The Ford Torino is an intermediate car produced by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market between 1968 and 1976. It was initially an upscale version of the intermediate sized Ford Fairlane, which Ford produced between 1962 and 1970. After 1968 the Fairlane name was retained for the base models with lower levels of trim from those models which wore the Torino name. During this time, the Torino was considered a subseries to the Fairlane. By 1970 the Torino name had become the primary name for Ford's intermediate, and the Fairlane was now a subseries of the Torino. In 1971 the Fairlane name was dropped altogether and all Ford intermediates were called Torinos. Torino is Italian for the city of Turin, which is considered the Detroit of Italy. This name was one of several originally proposed for the Mustang while in development.[1] The Torino was essentially a twin to the Mercury Montego line.
Most Torinos were conventional cars, and generally the most popular models were the 4-door sedans and 4-door hardtops. However, Ford produced some high performance versions of the Torino by fitting them with large powerful engines, such as the 428 cu in (7 L) and 429 cu in (7 L) "Cobra-Jet" engines. These cars are classified as muscle cars. Ford also chose the Torino as the base for its NASCAR entrants, and it has a highly successful racing heritage.
For the 1975 model year, the Ford Torino received a number of minor improvements, but was for the most part unchanged. The model line-up received only one change; the Gran Torino Elite was no longer part of the Torino line-up. The Elite was now an independent model, and marketed simply as the Ford Elite. All Torinos featured solid state ignition systems for 1975, which improved starting performance and fuel economy, while reducing maintenance costs. Radial tires, another fuel saving feature, power steering and power brakes were all new standard features for all Torinos. 1975 Torinos featured a new steering wheel design and a new for that year option was a "Fuel Sentry" vacuum gauge.
The 1975 model year saw almost no changes to the exterior styling. The only significant change was that Torino models now adopted the Gran Torino grille and front fascia. Torino's weight continued to climb, even though the exterior dimensions were unchanged from 1974.
The Federal Clean Air Act caused Ford to install catalytic converters for 1975 to help meet new emission standards. The converter significantly reduced the power output of the engines due to increased exhaust back pressure. In response, Ford changed the base engine on all Torinos to the 351-2V engine; along with this change, the Cruise-O-Matic transmission became standard. No manual transmissions were available. Power for all engines, except the 460, was significantly reduced compared to 1974, and with the weight increase, fuel economy and performance continued to decrease. The 400-2V and the 460-4V were the only engine options, as the 351-4V was no longer available.
The 351 Cleveland was no longer produced after 1974. The new 351M (Modified) joined the line-up, although the 351W continued to be used alongside when the 351-2V was specified. The 351M used the 400's tall deck block, and shared its connecting rods and intake manifold, so more parts were shared than between the 400 and 351C saving Ford production costs. The 351M and 351W had no appreciable power output difference; due to emissions standards, the 351M was not available in California.
The Gran Torino Sport was still available, and remained virtually unchanged from the 1974 model. The Sport continued to remain almost indistinguishable from a conventional Gran Torino, and customers responded with a lack of interest. 1975 was by far the least popular year for this model; only 5,126 units were produced.
Sales for Torino's dropped off significantly from the 1974 model year. With the Elite now a separate model, Torino lost a large portion of its sales. Ford produced only 195,110 Torino's for 1975. Even with the addition of the 123,372 Elites produced for 1975, total output was 318,482 which was still significantly lower than 1974. Sales decreases were likely due to the increased demand for smaller economical cars, while Ford's new "sensibly" sized Granada likely also stole sales from Torino. The Ford Granada was classed as a compact by Ford, but actually had dimensions close to that of a late 1960s Ford Torino.
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75 Ford Gran Turino Elite for saleby Z3CHYD933 views
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VolkswagenGolf1400 1 year ago
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kopilot227 1 year ago