429 Cobra Jet: 1970 Ford Torino

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The Torino nameplate would arrive as the upscale mid-size Ford in 1968 and – by 1970 – would replace the Fairlane name which that had been with the company since 1955. The second generation of the Torino ran for two years (1970-71) and could be had from mild to wild, with the top performance series being the Cobra with a Cobra Jet 429 cubic inch V8. Located in Commack, New York, and available here on eBay, this 1970 Cobra looks like a new car, and – the way the listing is worded – it could be a one-owner car. The bidding has risen to $35,050 on a car you see far less often than, say, a Chevelle SS 396.

Torino competed in the intermediate market segment from 1968-76. It was named after the city of Turin (Torino, in Italian), which was considered the “Italian Detroit”. The Fairlane and Torino would trade places in the line-up over the first three years. After 1970, the Fairlane name was gone altogether. With the Torino restyle for ’70, they took on the long hood/short deck styling theme that the Mustang had popularized. If you wanted to light up the rear tires, you ordered the Torino Cobra, which was available only in the SportsRoof body style.

While the seller does not refer to restoration, this looks almost like a new car. An automobile with a reported 78,000 miles should have more wear on it than this car does, and the owner implies he was the original purchaser by saying things like “only adult driven by me” and “I have every gas receipt.” Whether restored or an exceptional original. the shiny black car is quite stunning and looks just about as good inside as out. It is a well-equipped muscle car, including factory air conditioning which has been updated to the standards that are in place today.

This Ford has the Ram Air option applied to a matching-numbers 429 V8 flanked by a verifiable C6 automatic transmission. No indication is made whether either has been rebuilt, but they do have some performance upgrades, including an MSD ignition, RPM heads, 850 Double Pumper, a mild camshaft upgrade with a 460 crank, and long-tube headers. Nowadays, it looks as though the car is on the show circuit given one of the photos.

According to the Marti Report the seller has obtained, the numbers tell us this car drills down to being 1 of 1. Ford built 429,134 Torinos and Fairlanes in 1970. Of that, 1,357 are the Cobra Sportsfoof with Ram Air and automatic transmission.  When you factor in the car’s color, interior choice, and selection of dual rear seat speakers, this one of the only Torino built exactly this way that year. NADA says that a Torino Cobra could top out at close to $50,000.

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Comments

  1. Moparman MoparmanMember

    This is a really beautiful car, and should make the new owner very happy! Personally, I never really warmed to this body (the ’69 was/is my favorite)..GLWTA!! :-)

    Like 9
  2. Fahrvergnugen FahrvergnugenMember

    Not sure if this is what Ford called a “knitted Ginger” interior, which would mean the car has been massaged. And never thought two rear speakers would make something qualify as a one-of-one, but with the newer interior that is somewhat of a moot point. Beautiful Torino, though!! GLWTA!

    Like 9
    • Steve R

      Any insignificant or obscure combination of options that will make a car 1 of 1 works for the sell, many buyers too. It potentially makes the seller more money and gives the new owner “bragging rights” at the local cars and coffee.

      Steve R

      Like 9
      • james maloneMember

        4 speed, Drag Pack, F41 suspension, factory A/C, are legitimate “rarity” plus’s in the muscle car world. Color combo, dual speakers, etc. may have value, but in the march towards “1 of 1”, not so much. Ex.: Monza red with green interior Corvette would be a guaranteed “1 of 1”.

        Like 3
      • Dave

        I’d go a little further, and pair up a new Boss 429 and C6 automatic from Summit Racing and tell everyone that it came from the factory that way!

        Like 2
  3. Steve R

    Sold with a high bid of $41,775.

    Steve R

    Like 6
  4. Vance

    I am with Moparman, 69 is my favorite as well, it had a cleaner look front/back. But this body style looked great with the hidden headlights. Still its a very nice car that would be a blast to drive.

    Like 3
  5. CCFisher

    What’s with the tan steering column and wheel?

    Like 7
    • CATHOUSE

      The whole interior should be that color by the interior code shown on the Marti report. At some point in time things were changed.

      Like 2
  6. Mark Houseman

    In 1981 I came across a 70(ish) year old man that had a ‘70 ram air Cobra 4-speed with 85 miles on it. I was 21 and made 3.25 an hour. I all but begged my father to buy it but although he was a car enthusiast, he was only interested in antique cars. The owner said he would take what he paid for it new, $2300.00. My father said, “absolutely not!” I think of that car often. It was yellow with a flat black hood, locking hood pins, black bucket seat interior and obviously mint!

    Like 0
  7. Mark

    $35k for a restored car that does not even have proper exhaust tips. I hate that.

    Like 0
  8. Paul N

    all 4 of my vehicles are 1 of 1. After all, each of them is the only one that has that exact VIN number. Is this how the game is played ???

    Like 3
  9. Jcjc

    Do all that work and leave the interior colors mismatched? Seems odd.

    Like 1
  10. Lance

    It would be nice to hook this sweet little gem up to a dyno just to see what numbers she is pumping out ! Since the owner had no issues with upgrading the engine slightly but not knowing exactly what all has been done such as flow matching the heads and intake and getting the valve geometry to be in the sweet spot and the transmission can be upgraded from a stock orientation by adding larger servos and adding to the clutch packs and high performance bands !

    Like 1

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