With an all tube chassis and fiberglass body it was built to tackle the harshest terrain. How rough is too rough for a 1969 GTO Judge? For the next stage of evolution, Jones dug back into his racing background and Big Oly was born. Sign up for the latest automotive news and videos—in short, everything for people who love cars. Think of swapping a leaf spring shackle to the rear. Parnelli was right about the one-off Bronco; it demolished the competition. After Jones won the second running of the Baja 500 in 1970 in a two-wheel-drive Ford Bronco—built by Bill Stroppe using quite a lot of factory Bronco parts—he eventually convinced Stroppe that a scratch-built race Bronco could do much better. ’80s IMSA racer proves everything looks better with flares, The first luxury SUV? Like his Baja-500-winning ride, this Bronco used a twin-I-beam suspension, this time with trailing links mounted at the leading edge of the chassis rather than the leading link radius arms that a factory Bronco with a solid axle would have used. Owned and driven by racing legend Parnelli Jones, the fiberglass bodied “Bronco” captured the hearts and imaginations of a generation. There was no need for an exotic or complicated drivetrain, just one that would survive the grueling desert race conditions. It may well have been the genesis of the Trophy Truck. In the 1971 Baja 1000, Jones and Stroppe won the Ensenada-La Paz route in 14 hours and 59 minutes. A recipe for the perfect “street car”—Tom McGilton’s 2013 Camaro ZL1 on Race Week 2.0, Bertone’s Nivola concept was a ’90s bellwether for the mid-engine Corvette. Designed by Parnelli Jones, Dick Russell and built in Bill Stroppes shop, Big Oly was one of the first purpose-built off-road vehicles to compete at Baja. It allowed the suspension to react more naturally to bumps and cycle upward in its 10–12 inches of wheel travel more naturally. But it doesn’t just look good, this unstoppable Bronco is a racing legend. But Jones took to desert racing like a true natural. Pit Bosses: Is the modern Boss 302 a worthy successor to the famed original? Parnelli Jones, Marshall Madruga and PJ Jones It’s been nearly forty years since the original ‘Big Oly’ roared onto the then-small stage of off road racing. Big Oly is possibly the most famous Ford Bronco in American history. The next year Big Oly won another Baja 1000. 9 automotive ad campaigns that either sizzled or fizzled, The new crate motor by EV West and Revolt fits just like a small-block Chevy, These 7 oddball classics are sure to brighten up your garage, Chip Foose reimagines the iconic Jaguar E-type, Chip Foose reinvents the 1966 Ford Bronco with street-savvy style, The mythical “very small car” that birthed France’s beloved 2CV. The Bronco’s body and ladder frame were tossed, replaced by a 4130 chrome-moly tube chassis, aluminum inner panels, and a fiberglass body. Big Oly Ford Bronco Brandan Gillogly Parnelli Jones had long established his name as a sprint car, NASCAR, and Indy car driver before he ventured into off-road driving. The Big Oly Bronco currently belongs to Parnelli, but he’s allowing the Petersen Museum to display it as part of the Legends of L.A. exhibit, since it was built in Stroppe’s shop just 25 miles southwest of the museum. You’d be excused if you missed that fact, as the most obvious addition was the big wing mounted on the roof that was adjustable on the fly to apply downforce and keep the 400-hp desert beast properly planted. The fiberglass body is three inches narrower than a factory Bronco, and it’s also sectioned three inches shorter. If you’re visiting Los Angeles and would like to see it in person, here’s your chance. Jones won back-to-back Baja 1000 championships in the 351-Windsor-powered brute and made an indelible mark in off-road racing. Jones chose a 351-cubic-inch Windsor small-block V-8 and a three-speed C4 automatic; the former got an Isky cam and the latter eventually upgraded to the beefier C6 three-speed. His excursion back to the dirt led to one of the most well-known off-road racing trucks ever built: the Big Oly Bronco. Allowing the suspension to move slightly rearward as it hits an obstacle is much less jarring than a suspension that has to swing forward as it absorbs the impact. Parnelli Jones had long established his name as a sprint car, NASCAR, and Indy car driver before he ventured into off-road driving. It wasn’t the Range Rover. Perhaps it was his early experience drifting sprint cars around dirt ovals, or perhaps it was just his natural talent, which was honed to a competitive edge in all forms of racing he excelled at since.