At $10,000, Does This 1972 Ford LTD Convertible Offer Unlimited Value?
Everybody knows you have to go big or go home, and with today’s Nice Price or No Dice LTD, you could do both. At the same time! Let’s find out if size—and price—matter.
As odd a car as the Range Rover Evoque convertible may be in general, yesterday’s eclectic decal-bedazzled and title-besmirched 2017 edition proved an even more polarizing choice. Indeed, pretty much each and every one of you hated it. At $39,500, it was also fiscally punching above its weight class, a fact made clear in the massive 98 percent No Dice TKO it suffered. The fact that, at least in Europe, one can get a brand new VW T-Roc convertible that approximates the Evoque’s shape almost to a T for less than two-thirds of our candidate’s asking is perhaps an even sicker burn.
Let’s think about things that were at once cool, and then became less cool over time, only to swing back to coolness as even more time passed. I’m thinking of cars like this 1972 Ford LTD convertible, which I’m pretty sure we all can agree has charted such an arc over the past 50 years.
Speaking of eras, it should also be noted that while this is a ‘72 model, it’s really a vestige of the swinging ‘60s and not the gas-crunching, granola-munching, smog-punching ‘70s. This was near the end of the age when car makers updated the looks of their cars every single year. In 1972 for example, the LTD received new bumpers front and rear, new tail lamps, and a spankin’ new trunk lid design.
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This model year would also prove pivotal as the first in which automakers were forced to rate engines in SAE net horsepower rather than gross, dropping the stated power of most oftentimes by as much as 50 percent. Case in point, the 385-series 429 4BBL V8 in this LTD was factory rated for 208 horsepower, while in 1971, it flexed at 360 horses. Now, admittedly, there was also a drop in compression ratio from 10.5:1 to 8.5:1 between these two model years, and that negatively impacted the power as well. In 1973, however, things started to get a whole lot worse, starting with the elimination of the LTD’s convertible body style.
Being a ‘72, that makes this either the last of the greats or the precursor to the not-so-greats. Being a convertible means that it’s perfect for those upcoming fall foliage drives that people who live around trees and don’t mind raking leaves always look forward to.
According to the ad, that convertible top is new, as also are the radiator and the exhaust plumbing. The big Ford originally hailed from Arizona and has done only 122,000 miles in total since leaving the factory. It looks to be in terrific shape with a serviceable arrest-me red paint job matched with a healthy dose of chrome and stainless steel trim. The turbine wheel covers are factory and have centers that poke out in amazing fashion, just like Friends-era Jennifer Aniston’s nipples. Those are wrapped in white-letter BF Goodrich tires which look to have decent tread and appear period-correct on the car.
The interior also appears to be in pretty good shape, with vinyl upholstery covering a wide bench in back and the split-bench up front that allows rear seat access. The C6 SelectShift Cruise-O-Matic three-speed is operated via a column shift freeing up the floorboard as if there wasn’t enough room down there. There’s a smattering of other luxury and convenience features here too, including cruise control operated by steering wheel buttons, plus power windows and air conditioning. In a fun bit of old-school advertising, the brake pedal has a “Disc Brake” warning for drivers unfamiliar with the stopping prowess of the front disc setup. It should also be noted that Ford used this LTD’s same style of AM/FM stereo in its cars well into the 1980s.
Mechanically, things seem solid, with the seller claiming that the car has always been garaged and has had annual fluid changes to keep it healthy.
That all brings us to the price and just how cool this 50-year-old LTD may be in today’s car market. That price is $10,000, and I’m going to weigh in and give it a thumb’s up for its coolness factor. You’ll all have to make up your own minds about that and then vote on that price.
So, what do you say; is this LTD worth that $10K asking in its present state? Or, does that price make it of limited interest?
You decide!
Boston, Massachusetts, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Bill Rice for the hookup!
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