Do Ford Bronco Doors Come Off? (And Can You Drive Without Them?)

First introduced in 1966 and undergoing six generations, the Ford Bronco represents one of the most iconic names in the 4x4 subculture. It's an SUV made famous for its rugged, versatile platform and relatively barebones design language, with the modern Bronco more closely resembling a beefed-up Jeep Wrangler — not a bad look to have. This type of vehicle naturally lends itself to open-air motoring better than most, with most Broncos advertising their various removable body panels such as doors and roofs. This trend continues to this day, with new Broncos featuring modular, easily removable doors like the original 1966 model. Not only is it possible to remove a Bronco's doors, but it also doesn't even hinder visibility; unlike the removable doors in Jeep Wranglers, the side mirrors don't come off with the Bronco's doors, making it perfectly viable to drive doors-off in regular traffic.

The modern iteration of the Bronco marks only the second time the model features doors intended to come off, the prior being its first generation. This was largely by-design, as Ford originally intended the Bronco to directly compete with the Jeep CJ for a piece of the 4x4 pie. Consequently, it largely copied and refined the Jeep's design architecture, creating a boxy, modular, and spartan framework on which to build and iterate. Unfortunately, this ended when the Bronco entered the full-size SUV market in its second generation, only being resurrected in spirit with the most recent iteration. It's in this modern interpretation that Ford truly returned to form within the dedicated 4x4 market, and they made sure to make the doors removable this time. Let's look at how you can easily remove yours.

To pre-empt all of these steps, be sure that you have a place to actually store the door; setting a door down on concrete or pavement can easily damage the paint.

First, for the few lucky individuals who own an original first-generation Bronco, the process is extremely straightforward. Roll down the windows to protect the glass, then remove the retaining pins on the door hinges with a hammer and punch and just lift the door right off.

Similarly, modern Broncos are relatively easy to work with, though the process is more involved and time-consuming, so let's break it down. First, each Bronco has a toolkit in the glove compartment with everything you need to remove the doors. After rolling the windows down, fold the mirrors forward to protect them when you get the door loose. Your toolkit has bespoke fender protectors for this job, so fit those (or a thin rubber shim) in between the fender and door gap.

This is where it gets more complicated. The next step is to fully open the door and disconnect the wiring harness. First, locate the harness — the wire links to the body via a large connector that comes straight out and travels downwards. To remove it, pull on the spring-loaded cover to loosen it and give the wire a gentle tug. Be sure to pull the wire straight out, away from the car body. Next, if you have a door cover, fit it to the door before undoing the bolts. The bolts retaining the door are a size 13mm, so any standard socket will suffice. Simply undo these, lift the door upwards to free it from the hinges, and carefully set the door down, and that's all there is to it. Rinse and repeat for either two- or four-door models, the process is identical on both body styles.