Sprefix, glad you beat the odds with your Cavalier. The 1984 I bought new for our business (I insisted on buying American then) threw a rod in 1990 with 60k+ miles, engine was trashed. Certainly most held up longer than mine did but still they were a pretty poor car. As were Escorts, Tempo's of the time.
At the time of Bronco II's I don't recall *any* Ford product that had anything but a poor reputation. Their full size pick-ups were probably the best vehicles they were making at the time.