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Money No Object: 1971 Ford Torino 500 – When A Tribute Build Makes Perfect Financial Sense


Money No Object: 1971 Ford Torino 500 – When A Tribute Build Makes Perfect Financial Sense

So, fun fact for today…last night I won my first eBay auction for a car. Rather, I did the legwork so that a family member who has been aching for a nod to their past can get a new-to-them vehicle. Either way, I felt like the dude on the phone at a big-time auto auction while the cameras are rolling: while making sure that we had top bid, I was going through photos, assuring the buyer that everything looked good, that not having correct-code paint was justifiable, and so on and so forth. And while I was doing that I’m verifying payment methods, making sure that what I’m seeing is good, I’m on the phone with the seller, and I’m hitting that refresh button like it was my damn job. But it was his reasoning for going after this particular car like a starving wolf that caught me: this is a classic musclecar-era machine, but the paint’s wrong, there’s some details that don’t work, wrong year items, etc. But none of that mattered. All he cared for was that there was no rot (none), and that with minimal work it could be a sunshine daily driver (absolutely).

In the world of older machines, where if it isn’t perfect or modified perfectly, it’s worthless, there’s actually a bit of reason in that concept. You’ll pay out the nose for a correct, spot-on resto job. But what about a tribute that has all the right bits? That’s what has this 1971 Ford Torino 500 in my sights. It’s no Cobra…for starters, we’re missing some details like the Cobra-specific grille treatment and the rear wraparound ducktail spoiler combination. There’s no louvers, the Torino 500 badging is still present, the Cobras aren’t the right ones, and so on and so forth. And I don’t care. This is the car that would come out on a sunny day and is intended to do two things: make me happy the entire time I’m driving it, and to make everybody else sit up and take notice. The 429 under the hood will make the right noises and behave just like you want, and the paint…I’m a sucker for a well-done green car, what can I say?

It’d be nice to own a real-deal 429 Torino Cobra. But owning one that I’m not scared to drive to work on gorgeous days seems like a better proposition in the long run to me.

eBay Link: 1971 Ford Torino 500 


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3 thoughts on “Money No Object: 1971 Ford Torino 500 – When A Tribute Build Makes Perfect Financial Sense

  1. Cliff Morgan

    Nice looking car. Love that color. Interior seat covers are…… bleh. Udder than that, wish I owned it.

  2. drivindadsdodge

    flip car … somebody went to a lot of effort to polish that turd..
    bench seat ,that’s ripped even …column shift , no a/c
    auto zone gauge set … rusty headers and pipes
    my money is that the engine is even a smog 460 with bipity cam

    31k…. more like 10 on a good day …

    but I’ll bet some 55 year old guy wanting to re love the car ne never had in high school will buy it

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