The phrase just send it is quickly becoming an exaggerated colloquialism in the motoring world. However, we'd venture to say this video might actually undersell send it, at least when it comes to old-school Ford Broncos you can drive on the street. No, this off-roader isn't stock and yes, it was driven home after this jump. However, the driver did confess to being in some pain afterward. In other words, don't try this at home.
For that matter, you may not want to try it on empty sand dunes, either. That holds especially true for stock vehicles, but fortunately, this fifth-gen Bronco is far from stock. An off-road savvy Motor1.com reader known as jamlabeast on Instagram sent us the above video, showcasing his Bronco and a modest flight he took back in February whilst enjoying the deserts east of Los Angeles. What is modest, you ask? No tape measures were brought to bear, but estimates suggest he soared approximately 110 feet across the sand. At its highest, the Ford was roughly 18 feet in the air. So yeah, consider this Bronco well and truly sent.
As mentioned, this SUV isn't stock. For starters, it has a full race cage and a five-point harness for safety. It has King 3.0 coilovers, upgraded radius arms, a Solo Motorsports 4-link kit at the rear, but of all the upgrades, we'd say the cage and harness are the most significant in this instance. The desert surface was described as about two inches of soft sand with compacted sand beneath, and it made for one hell of a hard impact as the Bronco came back to earth. Considering the landing completely smashed both front wheels, we'd say jamlabeast was fortunate to escape with just a few weeks of soreness.
And yet, the wheels were technically the only things that broke from the landing itself. The damage to the wheels is visible in the Instagram post above; the tires went so far up that they hit the ECU wiring harness, damaging the computer and the blower box for the heater and air conditioning. As for the Bronco's upgraded suspension, the radius arms were bent along with the bolts and mounts for the front shocks. Bent, but not broken – two spare tires were swapped at the front and a spare ECU was plugged in. The Bronco fired up, and it was fit enough to make a 120-mile journey back home.
Jamlabeast tells us the rest of the damage to the high-flying Bronco has been repaired, save for the air conditioning. He's already back on the trail, though we suspect future airborne adventures might be a tad less extravagant. Still, he has one hell of a story to tell, and a rather dramatic video to back it up.
