Old Coyotes R Us.
Remember when a full-sized SUV was more truck than bloated minivan for the mall crawler crowd? The Chevy K5 Blazer. The Dodge RamCharger. The Ford Bronco. These beefy juggernauts ruled the school in their day.
30-40 years later, I can’t think of any famous Blazers or RamChargers—but I can think of three awesome Ford Broncos that I’ll never forget. The first was Pepe, the Little Mule, from Romancing the Stone. El Guapo was a badass. The second, of course, was the OJ Bronco.
This is the third Bronco I’ll never forget—the Bullet Hole Bronco.
[tgp] Introductions: My understanding is you’ve got that badass Bronco. Is that correct? Anything else you’d like to mention?
[you] My name is Josh Jacobson and, yes, I do have a badass Bronco. It’s a 1979 Ford Bronco with the factory chromatic stripe package (Free Wheelin’). My Bronco has a 2014 F-150 Coyote Engine, 6R80 automatic transmission, Atlas II transfer case, and a long list of other modifications. It also has a semi-popular following on Instagram @bullet_hole_Bronco and it gets its name from the actual bullet hole in it.
The bullet hole came from an angry husband shooting at his wife’s lover…
On [Real] Broncos…
[tgp] The most important automotive opinions are those of real, actual owners. As a Bronco owner, could you share a little unvarnished truth with the rest of us? What do you love about them? What do you not love about them?
[you] As far as Broncos go, I love the styling; the 1978-79 (dentside) Broncos are my favorite body style. I like to do a lot of adventuring and the trails here in Oregon can be tight, so having the short wheelbase of the Bronco helps. Also, in a Bronco, you can haul up to five people. I love the removable top, which I always remove for the 4th of July to enjoy the weather. Broncos were built to do exactly what I do with it—explore and off-road… and I drive the crap out of it!
What I don’t love, and any full-sized Bronco owner can relate, is the tailgate… terrible design.
[tgp] How did you end up in this camp? Why have you stuck around as long as you have?
[you] I ended up with the Bronco back in 2010 when a family friend was selling it for… brace yourself… $600. It ran and drove, but needed a lot of work to be road worthy. I have always been into cars, 4x4s, motorcycles, or anything with an engine, and I always will be.
I’ve stuck around because it is my passion and I’m not going anywhere and neither is my Bronco (It will NEVER be for sale) plus have you seen how cool this thing is?
The Bronco community…
[tgp] How’s the Bronco community doing these days? Where do y’all hangout, share tech, and whatnot?
[you] I think the Bronco community is doing amazing and better than ever right now. The early Broncos (66-77) are hotter than ever, with more parts and pieces available for them than ever before. The full-size Broncos (78-96) are going nuts too. Companies have really embraced the last generation Broncos (92-96) turning them into some wicked prerunners. I think the return of the Bronco in 2021 is going to drive the Bronco community to an all time high, it has already been fanning the flames of the Bronco world!
As to where we hangout, I would argue that Instagram is the platform where most of the automotive world lives right now. It used to be on the forums, but they aren’t that active anymore. There are also some killer Bronco gatherings that take place here in Oregon such as the Northwest Bronco Roundup!
This gearhead life…
[tgp] When you think about automotive culture in general, what stands out as being the biggest issue we should be working on together? What’s your biggest concern and what should we be doing about it?
[you] I think the biggest issue or threat to the automotive culture is regulation and electrification. California had a bill a few years back that proposed banning the production of internal combustion engines by 2040. (It failed.) That would be a huge blow to the automotive world. We are also asked to believe that electric cars are better for the environment and I just don’t think that is the case, the production and disposal of batteries is terrible for the environment.
Shout outs…
[tgp] Who’s made the biggest difference in your life with cars? How so?
[you] My father is the one who taught me most everything I know about cars and the one responsible for my addiction to them. He always had something cool or unique with a motor.
When I was young my Father bought a 1980 CJ5 Jeep and we did a Chevrolet 350 swap in it. My father’s cousin had a race car and we would go into Portland and watch the late model stock car races at Portland Speedway on Fridays.
I grew up watching shows on TV like Two Guys Garage, Powerblock, and Stacey David’s Gears, I can remember eagerly awaiting Saturday morning as a kid so I could watch those shows with my father, not cartoons like most kids. I would devour anything automotive magazines, brochures, posters.
Would you like to know more?
Go free wheelin’ with @bullet_hole_Bronco on Instagram
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