1968 Ford Torino Gt 428 Cobra Jet Front Suspension Diagram

Fully Optioned 1970 Ford Torino GT 429 Super Cobra Jet Was Originally Bought to Tow an Airstream

Imagine struggling up the steep I-5 Grapevine north of Los Angeles in the early 1970s and getting passed by a bright orange 1970 Torino GT. Such an occurrence might not be surprising depending on what you were driving at the time, as plenty of period six-cylinders would be taxed to pull the notorious 6 percent grade in the best of conditions, never mind in the high heat of summer. A speedy ascent for a Torino GT would not be surprising, however, since they came equipped with a sporting suspension and many had 351 Clevelands for power. But now imagine that the brightly hued Ford speeding past was also pulling a twin-axle Airstream trailer. Say what? Well, in this case the scenario is more than just fantasy, for the very car featured here was purchased by the original owner for its ability to tow. Obviously the guy didn't care for the more conventional truck or station wagon.

As best as current owner Bob Leenstra can piece together, his Torino GT was originally ordered as a demonstrator by Bay Area Ford dealer Hayward Motors. No doubt that loading the car with almost every available option would garner maximum attention from the customers who came in and out of the busy high-performance dealership, and loaded up this Torino is. Of major interest to the fellow who first bought the car was its 375-horse 429 Super Cobra Jet with the Drag Pack option, in this case sporting 4.30 gears and a Detroit Locker diff. Ordering the Drag Pack gave you either 3.91s or 4.30s and an engine oil cooler, and automatically transformed a 429 Cobra Jet into a Super Cobra Jet replete with solid lifters, forged pistons, four-bolt mains, and a 780-cfm Holley. Just perfect for pulling the family travel trailer, eh?

The first owner sold this Torino in 1981, after which it changed hands several more times and went through a series of owners in northern Oregon. Each sale seemed to result in the car losing more and more of the unique parts that made it special, such as the original engine and the shaker scoop and hood. One of the prior owners Leenstra contacted reported paying chump change for the car in 1987, completely devoid of mechanicals and much of the interior. Nevertheless, one of the advantages of owning a Ford muscle car is the ability to identify its origins. Number one in the endeavor is the engine code embedded in the VIN; because of this, the car's Ram Air/big-block identity was never lost. The second resource for deciphering the true identity of many Ford muscle cars is to acquire the applicable Marti Report, which reveals the full extent of the option list.

Just such a Marti Report was acquired by the owner before Leenstra, so when the car was posted on eBay in 2008, Leenstra could see that it had been a fully loaded GT with the 429 SCJ, close-ratio four-speed, 4.30/Detroit Locker, Calypso Coral paint with Laser stripe, hideaway headlamps, 15-inch Magnum 500s, buckets, console, tach, and more.

"The drivetrain in this car is absolutely the best possible in my mind," says Leenstra, "but it was the rest of the options that sold me on it. I mean, Calypso Coral with Lasers and Magnums? I could hardly believe it!"

But as many of this Torino's prior owners knew, it's one thing to own a rare project car but quite another to spend the time, effort, and money to find the required parts and restore it. Yet Leenstra had traveled this road before with a similarly loaded 1969 Torino and well understood the task ahead. The parts chase lasted four years, but with the assistance of friend and Torino guru Mark Andersen, the bits and pieces were gathered, and restoration commenced in 2013.

Jeff Estabrook was called on to lead the effort of bringing the GT back to life. After stripping the car to the bone, he masterfully prepped and painted the car with DuPont single-stage urethane in the original Calypso Coral hue. Remnants of a welded-on trailer hitch were discovered and well understood based on the car's history, but removed during the unibody refinishing. Estabrook also accomplished all the assembly, farming out the upholstery work to Chris Metiz, and the original-spec engine rebuild to Dennis Kerslake. The details were sweated down to the nut and bolt, including the oft-discarded evaporative emissions system that came on 1970 models destined for a California sales district.

This loud and proud Torino finally emerged as a finished product in the summer of 2016, when we were privileged to photograph it on the mean streets of Seattle. It's impossible not to be impressed by the sheer presence of the big bright car, which arguably represents the pinnacle of regular production Ford muscle cars.

Precious few others may have been slightly quicker (perhaps a 1967 427 Fairlane or 1968 1/2 428 CJ Mustang?), but none have the combination of hardcore hardware and cutting-edge aesthetics of a loaded 1970 Torino GT. Fact is, such a car stands tall with the best supercars offered from other manufacturers as well. How so? Well, beyond the visuals, a SCJ Torino was an undeniable performer. We culled through plenty of vintage muscle car tests to find just a single example of something akin to Leenstra's Torino GT, finding it in the March 1970 issue of Super Stock. In an article titled "The 'Real' Boss 429 Is Here!" the editors tested a 1970 Torino Cobra with 429 SCJ and C6, believed to have 3.91s in the pumpkin. They were duly impressed, and wrung out a 13.63 at 106 with a super tune that was limited to tweaking the stock 780 Holley and dual-point distributor. Would a four-speed and 4.30s have been even faster? Who knows. But one thing we can say for sure: No matter whether on the Grapevine or a dragstrip, this Torino was built to pull like a freight train!

At a Glance

1970 Torino GT
Owned by: Bob Leenstra, Renton, WA
Restored by: Jeff Estabrook
Engine: 429ci/375hp Super Cobra Jet V-8
Transmission: Close-ratio Top Loader 4-speed manual
Rearend: 9-inch with nodular case, 4.30 gears, Detroit Locker, and 31-spline axles
Interior: Black Turin knit/vinyl bucket seats
Wheels: 15x7 Magnum 500
Tires: F60-15 Goodyear Polyglas
Special Parts: 16 factory options including 429 SCJ, Ram Air, Drag Pack, hideaway headlights, and Laser stripe

The SportsRoof bodystyle was the basis for the closed-roof Torino GT and included a stylish upturn/spoiler as part of the trunklid/endcaps. Base Torino two-door hardtops and Broughams were built using drastically different rear sheetmetal that didn't include the built-in spoiler.

Cobra Jets and Super Cobra Jets share the 4.36-inch bore and 3.59-inch stroke of all 429s, dimensions that are even more oversquare than the rev happy 427 FE. Compression was 1l.3:1 in either instance, as was the gigantic 2.24/1.72-inch valve combination. Such high-rev hardware made it all the more beneficial to pair either engine with some steep Drag Pack rearend gears. CJs and SCJs could be had with or without Ram Air, so the presence of a shaker doesn't help differentiate them.

This picture shows some of the mechanics behind the sweet-looking hideaway headlamp option, as well as the engine oil cooler that came with the Drag Pack. We were surprised to learn that the Torino oil cooler lines were braided stainless from the factory.

A shaker hoodscoop was the result of the Ram Air option on a 1970 Torino and, in the case of either a 429 CJ or SCJ, led to a J in the fifth position of the VIN. Even when this GT's engine had gone missing, the J identifier was an obvious clue to what the car had been all about.

Much of the interior was gone when Leenstra purchased the Torino, and a nice manual trans console was one of the most difficult parts to find, he tells us. The Hurst shifter handle was standard fare on 1970 four-speeds.

The optional tachometer seen here is an 8,000-rpm "ribbon tach." Cute, but far from the line of sight that would be useful.

We see Magnum 500s frequently today, but most have been added to a car that originally came with hubcaps. Not so with this Torino GT, which came with 15x7 Magnums from the factory according to the Marti Report.

The full-width honeycomb taillight/reflector treatment was unique to GT models of the Torino.

These trunk photos show part of the evaporative emissions system that was installed on California-bound cars. Rarely seen today, it is an example of the level of detail that was lavished on this rare Torino.

Source: https://www.motortrend.com/features/fully-optioned-1970-ford-torino-gt-429-super-cobra-jet-originally-bought-tow-airstream/

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