4×4S.ORGTHE REGISTRY FORD · BRONCO · CHASSIS NUMBERS

Marque · Bronco · chassis numbers

Ford Bronco chassis numbers

Broncos of 1966–80 carry Ford’s eleven-character serial number — model, engine, plant, year and serial — on the door-pillar data plate and the frame; from 1981 the 17-character VIN with the 1FM world manufacturer identifier and the U15 (wagon) body code, and the 2021 Bronco 1FMDE/1FMEE prefixes. [1][2]

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Where to find it

1966–77: the warranty plate on the left door pillar (later the glove-box door) and the number stamped on the top of the right frame rail behind the front wheel; 1978–96: the plate on the left door pillar and the VIN tag at the base of the windscreen; 2021–: the dash tag, the door-jamb certification label and the frame.

How to read it

1966–1980Eleven-character Ford serial
  • 1 truck line: U = Bronco
  • 2–3 body series: 13 = roadster, 14 = half-cab pick-up, 15 = wagon
  • 4 engine code
  • 5 assembly plant (Michigan Truck, Wayne, for every Bronco)
  • 6 model year
  • 7–11 serial, from 10001 each model year. The engine, plant and year letters are tabled by year in the Ford truck VIN guides and the Bronco clubs’ decoders
1981–today17-character VIN
  • 1–3 world manufacturer identifier: 1FM = Ford multipurpose vehicle (Bronco, Bronco II, Explorer, Expedition, Excursion), 1FT = Ford truck (F-Series, Ranger), 2FM/2FT = Ford of Canada, 3FM/3FT = Ford of Mexico, MNA/MNB = Ford Thailand (Ranger T6, Everest), AFA = Ford South Africa, 6FP = Ford Australia
  • 4 restraint system and gross-weight class
  • 5–7 model line and body series (the Bronco’s U15 wagon code carried over from the pre-1981 serial; the F-Series and Ranger codes likewise)
  • 8 engine
  • 9 check digit
  • 10 model year (B = 1981 … Y = 2000, 1–9 = 2001–09, A = 2010, B = 2011 … the cycle repeats)
  • 11 assembly plant
  • 12–17 serial. The letter tables for positions 4–8 and 11 change by year and are in Ford’s VIN guides and the enthusiast decoders

Prefixes

Prefix or codeMeans
U13 …Roadster, 1966–68
U14 …Half-cab pick-up, 1966–72
U15 …Wagon, 1966–96
1FM…U15…1981–96 Bronco wagon VIN, the U15 body series in positions 5–7

Examples

U15…12345
The form of a first-generation Bronco wagon number: U Bronco, 15 wagon, then the engine, plant and year letters of the year’s table and a serial from 10001 — composed from the code tables, not a particular vehicle.

Sources

  1. 1Ford Bronco (first generation) — identificationWikipedia · accessed 2026-09-22
  2. 2Vehicle identification number (Ford WMIs and the 1981 standard)Wikipedia · accessed 2026-09-22

The numbers are as the sources cited above record them — the parts trade's frame-number charts, the clubs' transcriptions of the makers' bulletins and the enthusiast decoders; a blank cell means no number is recorded. Registry research, not a factory record — check the vehicle's plate and the maker's build record before relying on a range. Corrections through the suggestion form.