Though we all strive for individuality, it’s a genetic certainty that we become to some extent like our parents. In my case, I wasn’t going to escape being a Mustang fan, as my mom and dad have owned at least one of them consistently since 1968. My favorite in their long line of ownership? It’s one that I never personally experienced because I had not yet been born; it was my dad’s Grabber Lime ’71 Mach 1. It had the 351 Cleveland four barrel and a C6 automatic, and my only memories of it have come by way of some old slides that accompany our family photos. Because of this, not a Mach 1 goes by without my wistful glance, and here is another that has resulted in my checking my schedule for next week. Barn Finder T.J. found it on Marketplace in Bedford, Iowa, for the completely reasonable price of $14,800. It’s not perfect, but I just saw a much rougher 302 three-speed car sell on BaT for almost the same price yesterday, so I’d say this one will be labeled “sold” before the proverbial ink dries on this article. *Edit: Literally a half-hour after I started typing, it’s “pending.”

So what is a Q-Code? For 1973, it’s simply a low-compression 351 Cleveland four barrel that was rated at 266 horsepower in the Mustang (it’s sometimes labeled a Cobra Jet, but there seems to be some dissension on that point); as is the case with many Ford engines, the variations and mid-year changes undergone by the Cleveland leaves you dizzy. This one has a non-stock carburetor, a squarebore Demon, but the original carb would have been a spreadbore Motorcraft 4300. Regardless of the version, the 351 Cleveland was a strong engine, and this Mustang would have been one of the hottest combinations to emerge from the Big Three in 1973. The days of solid lifters and big-block Mustangs were long gone by then. A little engine compartment detailing would be fine for a solid driver.

It may come as a surprise that the “Mach 1 Sports Interior” was an option, and this one does not have it. It does appear to have the Instrumentation Group, which gives you the three auxiliary gauges found in the center of the dashboard above the radio”: oil pressure, temperature, and voltage. The steering wheel is aftermarket, but everything else looks stock, and you can see from the pedal that this car has power front disc brakes. The seller hasn’t included any trim tag information, but the interior color appears to be “Medium Ginger.”

The exterior looks factory stock. The wheels look like aftermarket slot mags, but Ford actually offered them as a “forged aluminum wheel.” The front and rear spoilers were factory options, and the chrome exhaust tips with valance cut-outs came standard with four-barrel Mach 1s (although I’m not sure about the panel itself on this car). The seller says that the paint (which looks like Medium Yellow Gold) is 25 years old and has some minor flaws, but it looks pretty good for a driver. All-in-all, I’m smitten with this ’73 Mach 1, as I am with any factory-appearing flatback Mach 1. I think the price is right, and a little detailing would go a long way into making this a winner. I hope someone here snaps it up.