of our custom Broncos: modernize where it improves reliability and safety, keep the exterior period correct, and road test everything before it leaves. Pricing is itemized so you can see what each system cost. If you already know the spec you want, start at build your own and we will work through it with you from start to finish. If you want the same treatment on a different platform, we build custom Jeeps as well. More on how we work is on our about us page. Can a vintage Bronco be shipped out of state? Yes. We ship over 30 Broncos a month through licensed and insured transporters experienced with specialty vehicles, with standard and expedited options, and expedited delivery generally arrives in seven days or less. Vintage trucks ship the same way new builds do, though we recommend enclosed transport on finished restomods. Details are on our nationwide shipping page. We are about ten minutes from Tampa International Airport if you would rather fly in and drive it home. Contact us and we will walk you through either option. Frequently asked questions Are vintage Bronco restomods reliable? Yes, when the build addresses the whole truck. A modern engine on original brakes and wiring is not reliable. A complete build with a new harness, disc brakes, power steering, and a modern drivetrain is as dependable as any current SUV. What is the best year for a vintage Bronco restomod? 1971 and later gets you the Dana 44 front axle, 1973 and later can have factory power steering, and 1976 and 1977 came with front disc brakes. Body condition still matters more than any of it, since a good builder converts brakes and steering regardless of year. Do vintage Bronco restomods hold their value? Well built ones have held value strongly over the past decade. Documentation, build quality, and the reputation of the shop drive resale more than mileage does. How long does a vintage Bronco build take? A full frame off build typically takes several months to over a year depending on the shop's backlog and the spec. Buying a finished truck removes that wait. By the FL Auto Sales Group Build Team. Published September 11, 2026.
