The Mach 1 arrived in 1969 as Ford was looking to boost sagging Mustang sales. It was all about performance at first, but the emphasis shifted more to style after that. With a fastback body referred to as a “SportsRoof”, the seller’s ’72 Mach 1 is a running project, but only around the yard. Needing mechanical and cosmetic work, this Ford is in Freeland, Maryland, and is available here on eBay. Bidding is low so far at $1,447 and a reserve is also in play.
In 1972, the Mach 1 could be fitted from mild to wild in terms of powerplant. A 302 cubic inch Windsor V8 was standard, but you could work your way up to a 429 Cobra Jet. A middle-ground option was the 351 Cleveland 8-cylinder, like in this car. The seller thinks this is the original engine, but that’s not been verified. And it’s been upgraded from 2 to 4-barrel. Mach 1’s were known for their hoods with dual scoops. With a 351 or larger motor, the hood was part of the package, and they became functional when Ram Air was ordered.
From the looks of things, this Mach 1 is a project and has been for quite some time. While a restoration is needed, with some effort you could probably work it into being an occasional driver. It has no gas tank, so to jockey it around the proximity will require hooking up a fuel can, and only the front brakes work at this time. The tires are ancient and shouldn’t be trusted to be safe.
Parts of the body were patched at some point, there is rust (and holes) in the floorboards, and the windshield and rear bumper are missing. There are some parts in the trunk and they may be useful, such as the A/C components. The interior is a mixed bag, with the carpet having been removed to make the issues with the floors more apparent. One out of every five Mustangs built in 1972 was a Mach 1, so it was still a popular pony.
My neighbor had a baby blue version. These are massive and ungainly. Amazing to see how quickly the Mustang evolved from a fun and versatile little car you could equip the way you wanted into a lumbering hog of a car. FoMoCo went nuts adding size and weight to it’s entire product line. Everything became a barge and when the Federal Bumper standards went into effect Ford had the ugliest of them all. Fortunately the oil embargo hit and then you could really hate yourself for buying a Ford.
I don’t believe the 429 was an option for 72. Q-code 351 was the top performance engine.
From my understanding you could get a 429. I used hoses etc. for 1972 429 because mine came with 351. Just sayin!!
Sorry EJ I hit report on your comment when I meant to hit reply. Little known R code was still available in 72 and was a de-tuned Boss 351 without the Boss graphics.
Having a 429 in a Mustang was a one year only option, that was the 1971 model year. The 429 was not an available option for any 1972 Mustang.
Never really cared for these.69 and 70 were my favorite. Looks like a $ pit to me. I think the dog who hears his masters voice in the pic would agree .
That would be Nipper, yes?
Thought it was Bingo.
How much for the dog?
The dog is much newer than the car, and in better shape.
Nice car, nice dog.
We like the 4-legged dog, anyway.
Is the dog gonna be sick? Anyway, I knew a guy in high school that had a ’71, don’t remember which engine, and in black and silver, that car was awesome to look at and listen to!!
I bought a 71 Mach I in high school for $800…this was 1987. Rebuilt the 351 Cleveland bored over, 3/4 cam, 750 double pumper etc. It was fast. The unibody didn’t like all the extra power though so a good crack formed in the trunk over thw rear axle. I would just weld up a repair now but in high school this was disconcerting.
This blue car has rust through the floor rocket in to the underbody support channels. I wouldn’t touch this problem with a ten foot pole and I like these cars.
Someone really tack-welded quarter panel patches over the paint? Who wants to bet that they didn’t even remove the rusty metal first?
“SportsRoof” — back in the day we called them Flatbacks (play on Fastback). I don’t think that monicker is used anymore, but it quickly identifies them.
I’m loving the 3 Cragar and 1 Keystone wheel look. Kind of matches the history / condition of the car.