Motor Trend Car of the Year for 1974

MOTOR TREND CAR OF THE YEAR FOR 1974

Some cars live strange lives. When we were getting ready to open our shop in Gowanus 5 years ago this was parked with a for sale sign in the window at a local gas station. I even had a friend who was considering buying it for $5,000 years ago (I told him it hadn't moved from the lot in years). The gas station where it lived is now gone and so here we find this little ride, 10 blocks to the north:

This is a 1974 Ford Mustang II in Bright Red. *This is a rare case of perfect timing with an all new design. Somehow the folks at Ford knew to start planning on a tiny version of their Mustang even as the trend was still bigger is better.

*All the more astonishing from the folks who brought you the Edsel!

From what I can tell these turn signals are the one clue that this is a 1974. That horizontal bar in the middle of the lens was a first year only detail for the II.

The sky was falling in 1974 for the domestic automobile market. From October '73 through March of '74 the gas crisis caught the public by surprise. In a land where plentiful cheap gas was taken for granted the cars were enormous and thirsty. In a cruel bit of timing this same year ushered in new efficiency and safety regulations that had automakers scrambling to make their dinosaurs compliant. Here comes the Mustang II in drastically scaled down fashion with a design that accommodated the larger bumpers nicely. It was an instant hit.

There isn't a single bolt on this car that was carried over from the previous generation. In fact the Mustang II shared a platform with the compact Pinto.

The wheels on this ride are from an '80s Mustang 5.0 a la Vanilla Ice. They look a bit oversized for my taste but whatever. Styling cues harken back to the original 1964.5 Mustang such as that simulated scoop on the door. This thing is very tidy overall.

They also produced a fastback/hatchback version of this car which looks plenty cool, but I like this notchback model. My babysitter had one of these when I was a wee sprite in the '70s. I can still clearly remember sitting in the backseat admiring the steering wheel with its circular openings on the spokes.

After all this time these have aged really well. The big taillight clusters look cool with their angled edges conforming to the body shape. Even the huge mid-'70s bumpers look justified with their red cladding.

Who needs plates? Park a car in Brooklyn with nothing on it and the cops will roll right on by for weeks or months (this has already been where I took these pics for at least a month).

As much as this looks like a hardtop there is a thin B pillar between the door and rear quarter glass. In addition the rear quarter is fixed in place and doesn't have a roll down mechanism. There was never a convertible either making this the only generation Mustang to lack one.

In this first year of production there was no V8 available giving it the dubious honor of being the only year Mustang without an 8 cylinder option in its entire 53 year (and counting) run. The base engine was a 140 Inline 4 cylinder. The sole upgrade was the German built Cologne V6.

I love white interiors and this one with the red dash and carpet is fantastic! This ride seems decently appointed as it has an am/fm Stereo (possibly with an 8 Track but I can't be sure from this view). Being an automatic means this ride is S L O W. Those 3 round gauges are all the basics with Fuel being on the left, ALT in the center, and the temp on the right. That little white nub on the door panel is the remote side mirror adjustment. If there was a/c there would be large vents hanging under the dash. This has the basic wheel but the sporty GT wheel was what I remember.

Where there we have it; the perfect mini placeholder for a marque while the 1970s sorted itself out. Lee Iacocca was responsible for the II and insisted that the overall fit and finish were of the highest order. He specified that the Mustang II ought to be "a little jewel" and as a result they're very stout little rides. 4 of the 5 years the II was produced are in the top 10 of all time for Mustang sales. There were stylish Ghia and sporty King Cobra editions too. If you like the looks of this beast just go get one as there are a ton of them out there!

Now even more Limited! Part Deux

NOW EVEN MORE LIMITED! PART DEUX

Look at this majestic beast holding back the mobile homes. I drove past this thing and was pulling a u-turn before I even registered what I'd seen. I'm glad I did because the proud owner came out and was all too happy to show it off!

This is a 1979 Ford LTD II in what I believe to be Light Champagne. Some people claim that LTD stands for Luxury/Trim/Decor along the lines of Gym/Tan/Laundry but I don't see much in the way of luxury here. What I do see is the Baroque styling of the Malaise Era. 

Something about the face of this ride looks extra ridiculous to me. Maybe the fact that it looks like the wide eyed smile of a close talker. 4 stacked square headlights brace that massive egg crate grill, all held in the parenthesis of the jutting fenders. The ocean liner sized bumper completes the image. Almost every other American car had downsized at this point, and this was the final year for the colossal Ford. Even the LTD had downsized; this is the LTD II! It's almost like they wanted to accentuate the scale it on its way out.
*You can tell it's a '79 because out of the 3 years total only this one had a hood ornament.

Let's get right in there and see the engine shall we? This is the rarest glimpse for a blog that relies on found automobiles; a perk of meeting a retired owner looking to sell his ride.
Under all that wiring lies a 302 V8 engine with a 2 barrel carb. Optional choices consisted of 2 different 351 V8s (the Windsor and the Modified). There was a 400 available for the first 2 years but it had been pulled by the time this beast was built.

Here is our hero in all its glory. The LTD II was the lowest price series in the Ford lineup, and this was the base model. As was common in the past this model barely made it into their sales literature. Every other LTD II had a small opera window between the rear door and the rear window; only the bare bones edition had solid metal. To have the faux spoke wheel hubcaps on this is ironic.

Here's a glimpse into the sparse interior. Bench seats front and rear come standard with a fold-down armrest if you're not shuttling 5 passengers. There is a radio of some sort but that's about it. Crank windows and manual locks keep it frugal. Of course the inside is entirely BROWN.

For the first year this car was popular as GM had downsized everything but the Cadillac Eldorado (which was for an entirely different demographic frankly). People still holding on to the big car ethos turned to Ford. Then Ford introduced the Fairmont line in '78 which lured away potential LTD customers. Finally in '79 this was it! You could either buy a massive Lincoln or the LTD II for this final year. When 1980 came around the LTD II was never actually replaced. Now it's getting rare.
I mean, who has this car anymore? To think the Taurus would be introduced a mere 6 years after this was sold new illustrates how behind the times this ride really was.

Sweet LTD II badge.
I once had a '76 LTD 4 door that was almost identical to this car. It was unexpectedly comfortable and the ride height was upright and tall. I'd say it was a deal at $250! Ran great - delivered pizzas with it.

Well that's it for the last gasp of big car America. Someone will always collect a special edition, station wagon, convertible, or luxury model car but who saves one of these stripped down rides? Regular folks is who. This was roosting in a small trailer park outside of Scranton, PA. This is red blooded steak eating America where people proudly bought sluggish Fords instead of more practical and efficient Japanese cars. This is a ride for those who never have a problem parking and change their flag every year. Not gonna lie - I'd love to cruise around in this slab these days, stacked square headlights and all. If you were so inclined they go for peanuts (I think his asking price was $3,000 but it was perfect in and out). Parts are so widely available and this is as easy to work on as a bicycle. Why not?

FAUXBRA?

FAUXBRA?

The automotive world is full of curiosities. The following ride encapsulates several of them and may or may not be what it seems (which is already an approximation of something else). What? Look:

Ok, ha ha ha what we have here is obviously a ferocious muscle car ready to kick ass and take names! It might also be an aggressive Pinto tarted up in sports gear. What we know is that this is a 1976-1978 Ford Mustang II possibly outfitted in the optional Cobra trim package.

This car does share more than a little with the Pinto of the same era. The front fenders and overall look of the body are very similar.

How do you fake something that's already fake? This is one way: replace the non-functioning hood scoop with another, even faker, non-functioning hood scoop. Despite that HIGH PERFORMANCE decal on the side this is just a plastic shape glued to the hood. Look how the front edges are lifting up! Also, if you're going to go this route why continue the bright paint and pinstripe on what is attempting to look like an opening? Come ON people! This car looks 90% correct why drop this ball?

The faux-ness continues under the front. This front spoiler was never offered on a Mustang II. Most of the Cobras had a spoiler that followed that bumper indentation above it, retreating a bit on the sides. The last gasp top of the heap King Cobra package for 1978 had a solid spoiler spanning the width of the car but it was huge and went straight down from the edges almost like a plow.
*I also could find no evidence of the word COBRA written in this location.

When this car was introduced in 1974 it was marketed as "The right car for the right time", and boy were they right. The gas crisis had ravaged domestic car sales and left dealership lots full of the huge full size barges with their 8mpg gallon ratings. In addition the true muscle cars of the late '60s and dawn of the '70s were strangled by federal safety and emissions regulations at the same time insurance providers were tacking on huge premiums for horsepower. This diminutive Mustang is more closely related to the original 1964 version with its small car dimensions and lower horsepower engines.

Say what you want about this being a maligned non-Mustang; this was a massive success with hundreds of thousands sold each model year.
*Genuine Cobras had a decal on the lower part of the door.

Those louvered windows are '70s radical and correct for the Cobra. In this era you could order them for literally any car or van though from JC Whitney and the like.

Just to pile on the minutiae pointing towards this being a fake I'd like to point out that the original stripes on the Cobra should not be on the taillight panel. In addition the stripes never went over the tops of the bumpers, but would run from the bottom to that bumped-out edge.

The COBRA wording always had a II next to it in this location.

This isn't the first time I've featured a homemade Cobra! Witness the Faux-Bra from 2014.

I didn't want to ruffle any feathers by approaching the window for an interior shot.

Being parked in front of an ice cream parlor in front of that green Dodge truck made me think that these two vehicles were on display on purpose.

The grill has a chrome cobra emblem just like this which is correct from the factory. In this Mustang II era though the side cobras would be tall decals. These are widely available as a 3 cobra set that are meant for the 1994-2004 Ford SVT Cobra.

Well that's where I'll leave this little wanna-be tough guy. I actually like some Mustang IIs as well as over the top graphics from the 1970s. However as a stickler for detail my thought is either you do it right or not at all. I would prefer this to be a normal II in regular trim, but who cares? Peace out Fauxbra!

Twofer Tuesday returns with Two Twos

THE TRAVELER AND THE TOMATO

These Twofer Tuesday posts usually happen after I encounter a vehicle and remember that I took pics of a similar one months before. However this time I passed these 2 rides within days of each other. Without further ado;

High up on the hill in tony Park Slope I ran across the least expected vehicle ever for its surroundings. This is a 1977 International Scout II in Fire Orange. 

International got its start back in 1902 making agricultural equipment such as tractors and threshers. Soon after it began manufacturing trucks for farm and commercial use. Finally in the '60s it came out with the original Scout, meant to compete directly with Jeep. This is the larger, second evolution.

I owned a '79 that looked identical to this, save the color and condition. They are fantastic trucks!

These trucks want to rust so bad that it's almost impossible to hold it off. This one is pretty cherry and obviously well loved by someone.

No "shift on the fly" 4-wheel-drive here! To engage the 4x4 you need to get out of the truck and manually lock each front hub before jumping back in and using the separate transfer case shifter to select either 4 High or 4 Low. I only engaged 4 Low once in my old Scout to make sure it worked but it was basically undriveable with a top speed of something like 20 mph. Good for pulling stumps maybe.

This entire roof comes off making for a hilarious summer vehicle. The roof is metal and weighs plenty I can tell you from experience.

These beasts are super basic. From this angle you can see the front door glass is just a flat square.

The drivetrain on the Scouts is bulletproof, befitting a company that made its reputation building tractors. The engine blocks are some of the heaviest ever produced at 800lbs! They never bothered with any technology to lighten the motor so it never wears out. Scouts are known to go 300,000 miles as long as their body holds up.

Looking bizarre in a neighborhood of brownstones and mansions.

Inside we can see that this is a manual 4 speed like mine was. This one also has air conditioning as shown by the vents under the dash.

The ride height is only a touch higher than factory. Combined with the larger tires you can see how this towers over the Honda behind it.

The "Town of East Hampton" sticker on the bumper goes a long way in explaining why some colossal beach cruiser is parked in Brooklyn.

I had to get a close up of the winch, not because I know anything about winches, but because you never see one in NYC.

Now on to a more laid back version . . .

Sweet! This beast is dressed down and ready for action. What we have here is a 1976 Scout Traveler in Winter White.

You just saw how East Hampton rolls, but this is what an honest Scout is supposed to look like; rusty as hell, topless, and parked just anywhere without a single thought to security.

The Traveler is a full 18 inches longer than the Scout II. You can see the extra space between the door and the rear wheel well. The top for the Traveler is fiberglass with a slanted hatchback but who needs that on a hot week like this?

My Scout came with a full roll cage built into it and it's rare to see one without even a roll bar. They are so capable off-road but if you manage to flip it over only the puniest of windshield frames will be there to try and save your head.

There is a backseat in this ride but it's basically a flat bench with zero headrests. 

I'm confused by something on this rig which maybe somebody can help me with. From this angle it looks to have 2 gas tanks; not uncommon on a truck from the age of very low mpg. However, the front gas cap is mimicked on the passenger side as well. While there were a few trucks built in the '70s with a 3 gas tank option I couldn't find any reference to it in Scout literature. This is the sort of thing you want if you're going on some mammoth off road adventure and you need a 500+ mile range. Were the fronts actually antennae mounts or something? Who knows!

Straight-up basic Scout interior with no radio and an automatic trans. This, too, has the air conditioner though. The passenger is lucky as they get the only visor.

"Better than the floor" is how you'd describe this seat if you were in it. 

This proud donkey was flouting the law out in Red Hook where parking is such a non-issue that only sheer absent-mindedness gets you a ticket. Then again, whoever owns a convertible with no roof in sight must be pretty relaxed.

That about does it for the Scout roundup today. It is almost impossible to discern the vintage of Scouts except for the grills, which changed almost every year. the Traveler was introduced in '76 so this is the first. In 1979 International went through a debilitating strike lasting over a year which brought the company to its knees. By the time it was over they basically assembled the 1980 Scouts with parts they'd already made and closed their light truck division for good. If you see a Scout with square headlights you're looking at a rarity as it is the fabled 1980 model.