The Mustang ll began an important new chapter in the Mustang saga.
Arriving in Fords showrooms almost simultaneously with the 1973-74 energy crisis,
and people came in droves to see it. With 385,993 units in its first year, the
Mustang ll came within 10 percent of the original Mustang's 12 month production record.
Dimensionally, the Mustang ll retained the long-hood/short-deck proportions of the first
generation Mustang, but on a reduced scale.
The Mustang ll was offered to the public in four different models in 74.
The standard,2 door. The Ghia,2 door. This was the luxury version
of the Mustang ll. The Standard,3 door. And the Mach 1, 3 door. The
Mach 1 being considered the sports version because it came standard with a
171 cid v6. While all other models came standard with a 140 cid inline 4.
The big news for 75 was the return of the small block v8,Fords answer to the
pleas of the small but enthusiastic band of buyers who still craved performance.
This was of course,the familiar 302-cid tuned to deliver 122 horsepower,increased
to 139 bhp for 76. In further pursuit of sport, having previously bought the rights
to the name,Ford offered the public the new Cobra ll in 76. It was quite striking in
white with the letters Cobra ll emblazoned in white across a thick,blue side stripe.
Louvers where the rear and side windows would have been, and spoilers front and rear
finished off a package that looked as if it should go like crazy.
There were no big changes in 77, just the addition of colour combinations for
the Cobra ll's, and t-tops were added to the option lists for fastbacks only.
For 78 Ford offered a revised Cobra ll, its side stripe thicker and running
along the center of the body sides, with the name COBRA emblazoned the
length of the door. A huge racing style stripe ran the length of the hood
over the roof and across the rear deck.
The real performance package for 78 was the KING COBRA. This like
the Cobra ll, was only available in fastback, and had every racy styling
touch any kid could want. There was a snake decal on the hood and tape
stripes on the roof, rear deck, and rocker panels, around the wheel wells
and on the front air dam that was also included. King Cobra was writ large
on each door, the air dam, and on the standard decklid spoiler. Very few
King Cobra's were made , making it one of the most collectable Mustang ll's.
