Читать книгу Ford Bronco: A History of Ford's Legendary 4x4 - Todd Zuercher - Страница 21

The 289 V-8 was introduced in the Bronco on March 2, 1966, and as a result, the Bronco leaped to the top rung of the horsepower and torque ratings ladder in the sport utility stable.

The 289 was the latest iteration of Ford’s small-block V-8 family that was introduced in July 1961 as a small, compact, lightweight V-8 to replace the Y-block series of engines. Using thin-wall casting techniques to save weight, and displacing 221 ci, the engines were first introduced in the mid-size 1962 Ford Fairlane and Mercury Meteor cars. In mid-1962, the displacement grew to 260 ci, with the displacement again increased to 289 ci by 1964.

At the time of the Bronco’s introduction, three iterations of the 289 were in production. It had become a popular engine because of its widespread use in the Mustang and was a natural fit for the Bronco with its size and power output.

For the Bronco, Ford selected the 2-barrel version, which had the lowest compression ratio (9.3:1) and the lowest torque peak (282 ft-lbs at 2,400 rpm) of the three versions. The installation of the V-8, which Ford described as “the power of a tractor and the performance of a Mustang” was met with universal acclaim. In its September 1966 issue, Motor Trend summed it up well: “Ford’s Bronco with its standard 6-cylinder engine is quite capable of unseating an unstrapped rider in somewhat less than the standard rodeo time of 8 seconds. But now with an optional 200-hp, 289-cubic-inch V-8, it packs the violence of a Braham bull … 200 hp feeding into a 4:57-ratio limited slip differential is somewhat akin to whipping water in a Waring blender.” The 289 offered the option of either a paper air filter or an oil-bath air filter.

Motor Trend testers were quite exuberant in their appraisal of the new Bronco V-8 in the September 1966 issue. You can only imagine what the landing was like when the little bobtail half cab returned to terra firma. (Photo Courtesy Motor Trend Group, LLC)

The 289 V-8 was introduced in the Bronco lineup in March 1966, immediately vaulting the Bronco to the top of the horsepower list in the segment. The 1966–1968 V-8 Broncos, in their original configuration, had sealed radiators with an expansion reservoir tank with a cap mounted between the radiator and the engine. Many of these tanks have been discarded. (Photo Courtesy Tim Hulick)