One of the cars I’m proudest to have had the privilege to show you is “The Bus”, a 1964 Chevrolet Chevelle Super Sport that was brought back to life after years of being a rough-and-tumble oval track racer in the Southeast. The car was built, wrecked, rebuilt (many times over) until it was finally time to retire the car, then it managed to vanish off of the face of the earth for a couple of decades, reappeared at random, and was finally put out into a field before it was rescued, rebuilt, and put back onto the street of all things. The car still has a very visible patina, the paint is checked and flaking, and evidence of some of the harder hits are still worn with pride. If you want to see fans flock to a car, that Chevelle is something to behold. It’s like a magnet.

That’s where this mid-1970s Ford Gran Torino comes into play. This was the last thing I expected to find on my daily search, but looking at what is sitting here, it’s hard to not see it in the same position as The Bus. Without a doubt, it’s another forlorn stocker, a racer far past it’s prime, battle-scarred and sitting with one foot in the grave. For the most part, any mid-1970s Ford in this state is only going to be brought back to life by an absolute devotee of the brand…but it is difficult to look at this big-bumpered beast and not see it hunkered down over some Goodyear slicks on steel wheels, isn’t it? 

The buy-in price of this Torino is $250. Even that might be hard to swallow for what many would consider yard-art. But for those who have a soft spot for the grand old days of NASCAR, when it was something to actually watch and the cars were legendary. We look at this beast and we see Junie Donlavey’s car, or Dick Brooks’ Truxmore Ford. We hear the heavy-hitting 351, we see the shifter for the T10, and we see necks breaking as an old stock car cruises down Main Street. This needs to happen.

Facebook Marketplace link: Mid-1970s Ford Gran Torino ex-racer