Ford LTD II

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ford
Ford-LTD-II.jpg
LTD II
Production period: 1976-1979
Class : upper middle class
Body versions : Sedan , station wagon , coupé
Engines:
Gasoline engines : 4.9–6.6 liters
(99–129 kW)
Length: 5474-5667 mm
Width: 1981-2027 mm
Height: 1336-1440 mm
Wheelbase : 2997 mm
Empty weight : 1697-2007 kg
Previous model Ford Torino
With the rear of the former Torino: LTD II Squire Wagon

The Ford LTD II was an upper middle-class rear-wheel drive model produced by the US car manufacturer Ford from 1976 to 1979. The parallel model of the LTD II was the Cougar offered by the Mercury Division .

Model history

The LTD II was introduced for model year 1977 and replaced the Ford Torino , on whose unchanged technology it was based; only the body was new.

Model name

For the new middle class series, Ford dropped the name Torino , which had been used successfully for ten years . The last model series of the Torino was recently heavily criticized because of its lack of economy; With a new name, the new mid-range model should be visibly differentiated from its predecessor.

The name LTD II made a reference to Ford's full-size models , which were called Ford LTD (for "Luxury Trim Decor") since 1965 . The terminology should suggest that the new mid-range model is related to the full-size LTD and is its “little brother”. However, this only applied until 1977, because the new version of the LTD presented for the 1978 model year was smaller than the outdated LTD II. In this respect, the model range of the Ford brand from 1978 was characterized by a contradiction.

Technology and body

Like the Torino, the LTD II also had a separate chassis in the form of a box frame. It was the last American mid-range vehicle that still used this design; the models from rival companies General Motors and Chrysler had long had self-supporting bodies . Ford presented the use of a box frame in advertising as the best means of filtering out road influences and increasing driving comfort for passengers, while critics pointed out that a vehicle with a separate chassis is above all cheaper to construct and easier to modify.

As a drive source, the LTD II used only eight-cylinder engines that were 4.9 liters, 5.8 liters or 6.6 liters. In the last model year, the largest engine was no longer available. The power transmission took place as standard via an automatic three-speed transmission.

The body of the LTD II had been redesigned. It was smoother and more angular. Special features were the very wide radiator grille and the double headlights arranged one above the other, which were a common stylistic device in the second half of the 1970s. A four-door sedan and a two-door coupé were available as body versions, the wheelbase of which, like the Torino, was slightly shorter. Coupé and sedan either had a closed C-pillar or a third side window known as the Opera Window ; higher quality versions also had a vinyl covered roof. Only in the first model year was there an additional five-door station wagon, the body of which from the B-pillar still corresponded to that of the Torino station wagon, i.e. it had strong curves in the area of ​​the rear fenders.

Ford provided three trim levels for the LTD II:

  • The basic version was called LTD II S ,
  • a higher-quality version was named LTD II without any additional addition,
  • the top version was offered as the LTD II Brougham .

The production

The sales of the LTD II were disappointing overall. The car appeared inappropriately large and heavy in the times of the oil crisis. Compared to the mid-range models from General Motors , which were redesigned for model year 1978 , which were much smaller and more economical, the LTD II fell behind in terms of sales, so that its production was discontinued in the summer of 1979. In detail, the production is distributed as follows:

Model year Coupe Sedan wagon total
1977 87,959 94,330 56,110 238.399
1978 85.289 85.255 - 170,544
1979 19,134 29,430 - 48,564
total 192.382 209.015 56,110 457.507

Derivatives

Pick-up version of the LTD II: The Ford Ranchero
  • A parallel model of the LTD II was the third generation of the Mercury Cougar . It differed from the LTD II only through a modified design of the front and rear sections as well as through independent equipment lines.
  • The seventh generation of the Ford Thunderbird , which is often referred to as "Torino Birds", was based on the chassis of the LTD II . The Mercury version with the designation Mercury Cougar XR-7 is derived from this .
  • A pick-up version of the LTD II was eventually sold as the Ford Ranchero from 1977 to 1979 .

successor

The Ford LTD II had no direct successor. With the cessation of its production, Ford Granada was originally conceived as a compact car and positioned below the Torino / LTD II , making it the second largest model of the Ford brand behind the LTD indirectly to the LTD II.

Technical specifications

Technical data Ford LTD II
5.0 liter V8 5.8 liter V8 6.6 liter V8
construction time 1977-1979 1977-1988
Engine:  Eight-cylinder V-engine
Displacement:  4,942 cc 5,766 cc 6,590 cm³
Bore × stroke:  101.62 x 76.2 mm 101.62 x 88.9 mm 101.6 x 101.6 mm
Performance at 1 / min:  134 hp
at 3,400		 152
at 3,600		 166
at 3,800
Compression:  8.4: 1
Mixture preparation: 
Ford twin carburetor
Valve control:  hanging valves
side camshaft
Cooling:  Water cooling
Transmission:  Automatic three-speed transmission
Front suspension:  Wishbone
coil springs
Rear suspension:  Rigid axle
leaf springs
Brakes:  front and rear disc brakes
Body:  Box frame
steel construction
Wheelbase:  2896 mm
Dimensions
(length × width × height): 		 Coupé: 5474 × 1920 × 1336 mm
Sedan: 5575 × 1920 × 1354 mm
Estate: 5667 × 2006 × 1394
Empty weight:  1803 kg 1868 kg 1897 kg
Top speed:  160 km / h 165 km / h 170 km / h
Consumption per 100 km:  18.0 liters 18.8 liters 21.6 liters

literature

  • Flammang, James M./Kowalke, Ron: Standard Catalog of American Cars 1976-1999 , Krause Publications, Iola 1999. ISBN 0-87341-755-0
  • Richard M. Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930-1980 . New York (Beekman House) 1984. ISBN 0-517-42462-2 .

Web links

Commons : Ford LTD II  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980, p. 316.
  2. ↑ See also Auto Catalog No. 22 (1978/79), p. 165.
  3. ↑ See e.g. B. the advertising statements in a sales prospectus from 1977 .
  4. ↑ See Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980, p. 317.
  5. ^ Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930-1980, p. 317: "Cleaner exterior sheetmetal".
  6. ↑ The Chevrolet Chevelle (1973) used such an arrangement for the first time; other General Motors and Chrysler vehicles followed suit within a few years.
  7. ↑ Langworth, p. 332 f.
  8. ↑ The technical data was taken from the car catalog No. 22 (1978/79); the engine outputs and speeds in other years deviate slightly from the data given here.