I love a good debate and I though this would start a good clean one so here it goes……….
Just thought I would point out a few thing one the most poked fun at pony in the mustang corral.
Mustang sales dropped 22 percent in 1971, and dropped still lower in 1972. Rising fuel prices were killing the muscle car market. The mustang II was a return to the pony car roots and Motor Trends cave the 1974 mustang II the “Car of the Year” award. Mustang sales tripled in 1974. Now ford big mistake was not offering a v-8 model in 74 but fixed this for the 75 model. Now many people complain about the horse power these v-8 put out, but I found some interesting data…. The 1979 fox body had a v-8 rated at 130 hp. In 1982 with the new HO v-8 it was rated at 157hp. With the return of the GT in 1983 the HO v-8 went to 175 hp. In 1985 with better headers, and roller lifters the HO v-8 put out 210hp. 1987 the new EFI 5.0 HO put out 225hp.
So many people like to dog on the mustang II low performance but what about the first years of the Fox? Just as much of a dog as the as the fox if you ask me. All of these older mustangs have to be tinkered with to run with the pack but no one dogs the early fox when they had the same problem. If it wasn’t for the 87 mustang running low 14’s bone stock destroying the camaro competition and renewing the pony car performance issue your mustangs would now be a Probe…..yes the next mustang chassis was going to be the Mazda based front wheel drive chassis that ended up being released as the 89 Probe.
In the same way the 1987 mustang saved the namesake so did the mustang II in 1974. So no matter how you look at it the mustang II, it is still a mustang, and has as much potential as the early model fox.
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So , let me get this straight…..your Honda has 1.6 liters, whereas my bottle of Mountain Dew has 2?
Change…..it’s what is left after taxes.
- Shaken....Not Stirred 2003 Mach I Auto Torch Red - Sold
-1988 Ford Mustang GT Convertible, 331 Trick Flow Stroker with a Tremec 3550....oh yea and a 1.6 liter V-TECH motor to work the convertible top.
- 1966 Inline 6……..the pile of parts car!
They weigh less than the Fox bodies and have enough room for a V8 under the hood. All they need is a little work and they can fly with the best of them.
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2008 Toyota Tacoma Prerunner SR5 Reg Cab
2.7 4 banger
No mods (yet...)
personally I think that the Mustang II's look very slick if they are in show quality and have the cobra effect on them.
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Home made CAI, Pro 5.0, Steeda clutch adjuster kit, Raised gass pedal, GT take off's, white gauge face, Aluminum pedals, Aluminum driveshaft, underdrive pully, 03 cobra IRS with bushings and rear steer kit, 10th ann. Cobra rims wrapped in 275 Eagle F1's, 3/8 intake spacer.
They are weak.. Mustang IIs are the worst mustangs ever built.. In 1979 the mustang was rated at 140hp for the V8 and 139 for the turbocharged 4... Now for a 1979 camaro, it was rated at only 175 but it put out 270 pounds of torque.. thats more than the 96-98 GTs...
I dont really see it as "Its still a mustang".. I see it as nice cars.. I'm not the kinda kid who is like oh, i dont like it because it is an import.. THere are some mustangs out there that are fugs.. Today i saw a 2000 v6 with altezas and more decals than 2fast 2 furious.. It was ugly, i hated it... I dont like the Mustang IIs at all... Thanks
well when people say that an older car sucks cause of the stock performance ratings, face the facts, most do not leave the older cars stock, eve if they restore to stock, the stock aftermarket parts today are much better than the older stock parts, so even at stock they will produce more HP than the older stock version, i love all mustangs, even the mustang II's, but they can look nice and be nice sleepers. i m not bashing anyone just speaking my opinion lol carry on! lol
Jim
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Pulled up to the light the other day and a 3 year old on his big wheel looked over at me and then at the light. I knew that it was on. The big wheel was hooked up, rims, sickers,ground FX, the works. Just before the light turned green the little ******* pointed to the NOS sicker on his machine and left a plasic patch that lasted about 100ft. I didn't stand a chance, I was smoked. He rasied his fist in victory and when home for milk and cookies, I just went to the track. :rolleyes:
I never judge a car based on how it came out of the factory. That's merely the foundation for improvement. I'm more interested in what I can do with that car. As for the MustangII, I've seen some that look pretty good but most of 'em just don't "ring any bells" for me. I prefer the classic lines of the vintage 'Stangs, but I also know that a MustangII will out-handle most any early model. Like everything else, there's pros and cons to all sides...
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I thought I wanted a career....turns out I just wanted a paycheck!
'70 Mach I
'95 Mustang coupe
'90 F150
'79 Mustang Mini-Stock
Well I owned three Mustang II's in my time. Two 77's, one was a Cobra II that got a lot of looks, and a 351. The other 77 had a 4 bnager and was fun to drive. The other was a 76 with a transplanted 302. These cars were fun to drive and when they are done up nicely they get looks like any other car would. The key is making the most out of what you have. My Cobra got new paint and stickers to go with its turbine wheels and 351/4bbl combo. I raced the hell outta that car and would still have it had I not got the front end sheared off by drunk driver. I like em.
Jeff
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'97 GT with 80mm C&L MAF, C<rue-Flow CAI, MAC 70mm TB, Superchip, 180 thermo, B&M Ripper, King Cobra Clutch, FRPP aluminum quad/adj cable, MAC O/R H pipe, MIL's, Flows, Granatelli Solid control arms, FRPP 4.10's, FRPP aluminum driveshaft, Fidanza aluminum flywheel, FRPP 9mm wires, TMD aluminum U/D pulleys, Steeda full length SFC's (welded in), and 17" polished aluminum Cobra wheels with Nitto 555 Extremes, Kenwood/Alpine sound. Waiting for install: PI intake.
Originally posted by 1998GT They are weak.. Mustang IIs are the worst mustangs ever built.. In 1979 the mustang was rated at 140hp for the V8 and 139 for the turbocharged 4...
Yeah, the 1979 Fox-body wasn't any more powerful than the 1978 Mustang II, and it was much heavier...
The 1982 Mustang GT, which is widely accepted as a "muscle car" only runs 3 tenths of a second faster than a 1978 Mustang II King Cobra in the 1/4 mile... And, the 1978 has MUCH more potential overall because it handles better and weighs less.
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1976 Ford Mustang II Ghia: 302 with a 600cfm Edelbrock carb, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake, Dynomax Blackjack headers, 2.5" exhaust with Flowmaster Super 44s. RJS 11-gallon fuel cell, C4 tranny, chrome 16" pony wheels, fuzzy dice, brown vinyl half-top, and painted in the tackiest color ever (harvest gold, that's why I call it "The Goldenrod").
Also have a 2003 Dodge Ram (lightly modded daily driver/tow rig/office/dining room/home away from home/workshop... I call it "The Big Blue Dawg".)
In Mexico all IIs were equiped with the 302 engine, a Dana differential with the reliable toploader 4 speed.
Mexico didnt have an oil crisis and cars had to meet very strict "country of origin" regulations.
So the cars came from Dearborn without an engine, tranny, differential and suspension. All that was added in Mexico.
74 and up all Mustang had a double life.
Mustang II - Pinto
Fox - Fairmont
I always wanted a nice 77 Cobra II in Black and Gold and now that I can afford toys I can't find one in nice enough shape to play with. I found a '74 that was Pro Stock material just missing a powertrain and the owner only wanted $1200 but he only had a bill of sale since it has been a race car since '77 and been sitting since '81 and didn't want to deal with getting a title and dealing with a inspection for a car that was totally modified.
If I had the money and garage space, I'd have one. All cars reflect an era, she has her place in time. I saw one back in Nov. on a used car lot out of town,but couldn't stop. I would have loved to have seen her up close, and thanked her for keeping the Stang alive. Mustangs could have easily gone the way of the Camaro.
One of the best investments under $5000 right now is a good clean II with a V-8. I once saw clean ragtops going for this money, but they are becoming hard to find now.
Some of these models were very rare to start with. If anyone was watching, Barrett-Jackson showed that even the "less desireable" 71 - 73 models have started bringing big money.
The Mustang II's kept the marque alive - barely - and yet they are instantly recognizeable as Mustangs to this day. I wish I saw more of them at the local car shows...
tripleblack
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tripleblack
"You can never be free until you let yourself go."
I am not crazy about some IIs, but others look pretty good. I agree that the Cobra IIs were/are pretty sharp. Mustang IIs may not have been all that fast compared to other models, but early attempts at fuel effeciency and pollution control weakened many cars. Besides, the Mustang II certainly isn't the worst that could have happened. Just look at what became of the Chevy Nova. Those things went from being nice-looking, fairly fast cars, even musclecars, in the early days only to end up as rebadged Toyotas. I'll take a Mustang II with a few scratches and dents over a pristine Nova hatchback any day.
I don't remember any Mustang IIs being in our family, but my mom had a Pinto back when I was a kid in the early 70s. It was kind of a dark brown you don't see much anymore - I call it dog**** brown. Pintos had/have a bad rep., sometimes for a good reason, but mom still misses that car even though it has been gone for around thirty years. It was wrecked when a guy ran a redlight in a much bigger car and hit the driver's side. I was with her at the time and both of us walked away uninjured. She and I had a lot of fun running around in that little car and, in the end, it's last act on the road was protecting us from what could have been serious injury.
The Mustang II is still a Mustang. 
