The Ford Elite may have had an identity crisis during its brief 1974 to 1976 run. As a personal luxury car, it could have been sold just as easily as a Thunderbird, and buyers would have known what it was. Located in Shawano, Wisconsin, this 1976 example looks to have had some performance touches, and I’m not sure that the paint color is original to the car. Only needing some TLC (as we’re told), this big Ford is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $7,500. Another tip brought our way by Lothar… of the Hill People!

Under the skin, the Elite was a Torino/Gran Torino and was called the Gran Torino Elite during its first outing (1974). For the next two years, it was simplified as the “Elite,” including the seller’s ’76. Ford’s plan for the Elite was for it to be a junior T-Bird so it could compete with the likes of the Chevy Monte Carlo, Olds Cutlass, etc. FOMOCO was able to create the Elite from the underpinnings of the Mercury Cougar XR-7, and the car found 366,000 buyers in the mid-1970s. Where are they all today?

Standard fare in 1976 was a 351 cubic inch V8, and apparently both “Windsor” and “Cleveland” variants were in the mix. Only an automatic transmission was available, and power goodies prevailed (such as brakes and steering). If the 351 wasn’t beefy enough, you could opt for a 400 or a 460 V8, but in their detuned form, they were mostly good for slurping gasoline. The seller’s car has the 351 but with big wheels and tires in the back, so has anything been done to it otherwise to make it more potent?

Not a lot of details are imparted regarding this ’76 Elite. The seller says they’ve only put 40 miles on it during their ownership, which may have been a while since they do start it up regularly. Stored indoors, the dark green paint is shiny, but there are a couple of paint bubbles. And given the odd variation of green on the upholstery, my gut tells me that dark green was not the car’s original color. The seller started out at $8,000 and cut it by $500. Is this enough to motivate you?