1992 Ford Bronco Eddie Bauer review from North America

The air conditioning was non-functional when purchased, and converting it from freon to the new, tree-hugger-friendly R134a refrigerant was costly.

Passenger side power window does not function.

Leather seats are showing their age.

Many, many rattles and loose plastic trim pieces.

Small scrapes and dings from normal wear and tear, not an issue since it will be a ranch truck.

The stock radio did not work (very common in Fords that age)

Small driveline clunk when accelerating from a stop.

I purchased a 1992 Ford Bronco Eddie Bauer edition to replace my 1968 Ford Mustang when I needed a 4x4 for the ranch, along with the carrying capacity of a truck. So far, on these fronts, it has delivered, and proven to be a truck that got all the big design elements down, even if there are some niggling detail issues that handicap it.

The exterior, to my eyes, is the most attractive modern Ford truck, without contest. It's handsomely rugged, without being overdone, overbearing, or unapproachable. If it has a fault, it's that the fuel filler door is on the driver's side, where you have a greater chance of dinging the door on a stanchion at a gas station and less room to get out since you have to do so on the gas pump side. Not a major issue, but still annoying to me.

The interior is attractively designed, and very functional. Most of the basic stuff has been very well taken care of: the Eddie Bauer leather seats have power adjustible lumbar supports that kept me extremely comfortable, even on a 4-day trip from California to Texas - and they are handsomely adorned with the Eddie Bauer logo on the headrest. This truck has side vent windows, one of the best little innovations on cars of all time, IMHO, which mysteriously have disappeared in cars these days - these windows are lifesavers, and I use them far more than the air conditioning, even in the hot and humid Texas summers - they're that good. The gauge pot is nicely shaped, and contains a relatively comprehensive set of gauges to help you see what's going on under the hood and spot the exact cause of trouble before an idiot light would even tell you. And folks, this truck is very well sealed and insulated. When all the windows are up, there is very, very little wind or road noise to be heard. There is also very little engine noise to be heard... but that's nothing a set of glasspacks won't take care of ;). Ergonomics of the interior are also pretty straightforward, although the sheer number of settings on the wiper stalk make it a confusing venture. Thankfully, the headlights are switched on and off via a separate pull switch on the dash. Otherwise everything is clearly marked, and being that there is little else to operate, nobody should have trouble making the full use of all the features in no time. Room is plentiful for front seat passengers, although rear seat passengers get the squeeze. The cargo area is generously sized, and grows even more when the rear seat is folded out of the way. In fact, with the seat folded, the cargo area is gargantuan for a truck as short as the Bronco is. It easily swallowed a 1000 lb load with the back seat still up, and I was able to leave the seat and floorboard empty!

The details in the interior, however, obviously escaped the Ford designers. Ruled by accountants, the quality of the materials is embarrassingly low, resulting in a loose cabin that rattles from several different spots. The plastic bezel around the radio is loose, creating one rattle. A plastic trim piece along the bottom of the seat where it meets the floor also came loose on me. The driver's side door panel is loose in the middle, a result of a broken plastic retaining clip. And, there are several other small loose or outright broken plastic trim pieces throughout the cabin. Beyond that, the leather seats look an awful lot like plastic, and I'm actually still not completely sure they aren't. Whatever the case, they are starting to wear and have many a small crack, although there are no rips or tears. The little interior beeper beeps at you anytime the driver's door is open - normally these little bugs reserve that kind of behavior to when you leave the keys in the ignition or when you leave the headlights on - more an annoyance than an issue. The stock am-fm/cassette stereo didn't work - no big deal since that is common for most cars its age, and I was going to replace it anyhow (ironically, the new one was a faulty unit and quit working as well). And, the air conditioning system was something of a struggle for me to get working. The compressor had previously blown up, requiring all new parts, and then I had to convert it to the R134a refrigerant, which took more fiddling and money to get functioning. Now that it works, it might be the coldest blowing air conditioning I have ever felt, but just to get it to this point cost me over half as much to fix as the purchase price of the truck, and so is a major point to look for if you're considering one.

Driving it is a pleasant, if somewhat sterile experience. Although the 302 / 5.0 liter V8 is somewhat disliked by the Ford truck enthusiasts, it is extremely reliable (even with nigh on 120k miles of tough San Francisco driving on it, she runs like a top). I find it provides plenty of twist and pull even for this 4600 lb truck saddled with an automatic transmission - when I bought the truck, I promptly took it on a 2000-mile drive from California to Texas, during which time I had no troubles, and even loaded with 1000lbs, it would climb any grade I asked it to, even at the nearly 7000 ft and 85-90 degree heat of central Arizona. Though rated at only 185hp, this truck had relatively favorable gearing and the get-up-and-go to beat a V6 Oldsmobile Alero. But would it hold a candle to my 302-powered Mustang? Hell no. In other words, this truck is no sportscar, but can hold its own and is quicker than many would have you believe. However, it's so well-muffled and smooth that you have no impression of this, and it thus is a little lacking in personality. Then, there's a small clunk in the driveline when you're leaving a light. Another niggling fault: the transmission. It takes far too long to shift up and to kick down, especially with 4th gear, and the reverse gear engagement is slow. Also, it is somewhat shortly geared so that it is turning over approximately 1950 rpm at 65mph (normal for a V8-powered truck is about 17-1800 rpm at 65mph). This raises the fuel consumption, which stands at a poor 8mpg city and a fair 17.5mpg highway, even with the air conditioning off 90+ percent of the time and judicious use of cruise control and obeying the speed limits. On the positive side, when it does shift, the shift comes quickly and positively, with a medium-firm feel.

Handling is a mixed bag. For a truck, it is a composed, if front-heavy, handler that relies on the grip of its large tires to pull you through some pretty surprising corners. But for someone not used to vehicles without the razor-sharp reflexes built into cars these days, what you notice is a tendency towards heavy understeer at the limits. Combine that with the high center of gravity, light steering, and heavy curb weight, and it's a truck that takes a little extra time and space to hustle. However, in parking lots and at u-turns, the very tight turning radius, compact size (it's about the length of a Toyota Camry, and with a much shorter wheelbase) and light steering become a blessing that make this a surprisingly city-friendly vehicle that maneuvers as well as a car in tight quarters. It's a truck that's well enough composed that I again find it to be a little bit personality-less.

The 4 wheel drive system is a pretty user-friendly system, and when in 4-lo will almost idle you out of most situations. Couple that with stout F150 underpinnings and the 31x10.5 R15 tires, and you have a bone-stock setup that will tackle most anything it's likely to see in most people's hands.

The ride, however, is again strictly trucklike. Though it's not punishing, it is very firm and does not let you forget both that you're driving a truck and a 4x4. But the suspension keeps it rock solid and stable even at 90 + mph.

Still, there are some miracles left in this truck: the rear power tailgate window still works, a wonder for most Broncos, and in fact, all the power stuff save for the passenger window works - even, to my amazement, the power lumbar supports on the front seats.

Typically, I despise cars built after 1975 or so, but despite myself this little gem has proven so pleasing to me that I have not regretted the $3800 I spent to buy it. That is high praise from me, and I would not hesitate to recommend it to anybody.

In short, this is a great truck and a great driver that has so far proven to be mechanically reliable, tough, and even a little bit fun, with its greatest fault being that it's glaringly cheap on the interior.