New Ford Bronco engine bay.

[Jonnyuma]

The worst part about that new Bronco and most all new cars these days is that EVERYTHING is plastic,

The most obvious reason for that is cheap production.

The dirty little secret that the greenies don't like to hear is that all of that plastic is necessary due to the weight reduction required by EPA mileage requirements.

The second part and even dirtier secret that they REFUSE to hear is that all of that plastic, including the plastics that make their beloved electric vehicles possible, is made of hydrocarbons... oil.

The rest of the story writes itself.

 

[Lazyfaire]

Yeah...

I could not imagine having to work on this nightmare. This is the production version of the 2.7 V6. I cannot imagine trying to change the plugs on this mess.

View attachment 815245

To be fair, I think most new vehicles are a nightmare to work on. I've never changed the oil in my 2019 4Runner since the dealer has been doing it for free, but I'm not looking forward to it since you have remove the front skidplate, and it has a cartridge-style oil filter, which I've never dealt with.

But, looking at the Bronco engine, it just screams that it is going to be a giant PITA to do anything under the hood.

I read somewhere that the Bronco is based on the Escape platform, which I thought was problematic. Jacked up for sure but the frame etc. I buy a truck, I want a truck.

 

[Deerhurst]

The most obvious reason for that is cheap production.

The dirty little secret that the greenies don't like to hear is that all of that plastic is necessary due to the weight reduction required by EPA mileage requirements.

The second part and even dirtier secret that they REFUSE to hear is that all of that plastic, including the plastics that make their beloved electric vehicles possible, is made of hydrocarbons... oil.

The rest of the story writes itself.

Not only how the plastics are made but how the power is made for those virtue signal vehicles. Just because you can't see the coal plant doesn't mean it's not there!! Not everywhere has a nice river or some wind (spinning bird splatter machines) to get power from.

I'm still a fan of nuke if we gotta make electricity.

 

[Jonnyuma]

Not only how the plastics are made but how the power is made for those virtue signal vehicles. Just because you can't see the coal plant doesn't mean it's not there!! Not everywhere has a nice river or some wind (spinning bird splatter machines) to get power from.

I'm still a fan of nuke if we gotta make electricity.

Shall we also discuss the catastrophic environmental destruction in the extraction of rare earth minerals? How 'bout the slave labor used in the mines? How 'bout China putting the world over a barrel as the biggest exporter of those minerals?
No?
Cool.
Hey, Environmentalists... your virtue flag was made by slaves.
Wanna know the secret?
Orphans... their tiny Chinese hands do the best detail work.

 

[TTSX]

Looks worse than it really is, I bet. More often than not it's just a couple large components in the way of everything and once those are off, it opens up nicely. A pain but not that bad

 

[HaveGun]

I read somewhere that the Bronco is based on the Escape platform, which I thought was problematic. Jacked up for sure but the frame etc. I buy a truck, I want a truck.

There are two completely different new Broncos. One is called the Bronco Sport, and is a small SUV based on the Escape. It's for women who wear NRS ballcaps and men who drink Chai tea.



The other is the Bronco, which is based loosely on the F-150. It comes in a 2dr and 4dr version and is wider and longer than the last full-sized Broncos in the 90's.

It is arguably the most factory capable SUV you can buy in America with factory 35" tires, lockers, low gearing, excellent aproach and departure angles, etc. It is a beast.

 

[Flopsweat]

The most obvious reason for that is cheap production.

The dirty little secret that the greenies don't like to hear is that all of that plastic is necessary due to the weight reduction required by EPA mileage requirements.

The second part and even dirtier secret that they REFUSE to hear is that all of that plastic, including the plastics that make their beloved electric vehicles possible, is made of hydrocarbons... oil.

The rest of the story writes itself.

And of course the big secret hiding in plain sight: The company that makes the vehicle also offers service and parts for the vehicle. $600 oil change? Right this way Sir and Ma'am!

 

[revjen45]

Engine Room of a 1949 Chevrolet shooting brake. Clifford Research 292 Chev 6, 5-sp Getrag trans, disc brakes in front. I can climb right in next to it for service.

 

[Deerhurst]

You said shooting brake and got me excited for a wagon then just leave me empty with engine photos?!?!?

 

[revjen45]

I don't have good any pics of it on this computer. This is representative photo of the model from the net. It looks like this but it's orange. You can see the original USAF ID# on the firewall.

 

[made in china]

Well, as much as I'd love to have an old car (I really really want one but prices will only go up from here, already prohibitive, man I wish I would have paid more attention in the 90's!) with lot's of room under the hood to sit next to the engine, the next best thing is to just buy a car that doesn't often need the hood opened!
In the 12+ years I've owned my truck, I've only needed to open the hood for oil changes, 2 batteries so far, an accessory belt and a thermostat housing (plastic!). Well, the body shop had the hood open for a bit after a pot-smoking driver in a Hyundai head-on'd my truck (12 year old truck survived with minimal damage whilst sending a newer Hyundai sedan to the wrecker), but that's it. 12+ years just basics.
I LOVE the new Bronco, but we have Fords at work. They give me ZERO confidence. Just today I had to top off the coolant in my EB 1.6 powered Transit Connect that has 22K miles on it, because apparently, the coolant leaks around the turbo and gets low enough that the heater stops working. Found that out on Google because anytime we take the vehicles in we just get the ol' "no problem found" so I have to fix it myself. Google also kindly informed me of a whole host of terrifying reasons why a newish Ford might have malfunctioning HVAC (my recently retired EB 1.6 Escape had these issues).
Just going to stick with Nissan and Toyota trucks for now, hopefully with the money and hassle I save I can eventually acquire a proper old-school real American made keeper!

 

[revjen45]

1) "Not on all cars. I had a `69 Ford Ranchero GT with the 390 4V motor and to change the back plug on the driver's side you had to unbolt the motor mount on that side and use a jack to lift the motor up to get to the plug due to the steering shaft being in the way."
We had a '67 Fairlane GTA 390 and yeah, changing the plugs was a real chore.
Also had a Sunbeam Tiger (aka the Poor Man's Cobra) that was just as much fun - had a hole in the firewall behind the gas pedal to reach the rear plug on the driver's side. It looked like the body was shrink-wrapped around the engine.

2) Had to R&R the injector pump on a Chev 6.2 Diesel - in November while it's raining. With the truck 1/2way in and 1/2way out of the garage, so I couldn't shut the door for warmth. Took 4 days. Necessitated by poverty.

3) When I look under the hood of our '14 Sonata 2.0 Turbo the components I would recognize are covered up by alien technology, and hence incomprehensible.

4) We had a '98 Stratus V6, which was a relatively simple machine compared to today. I set out to change the plugs one fine Texas morning and discovered that I had to pull the intake manifold to reach the rear head. At that point I knew it was worth paying a mechanic to do it.

5) Like Dirty Harry said: "A man's got to recognize his limitations."
I had one of the factory affiliated HD shops in the Ft. Worth area tell me that I knew more about my bike ('79 Ironhead) than they did, which wasn't much of a help. I know how to do most of the stuff required, but I still find it worthwhile to pay somebody who actually does know more about it than I do. (PM me for the name of an honest and competent HD shop in Everett.)
I recognize that at this stage in life I would rather pay somebody to do the work, even if I know how.